India opener Shikhar Dhawan promises to go hard at South Africa today, despite taking 2-0 lead in the six-match ODI series
India's Shikhar Dhawan en route his unbeaten 51 during the second ODI against South Africa at Centurion on Sunday. Pic/AFP
Cape Town: Opener Shikhar Dhawan believes the Indian ODI team now has the right balance and x-factor to succeed anywhere, holding the No. 1 side in good stead ahead of the 2019 World Cup in England.
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"We have a lot of experience. For instance this is my second tour to South Africa, so I was better equipped for this tour, mentally and skill-wise. That plays a big role," said Dhawan ahead of the third ODI against South Africa today.
"The good thing is there’s experience and youth, but the younger players are also playing like they have had a lot of experience. That is a big strength of ours."
And Hardik Pandya gives the team the extra edge. "With an all-rounder coming in, the balance overseas is set. We have the option of not introducing spinners early, depending on the situation. So we have a lot of flexibility.
"If the game goes a certain way, we know that we can bring on spinners later than normal, and Hardik can bowl at that time.
That is certainly an x-factor," he added.
India, who have a poor ODI record in South Africa, is set for improvement after being 2-0 up in the six-match series. South Africa have struggled against the wrist spinners and injury to key players like AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis and Quinton de Kock has compounded their woes.
However, Dhawan promised that India will not take their foot off the pedal.
"I don’t think we guys are going to get complacent. It’s a big series for us. And of course South Africa played very well in the Test series. So we’d like to go as hard as possible and try to win whatever games come our way."
Besides the injuries costing them, South Africa have been blown away by wrist spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav. The duo shared 13 wickets between them in the first two ODIs.
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