‘Dil jeet lia gabbar ne’ – Fans react as Shikhar Dhawan shares heartfelt message after missing out from 2023 ODI World Cup squad

India’s opener Shikhar Dhawan has been left out from the 15-men squad for the upcoming ODI World Cup. The left-handed batter has shared a heartfelt social media post after his omission. He congratulated his teammates who were chosen to represent India in the World Cup 2023 and showed his support for the team, urging them to bring the cup back home.

Dhawan has done extremely well for India in the major tournaments. In the Champions Trophy of 2013, he struck 3 centuries and became the highest run scorer of the tournament and helped India claim the title. In the 2019 World Cup, Dhawan scored a hundred against Australia with a broken thumb which eventually ruled him out of the tournament. The former Sunrisers Hyderabad captain has been the crisis man for India in major tournaments.

Congratulations to my fellow teammates & friends chosen to represent India in the WC 2023 tournament: Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan tweeted, “Congratulations to my fellow teammates & friends chosen to represent India in the WC 2023 tournament! With the prayers and support of 1.5 billion people, you carry our hopes and dreams. May you bring the cup back home and make us proud! Go all out, Team India! #ChakDePhatte #WorldCup.”

In an interview earlier this year, Dhawan said that he would’ve preferred Shubman Gill over himself. He told Aaj Tak, “I feel the way Shubman [Gill] is (playing at the moment). Like he was playing two formats and performing well in Tests and T20s. If I was the selector, then definitely would have given the chance to Shubman. Would have selected Shubman over Shikhar.”

The stylish left-handed batter was dropped from the team due to his poor form in ODIs. In December 2022, he last played for the team against Bangladesh. Before being dropped, he averaged in the 20s and was thus replaced on the team by Shubman Gill.  The Delhi-born batter has scored 537 runs in eight innings in two ODI World Cups (2015 and 2019). In the ODI World Cups, his average raised from 44.11 to 53.70. In these eight games, the Southpaw has three centuries and one fifty.

Here’s how fans reacted