'You prepare to succeed or you prepare to fail,' says Shikhar Dhawan about his fighting spirit
India's opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan threw light on his strong willpower that has helped him overcome setbacks and make successful comebacks to the national team. Shikhar Dhawan also spoke with pride about the success he has enjoyed with the Indian team in ICC tournaments.
In a freewheeling chat on IPL franchise Delhi Capitals' Instagram handle, Shikhar Dhawan talked about his willingness to learn from his mistakes and come back strong every time.
"I have a strong will power. I don't feel sad about my failures or injuries, but learn from them. If I fail, I reflect on the mistake I did, what I could have done better. I don't live with those failures, don't keep thinking about them. Even when I was not getting selected for the Indian team, I was not thinking too much. If my name has to come, it will come. I made my debut for India at 27 years of age. Now suppose I am dropped, I feel it's not a big deal, I only think about what I need to do to make a comeback. I keep positive visualisation, positive affirmation about myself, so that my energy remains positive."
Shikhar Dhawan expressed gratitude to God for the success he has enjoyed. He highlighted that even though luck plays a role, a person's courage to handle failures is the defining factor.
"I use the law of attraction that my dream is getting fulfilled due to God's grace. Luck is important but you need to be courageous, need to have strong willpower. You need to have the heart to handle both success and failures. Successful people do not get success all the time in life, but they handle their failures well, keep a check on their emotions and have the belief that they will overcome these setbacks."
Shikhar Dhawan added that this courage only comes with positive thoughts, and that you need to choose if you want to prepare to succeed or prepare to fail.
"That belief comes with hard work, speaking positively to oneself. You need to be your best friend. If you talk negatively to yourself, even if there are 10 positive people around, it will not help. So, talking positively, having big dreams and working extremely hard to achieve those dreams is critical. You prepare to succeed or you prepare to fail, so what you want is up to you."
Shikhar Dhawan on his love affair with ICC tournaments
Shikhar Dhawan's love affair with ICC tournaments started from his under-19 days itself, when he emerged as the top-scorer in the under-19 World Cup with 505 runs to his name.
Shikhar Dhawan expressed that he was delighted to play the under-19 World Cup, as he used to admire players like Parthiv Patel who played for the India under-19 team.
"It was a great experience to play in the under-19 World Cup. It was a dream come true for me. Playing India under-19 at that time was a big thing, a big achievement. We used to admire Parthiv Patel when he played for the India under-19 team. So, when I was selected for the World Cup, it gave me immense happiness."
Shikhar Dhawan also added that his excellent performance at the under-19 World Cup, where he emerged as the top-scorer, helped him get a direct entry into the Delhi Ranji Trophy team.
Shikhar Dhawan acknowledged that it was not easy to get into the Delhi squad those days, with the presence of stalwarts like Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Mithun Manhas and Aakash Chopra in the team.
"Then after going there I scored so many runs, I still hold that record of maximum runs with those 505 runs. From there my career got a boost, I directly got to play Ranji Trophy for Delhi. That time playing Ranji Trophy for Delhi was a big thing. We had huge names like Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Mithun Manhas and Aakash Chopra plying their trade for Delhi at that time."
Shikhar Dhawan also reflected on his transition to the senior Indian team and the success he has enjoyed at the various ICC tournaments, including the 2013 Champions Trophy.
"It is a great feeling to make a contribution on the big stage. The 2013 Champions Trophy was a comeback for me. After scoring a century on Test debut, I got a chance in ODIs and I scored a century against South Africa on my comeback. Because once you score a century, the first feeling is that your place in the team is secure. Otherwise you are only thinking about that. There are so many good players, so if you don't perform in few matches your place will be taken by someone else. And then we won the Champions Trophy, I got the golden bat. We all performed so well, we didn't lose even a single match. Jaddu, Virat, me, Rohit - everyone performed so well. And when you get the golden bat as a part of the champion team, it is a big prestigious award. I was extremely delighted."
Shikhar Dhawan added that he does not prepare any differently for the ICC tournaments, and said that is fortunate to have been able to give his best in such major events.
"It is not that I prepare differently for an ICC tournament. It somehow turned out that way. Even in the 2015 World Cup, my form was not very good before that but I peaked at the right time, so that was very good. Unfortunately we lost in the semis. Even before the 2017 Champions Trophy, I was not performing that well. But I started well and went on to win the Golden Bat
On being asked if he feels that he would perform well whenever he plays an ICC tournament, Shikhar Dhawan replied that this is not the case and that the intention is to perform well in all matches.
"No, I do not get any such feeling. But I was always think that I will perform well, whether it be a bilateral series or ICC tournament or Asia Cup. Since, as a cricketer I am putting so much effort, I want to perform well everyday. But every time you cannot succeed, so you need to manage your failures."
Shikhar Dhawan is the fastest to 1000 runs in ICC tournaments, with an outstanding average of 65.15. He also has the 2nd best strike rate of 98.25 among such batsmen, along with 6 centuries.