I would have picked Gill over me: Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan had long been India's mainstay limited-overs batter, better known for his records in ICC tournaments. But his dwindling form over the last one year or more, amid the rise of young talent, saw Dhawan lose his place in the Indian team. He last played in December 2022 and is presently out of reckoning for a place in the ODI World Cup team. 

But when asked upfront if he could have picked himself in the current side over Shubman Gill, who eventually replaced him, Dhawan's blockbuster response left the reporter astounded.

Dhawan had long fallen out of favour in the T20I side, having failed to make it to the 2021 T20 World Cup team. His only hope was the ODIs with the home World Cup around the corner and being a left-handed top-order batter, it always gave him the edge.

However, his topsy-turvy run throughout 2022 saw him lose his spot to young Gill, who made a solid impression with his performances in the tour of West Indies and Zimbabwe before smashing a record double ton against New Zealand at home earlier in January this year.

In an interview with Aaj Tak, Dhawan was asked if he was the selector of the team or the captain and was picking the side, how many more chances would you have given himself. The veteran India batter snubbed himself to give a stunning response on Gill saying: "I feel the way Shubman is (playing at the moment). Like he was playing two formats and performing well in Tests and T20s. He was playing more matches in the international circuit and I wasn't."

The reporter further clarified asking that Dhawan wouldn't have picked himself and would have gone with Gill instead and the India star responded with a simple "Yes", leaving the journalist astounded at the remark.

Gill has been in terrific form in ODI cricket. In 2023, he scored 624 runs in just nine innings at 78 with three centuries and one fifty.