Back from a knee injury and ready to lead Delhi in the Ranji Trophy, India opener Shikhar Dhawan on Tuesday shared a heart-warming video with his son on social media. Dhawan also wrote that his wife (Ayesha Mukherjee) and son Zoravar are here and he is looking forward to spending quality time with them.
“My head coach motivating me to play. Gabbar ko sirf chota gabbar hi maar sakta hai (Gabbar can only be beaten by a younger Gabbar),” wrote Dhawan on Instagram with a video of his son playing with him and hitting him in bed.
“Zoravar and my wife are coming to visit & I am so excited to spend quality family time with them,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“Zoravar and my wife are coming to visit & I am so excited to spend quality family time with them,” he added.
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Dhawan will lead Delhi in the Ranji Trophy against Hyderabad at the Arun Jaitley Stadium from Wednesday. The destructive southpaw sustained a knee injury during a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy game.
Dhawan is back in the Indian team but with KL Rahul doing well as an opener, it won’t be a task easy for him.
“I had 27 stitches on my knees and it was a deep cut. I always enjoy challenges as I never shy away from it. I never shy away from my failures and it’s always a learning experience. A learning man is always an earning man,” he said here.
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“This is a fresh start for me. I was hit on the finger, then on the neck, bruised my eye and then 30 stitches on the knee in Gujarat. Good news is New Year is coming. Also this is part and parcel of a sportsman’s life. I am happy that KL has done so well. He has grabbed the opportunity. So I am going to go and express myself,” he explained.
Asked about the knee, he said: “The knee is feeling well as I have passed all the tests. Feeling well and have healed well so I am happy to go onto the field now. Injuries are but natural. You got to accept that. It’s fine and I don’t create a big fuss about it. The start stop thing doesn’t affect me as I haven’t forgotten how to bat. My class is permanent and I will score runs.”
Workload management is an important issue for international cricketers and Dhawan feels that it is not fair to expect them to keep playing non-stop cricket and turn up for the state team every single time there is no international game.
“It depends if you have played a series then you need to give him rest so that he remains fresh for the next series. If you look at the big picture, when you play for India, that’s the priority. We are humans and not machines, so mentally and physically you need to rest and be fresh. An international player knows his responsibility and how much he can tax his body. There are times you get emotional and play for Delhi and in turn get injured and India assignment gets hampered,” he noted.