Former India cricketer Robin Uthappa has backed Shikhar Dhawan to get back to form and score big runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League match on Tuesday. The Punjab Kings skipper has not been able to make a big impact with the bat this season thus far and scored just 138 runs in four matches at an average of 34.50. He scored one half-century but that too came in the losing cause against Lucknow Super Giants.
The veteran opener has been one of the most consistent performers in the cash-rich league since its inception and is the second-highest run-getter with 6755 runs after Virat Kohli.
Under Dhawan's captaincy, Punjab are off to a mixed start with two wins out of four but the triumph over Gujarat Titans in their last match boosted their confidence ahead of the mega clash against Sunrisers at their new home base in Chandigarh.
Uthappa, who won the Orange Cap in IPL 2014, asserted that the PBKS southpaw has set big standards for himself and predicted a big score from him in the Hyderabad tie on Tuesday.
“Shikhar Dhawan is due for a big score and we seldom see him going through an IPL without scoring big scores. I am amped up to see him score well and see him score big runs,” said the IPL veteran on Jio Cinema.
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{{/usCountry}}“Shikhar Dhawan is due for a big score and we seldom see him going through an IPL without scoring big scores. I am amped up to see him score well and see him score big runs,” said the IPL veteran on Jio Cinema.
Also Read | IPL match today, PBKS vs SRH: Head-to-head record between both sides; check fantasy team, pitch report
{{/usCountry}}“He has set some high standards for himself as an opening batter and has always been among the runs in the IPL. I am predicting a big score from Shikhar Dhawan,” Uthappa added.
On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad are also sailing on the same boat with two wins in four matches but they look like a more settled unit than Punjab with a power-packed batting line-up which has produced some explosive performances thus far.
Former KKR skipper and England’s World Cup-winning Eoin Morgan also made his predictions for Tuesday's clash but he differed with Uthappa and expected the SRH's batters to produce fireworks.
“I think more fireworks from Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Heinrich Klaasen, the names just roll off the tip of the tongue. It is not just in their team, that they are causing fireworks, they are creating a lot of chat around the tournament at the moment,” added Morgan.