Birthday special: Rishi Dhawan – The in-form all-rounder ready for a comeback

Not too long ago, Rishi Dhawan was once seen as one of the promising cricketing talents produced in the country. Owing to his all-round abilities, he was also looked upon as the next big thing in Indian cricket. In fact, Dhawan has also played white-ball cricket for India but could not click at the highest level. He has made three ODI and a solitary T20I appearance for the Men in Blue.

As Rishi Dhawan turns 32 on Saturday, February 19, here’s a look at why the all-rounder indeed deserves to make a comeback in the Indian team.

Rishi Dhawan: The forgotten all-rounder of India

The Himachal Pradesh cricketer had not been in the scheme of things for the last four years in the IPL, having last played for the two-time winners Kolkata Knight Riders in 2017. Apart from KKR, Rishi Dhawan has represented two teams- Punjab Kings and the five-time winners Mumbai Indians respectively. He was the leading run-scorer for Himachal Pradesh in the 2018/19 season of the Ranji Trophy having amassed 519 runs from eight matches. In the 26 IPL appearances that he has made so far, Dhawan has scored 640 runs and registered 18 scalps to his name.

Although he was no longer in contention of making it to the Indian team since 2016, the all-rounder did not give up and toiled hard all these years and the results were finally there to be seen as he had an outstanding Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021/22. He finished as the second-highest run-scorer of the competition behind Ruturaj Gaikwad having amassed 458 runs from eight innings averaging 76.33 including five half-centuries. Apart from shining on the 22 yards, Dhawan also made the ball do the talking exceptionally well. He scalped 16 wickets, which made him the third-highest wicket-taker.

Rishi Dhawan’s hard work paid off handsomely as he was roped in by the 2014 finalists Punjab Kings for INR 55 lakh in the IPL 2022 mega auction. He would now aim to make a mark with some consistent all-round performances.