Play aggressively, Sachin told Dhawan

Pacer Mitchell Starc, unfortunate to miss out on a maiden Test hundred himself when he fell for 99, paid tribute to Shikhar Dhawan’s blistering unbeaten 185 that has threatened to shut Australia out of his third Test at the PCA Stadium here.

After Dhawan said, “It was a dream for me to score so well on my debut,” the lanky fast bowler added with a little more detail, “I think he batted well. He’s obviously very off-side dominated and someone we can’t afford to give width to. Off stump is probably too wide for him.

“There were times when we were not as patient with him as we should have been and times when we gave him too much to hit, but he did bat very well.”

Dhawan agreed the his innings was the outcome of a lot of hard work. “I’ve been working hard since I was dropped after I played the last ODI for India,” he pointed out

“I worked really hard and changed myself and became a more mature player. I was waiting for a chance. I did very well in the domestic circuit, and was waiting for a chance to play in international cricket. I guess then went my way.”

So was he nervous when neared his 50 or 100? “I was nervous, but you didn’t realise it. I was certainly nervous, but I wasn’t as nervous as I used to be earlier.”

Dhawan looked like a man in a hurry, getting to his record-breaking hundred off just 85 balls, but said it was more his timing on the day. “I wasn’t really playing in a hurry. The fours were going on their own after the ball hit the bat… maybe that’s why you thought I was in a hurry.

“But I guess I was in a good flow today. I felt my shot selection was good and I played according to how I’d assessed the wicket. I didn’t feel that I rushed things.”

He (Tendulkar) told me, ‘We all have known you as a gutsy player... We’d like to see your gutsy nature and shots over here.’

Speaking on how it felt when he got to his century, Dhawan said, “I still remember when I debuted for India in the one-dayers and got out on 0o against Australia. And then Dhoni bhai and Raina told me that the players who’ve got out on 0 for India on debut, they went really big.”

Dhawan said getting his Test cap from Sachin Tendulkar had been a special moment coming into this game. “It was a great moment for me to get my cap from Sachin paaji,” he said.

“As kids, we all have dreamed that we wanted to play with Sachin paaji. He told me that we all have known you as a gutsy player, and you’ve been performing well in the domestic circuit. We’d like to see your gutsy nature and shots over here.”