'Let's paint the world blue, boys!' - Shikhar Dhawan pens touching note to wish Team India luck for ODI World Cup 2023

The eagerly anticipated ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 is all set to begin on October 5, Thursday, in Ahmedabad, with England, the defending champions, taking on the runners-up of the last edition, New Zealand. Team India will open their campaign against the five-time champions, Australia, on October 8, in Chennai. 

The World Cup's opening day is finally here, and despite not making it to the roster, veteran India opener Shikhar Dhawan wished his teammates the best in a heartfelt note. The 37-year-old is hoping that India will bring the trophy home for the third time.

"Chak De India!  Let's paint the world blue, boys! All the best on your World Cup journey. Bring that trophy home!  #TeamIndia #WorldCup2023," Dhawan wrote on his X account.

See Shikhar Dhawan's X post:

Chak De India! 🇮🇳 Let's paint the world blue, boys! All the best on your World Cup journey. Bring that trophy home! 🏏🏆 #TeamIndia #WorldCup2023 pic.twitter.com/pjC78lle4v

— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) October 5, 2023

Dhawan has sensational record in ODI World Cups 

Shikhar Dhawan has an exceptional track record in ICC (International Cricket Council (ICC) events. The 37-year-old received the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy Golden Bat award after finishing as the leading run-scorer of the competition.  

Over the course of two editions of the Cricket World Cups, he took part in 10 games and amassed a mind-boggling 537 runs at an average of 53.7 with three centuries. He had a thumb injury against Australia at The Oval, which forced him to miss the rest of the 2019 World Cup. It is worth noting that he had scored a hundred in that particular game, and it is his absence that was one of the main reasons India lost the championship.

The Delhi-born cricketer has accumulated 6793 runs from 167 games at an average of 44.11 since making his ODI debut against Australia in October 2020. He has scored 17 centuries and 39 half-centuries in the format so far. He didn't take part in an international match after an ODI series against Bangladesh in December 2022. 

India's World Cup Squad:

Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami.

Check: Cricket World Cup 2023 Teams & Squads