Shikar Dhawan ends the day unbeaten on 185 !

This picture stays it all…….. not only the mush, everything up, and bright for Team India… they could not have dreamt better.

Though the first session was dominated by Aussies, who went on to make 408 from 273/7 this morning……….. a dream chase ~ where you would not appreciate the efforts of Murali Vijay returning with an unbeaten 83 – completely overshadowed by the debutant Shikhar Dhawan 185 of 165 deliveries and looking solid towards  a double and perhaps more………

Together they have kept Pujara waiting for 2 session and have amassed 283 runs in that time ~ India does not do that often – we have often seen batsmen make runs at snail pace  - innings would be good to read on paper but not to see.

To Gavaskar, a person with an apparent Bengali name asked ‘Are we seeing a new God of the Offside’ and Sunil retorted that being a Bengali and Sourav Ganguly being that………….. we are perhaps looking at a new star.  Another Q was whether India and these 2 in particular play so well in South Africa. Again, the correct answer was : ‘play and look at the match as they are ~ no doubt conditions in SA will be difficult, ball will be much harder, ground will be bouncy; Steyn and Co will be a different proposition – but none of that will take away any glory from the way this opening partnership has blossomed and in particular, the attacking way Dhawan has played today’.  Sure, he has got a great future. 

Australians even before the tour and during the thrashing have been talking of ‘Ashes’ – more of media hype – first concentrate on whatever you are doing and then plan for the future….. mere strategies and empty prattles are not going to take them anywhere.

Dhawan is in the elite Company of Lala Amarnath, RH Shodhan, AG Kripal Singh, Abbas Ali Baig,  Hanumanth Singh, Gundappa Vishwanath, Surinder Amarnath, Azharuddin, Amre, Sourav Ganguly, Virendr Sehwag, Suresh Raina ~ the list of Indians who scored a century on debut – among that Vishwanath’s 137 has been the highest and Dhawan has already outscored that with 185 not out.

Internationally, RE Foster, LG Rowe, DBS Kuruppu, MS Sinclair, JA Rudolph have all made double tons in their debut and will Dhawan join that list too……… ! We hope he does that tomorrow…

Well played Dhawan.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar