Sanjay Manjrekar described Dhawan as a "huge" fan and highly praised his performance.

After over six months since his last international match, India opener Shikhar Dhawan dazzled with the bat and was the leading run-scorer in the match. Despite Dhawan’s 79-run knock, India lost the first ODI by 31 runs, failing to chase a 297-run target. He made 10 fours during his stay at the crease in the domestic season despite an average performance. After falling victim to Keshav Maharaj, the 36-year-old looked in sublime form. Sanjay Manjrekar, a former cricketer and now commentator, was extremely impressed with Dhawan’s performance and admits he’s a “huge” fan. 

“I’ve always admired Shikhar Dhawan. This is one of the very few batters I’ve seen who has gotten better in the last three or four years of his career, even though he is approaching his 30th birthday. After a long time, he has played tremendously. I consider that one of the best innings,” stated Manjrekar. 

“I love the way Shikhar Dhawan faced Marco Jansen and the spinners too. He looked the part, which has been Shikhar Dhawan’s story in white-ball cricket for the past couple of years. In IPL, you only realize that this guy isn’t getting any younger when you see him fielding in the deep, but when you see him bat – brilliant,” he concluded.