As star Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan turned 35 on Saturday, cricket fraternity came in unison to extend warm birthday greetings to the ‘Gabbar’.
From former Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh to former opening batsman Virender Sehwag, all took to their respective social media handles to wish Dhawan on his special occasion.
Wishing the Indian southpaw a very happy birthday, Yuvaj called on Dhawan to create some thunder Down Under as he prepares for the second T20I against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Sunday.
“Janamdin di lakh, lakh vadhaiyan jatt ji @SDhawan25. Wishing you good health and loads of success.! Create some thunder down under!,” he wrote on Twitter.
Janamdin di lakh, lakh vadhaiyan jatt ji @SDhawan25! Wishing you good health and loads of success.! Create some thunder down under! pic.twitter.com/dRsdbiq9cL
— Yuvraj Singh (@YUVSTRONG12) December 5, 2020
Sehwag, on the other hand, continued his witty style while extending his wishes to Dhawan on his birthday.
Sharing a picture of Dhawan’s doppelganger on his official Twitter handle, Sehwag asked the Indian left-arm batsman to score many more runs at his wife Ayesha Dhawan’s hometown in Melbourne.
“Many Many happy returns of the day to a ever smiling guy I admire a lot, @SDhawan25. Sasural mein khoob khoob run banao baaki matches mein bhi aur har khushi manaao. May you get to have many more celebrations, itni ki jaanghein laal ho jaayein,” he tweeted.
Many Many happy returns of the day to a ever smiling guy I admire a lot , @SDhawan25 . Sasural mein khoob khoob run banao baaki matches mein bhi aur har khushi manaao. May you get to have many more celebrations , itni ki jaanghein laal ho jaayein . pic.twitter.com/8U5MVHLlaX
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) December 5, 2020
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), meanwhile, wished Dhawan by sharing a glimpse of the Indian opener’s stroke-filled ton against Sri Lanka and listed down some of his cricket records.
“Fastest Test century on debut, Fastest to 1000 ODI runs in ICC tournaments,9,712 international runs and 24 tons.Here’s wishing #TeamIndia’s swashbuckling batsman @SDhawan25 a very happy birthday.Let’s relive his stroke-filled ton against Sri Lanka,” the country’s cricket board tweeted.
Fastest Test century on debut
Fastest to 1000 ODI runs in ICC tournaments
9,712 international runs and 24 tonsHere’s wishing #TeamIndia‘s swashbuckling batsman @SDhawan25 a very happy birthday.
Let’s relive his stroke-filled ton against Sri Lanka
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 5, 2020
Meanwhile, wicketkeeper-batsman and Dhawan’s opening partner during 1st T20I, KL Rahul wished the opener, tweeting, “Happy birthday @SDhawan25, lots of love and wish u all the happiness.”
Happy birthday @SDhawan25, lots of love and wish u all the happiness pic.twitter.com/iKtRUhXGD9
— K L Rahul (@klrahul11) December 5, 2020
Former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman also extended his greetings to Dhawan on his special day.
He tweeted, “Wishing @SDhawan25 a very very happy birthday. May you have a wonderful year and enjoy lots of success and happiness, Shikhar.”
Wishing @SDhawan25 a very very happy birthday. May you have a wonderful year and enjoy lots of success and happiness, Shikhar. pic.twitter.com/Wyrbsu3Nyh
— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) December 5, 2020
Dhawan made his international debut for India during his side’s One-Day International (ODI) clash against Australia at at Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in October 2010.
In June 2011, the Indian southpaw played his first match in the shortest format of the game for the national side against West Indies at Queen’s Park Oval.
Two year later, Dhawan made his Test debut against the Aussies in Punjab in March 2013.
So far, he has appeared in 34 Tests, 139 ODIs and 61 T20Is for the national side, amassing a total of 9,712 runs across the three formats of the game.
Popularly known as ‘Gabbar’, Dhawan is the quickest Indian to reach 1000, 2000 and 3000-run mark in the 50-over format of the game.
He is also the fastest batsman to score 1000 runs in ICC tournament.
The Delhi-born cricketer also holds the record of fastest player to notch up Test century on his debut when he reached the three-figure mark against Australia off 85 deliveries. He was eventually dismissed for 174-ball 187, which was decorated with 33 fours and two sixes.
Besides this, Dhawan has also featured in 176 matches in the Indian Premier league (IPL) and notched up a total of 5,196 runs in the lucrative T20I tournament.
