Rishi Dhawan A solution to India's All Rounder Problem

Rishi Dhawan A solution to India’s All Rounder Problem: Stuart Broad and Ben Stokes for England; Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Marsh for Australia; Hamilton Masakadza and Elton Chigumbura for Zimbabwe; Dwayne Bravo for West Indies; Tim Southee, Corey Anderson and James Neesham for New Zealand; the Great Jacques Kallis and Vernon Philander for South Africa; Angelo Mathews from Sri Lanka and Bilawal Bhatti for Pakistan – these men have been the stigma of pace with the ball and runs with the bat for their respective countries. It is very argumentum to not find any of the same qualities from cricket’s biggest nursery India, a country that has produced Karsan Ghavri, Madan Lal, Chetan Sharma, Kapil Dev, Manoj Prabhakar and Irfan Pathan.

The pitch is a green top; the captain decides to go with 5 bowler/6 batsmen strategy. Certain teams would have the advantage of a fast bowling all-rounder but none for India. Indian Captains and retired players have, in the past, made statements on a need for Kapil Dev like all-rounder. All the aspects contribute to the eulogy of Rishi Dhawan – the most promising of the all-rounders talent in India’s domestic circuit.

First of all, we take a look at his overall record in the longest format of the game. A veteran of six seasons, Rishi Dhawan has featured in 43 FC matches for Himanchal Pradesh and North Zone and swanks 1858 runs scored at a vigorous average of 40+ and 192 wickets taken at a even improved average of 27.

Rishi started his professional career as an opening batsman for Behaar Cooch U-19s but has batted at no. 6 or below for the most of his FC career. His start as a batsman was not up to the mark where he managed only 194 runs across two seasons. His breakthrough season was in 2011/12 when he scored 348 runs at an average of 58 and smashed four half-centuries. From then on, he never looked back. Continuous progress and a decent technique helped him to be promoted at no. 6 as a genuine all-rounder.

A 125-135 kph bowler who opens the bowling for his team with an in-swing and out-swing weaponry, Rishi Dhawan relies on his line and length and the ball that nags off the seam to hunt his opposing batsmen. Starting with a solitary wicket in his debut season, Rishi Dhawan worked his way up to become the leading wicket-taker in the 2013/14 Ranji Trophy season. The same season he took six 5-fers and just narrowly lost the ‘All-rounder of the Year Award’ to Parvez Rasool. The previous three seasons he has been one of the Top 5 wicket-takers in the domestic circuit.

His expertise are not limited to the longer format of the game but his records in the shorter formats too are no less than exceptional. Rishi’s importance and worth as an all-rounder can be justified by the amount Kings XI Punjab spent to buy him at IPL Auction 2014, 30,000,000 INR, making him the second-highest un-capped grosser in the history of IPL. Rishi’s re-payment of the faith meant that Punjab retained him for the latest season.

A player with such capabilities, records and consistent showings in the domestic circuit should already have been in the national team fighting for the all-rounder’s spot but he is nowhere near the picture. Such was his hard luck that Indian selectors named seven all-rounders in the 30-man probable squad for the World Cup but it didn’t featured Rishi Dhawan and to add insult to injury, six of the seven all-rounders named were spin-bowling options.

Ravendra Jadeja’s consistent failures and Stuart Binny’s ineffective bowling in the test format sets the platform for Indian think tanks to atleast try him in the longer version of the game. His records and team members prove that he is a hard worker and meant for bigger things. Maybe one day his patience and continual string of good performances in every format might force Indian selectors to pick him and the no. 7 problem that the country is facing, would be solved.