Shikhar Dhawan Scores His First Ever IPL Century In 13 Years

Shikhar Dhawan smashed his first T20 century in Delhi Capitals’ five-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2020 game in Sharjah, and was glad to have knocked off the milestone having played the IPL for 13 years.

Dhawan’s unbeaten 58-ball 101 helped DC past the line in chase of 180 to help them go to the top of the table.

‘It Is Very Special’

“It is very special. Been playing for 13 years, and this is the first. So really happy,” he said at the post match presentation. “At the start of the season also I was hitting the ball well but I wasn’t converting those 20s into 50s. Once you do that, you take that confidence into the next game. I just want to continue the same form and make the most of it.”

Dhawan said he was not ‘thinking’ a lot and just going with the flow according to the situation.

“I keep my mindset quite positive. I don’t think a lot. Of course, I do have a few strategies according to pitch. Just look to score runs, and not think pitch is doing this or that. I play with courage. I am not afraid to get out. Fitness is very important. We were lucky we got so much time off so it allowed me to refresh myself both mentally and physically. I am running faster and feeling fresher.”

The Match

Shreyas Iyer, Delhi’s captain, said it was amazing to see Dhawan and Axar Patel strike the ball the way they did. Iyer also said Axar was the unsung hero of the Delhi side.

“I was very nervous, didn’t know what to say because it was getting to the last over,” he said. “I knew that if Shikhar stays till the end, we will win. But the way Axar struck the ball was amazing to see. Whenever we give the Man of the Match awards in our dressing room, he is always there. He is an unsung hero. His preparation is always on point and he knows what he is doing.

“We’ve been gelling well as a team from the first day of our camp. We know the strengths and weaknesses of each other. We’ve embraced each other’s success and failure in the same way. I just told one of the teammates today that today the way he batted, it was really mesmerizing to see. Also gives me some breathing space as captain.”