Indian cricket team head coach Rahul Dravid has praised all-rounder Shivam Dube’s performance in the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. Dube slammed 60* and 63* in the first two matches of the series and was the anchor of India’s dominant 6-wicket wins in both games. Dube also picked up a wicket in both games and showed up an all-round performance.
Rahul Dravid was happy with the way Shivam Dube made a comeback in the Indian cricket team. Dravid stated that Dube has come back into the team as an improved player and there is no doubt he always had this talent. Dravid added that Shivam Dube will have the chance to show his talent in the Indian Premier League, the way he did last year.
Rahul Dravid heaps praise on Shivam Dube
Rahul Dravid said, “I’m happy for him because he made a comeback after a long time. He is certainly come back an improved player. There’s no doubt that he always had the talent. But really happy to see the way he performed in this series.”
“He’ll have the opportunity to show in the IPL again, like he did last year. But really happy for him, he showed us that he’s got some really good ability through those middle overs against spin and also with the ball.”
Shivam Dube came into the Indian cricket team based up on his brilliant six-hitting skills in the Indian Premier League and for Mumbai in domestic cricket. Dube debuted for India in 2019 and became a regular part of the T20I side under Virat Kohli. However, there was a dip in Dube’s form due to which he was excluded from the team.
Shivam Dube’s talent was given justice in the Chennai Super Kings, who picked him up in the IPL 2022 mega auction. Dube scored 289 runs from 11 games in 2022 whereas his performance bettered in 2023 wherein he scored 489 runs from 16 matches at an average of 37.36. Dube’s strike rate was 159.92.
Due to his magnificent performance in the IPL, Shivam Dube earned a place back in the Indian cricket team and now will have the chance to make it to the T20 World Cup 2024 by performing well in IPL 2024. Dube is also seen as a replacement for Hardik Pandya, whose availability in the T20 World Cup is not fixed.
Hardik Pandya sustained an injury during the 2023 ODI World Cup match against Bangladesh and since then has been out of international cricket. However, Hardik’s replacement at the current time is undiscoverable as the player contributes with both bat and ball whereas Dube still has to work a lot on his bowling.
While India would head straight into the T20 World Cup 2024, the selectors will pick the Indian squad based on their performance in the Indian Premier League. There are plenty of names for one position which has made the job of the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee even more difficult.
T20 World Cup 2024 will kickstart in June whereas India’s first match in the tournament is against Ireland on June 5.