IND vs SL | Back in picture for opening slot in T20Is, reckons Shikhar Dhawan

KL Rahul had been doing well for the past two months and had been showing the consistency that the Indian team so desperately needed. His free-flowing game allowed Rohit Sharma to take his time and settle into a rhythm. Since Dhawan was out with an injury, it was only fair to give him a chance in the T20 series against Sri Lanka. After a rather unconvincing inning in the second T20I, the pressure was high on Dhawan to perform and so he did. He smashed a quickfire 52 to give India a solid start. Dhawan revealed his preparation during the time that he was out from the game with an injury and also threw light on what his mindset was on road to recovery. 

"It wasn't difficult because I knew I was out for a month so I could not do anything about it. I recovered and relaxed and in the second half, I went to the NCA, got myself, fitter. I also played the Ranji Trophy, did pretty well there and then joined the team," Dhawan said in the post-match press conference.

Dhawan believed that his half-century has put him back in contention for the second opening slot alongside Rohit Sharma. But he also revealed that he was not too concerned about it as it was not something that he had control over.

"All three players are playing really well. Rohit had a fantastic 2019, Rahul is doing extremely well for the past two months and now even I am back in the picture for the opening slot since even I made runs. So this is a headache for the coach and the captain and I don't want to think much about it," Dhawan asserted.

India made three changes in the third T20I and Virat Kohli came in to bat at an unlikely position at number six. When asked about the strategy of the team management, Dhawan said that it was probably the right move as the team management wanted to give the players some time in the middle and test the bench strength.

"It is about giving players like Sanju Samson and Shreyas Iyer some time in the middle because t is a completely different feeling when you are batting in a match and have overs. It is a good time to experiment because we can take that risk right now," Dhawan concluded.