"It was a very important knock for Shikhar Dhawan" - Parthiv Patel
Parthiv Patel believes Shikhar Dhawan's match-winning 98 in the first ODI against England was crucial to ease the undue pressure created on him.
Dhawan held the Indian innings together and strung crucial partnerships with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to help the hosts reach a defendable score of 317/5.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Parthiv Patel lauded Shikhar Dhawan's happy-go-lucky attitude while hoping the knock would have put to rest the doubts about his place in the side.
"The pressure is there because he plays only one format. Shikhar Dhawan's style is extremely unique because he knows one should remain happy always. He did not show the pressure and in my opinion, it was a very important knock for Shikhar Dhawan," said Patel.
The former Indian wicket-keeper also spoke in glowing terms about Shikhar Dhawan taking time to settle down and not going for the big shots early in his innings.
"He had done well in T20s but got an opportunity in only one match in the T20I series. The way he batted, he took his time. At times under pressure you play hastily with the intention of scoring quick runs but he remained composed. He has a lot of experience and according to me he played a very good knock," added Patel.
Shikhar reached his fifty off 68 deliveries and then accelerated to finish with almost a run-a-ball 98. He was unfortunate to miss out on a well-deserved century as he pulled Ben Stokes straight to Eoin Morgan at mid-wicket.
"Shikhar Dhawan will find this knock very satisfying" - Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan praised Shikhar Dhawan for not letting the pressure of younger batsmen taking his place in other formats get to him.
"Shikhar Dhawan will find this knock very satisfying. The reason for that is when you don't play all the formats, there is more pressure created on you as new players keep coming in the other formats. He kept that pressure on the side today," said Pathan.
The former Indian pacer concluded by highlighting that the knock would have been even more satisfying because the ball was darting around in the initial stages of the hosts' innings.
"The second thing is that the ball was doing a lot today at the start. The England pacers bowled extremely well and considering that this knock was very special. He may not have scored a century but it was a very satisfying knock," signed off Pathan.
There were calls from certain quarters for Prithvi Shaw to be included in the Indian ODI team at the expense of Shikhar Dhawan after the former's exploits in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
However, the experienced southpaw answered those critics with a match-winning knock in the first ODI. He will hope to continue in the same vein in the remaining two matches of the series.