India's senior opener Shikhar Dhawan is set to lead the team in the India vs West Indies ODI series. While talking about criticism of his form and tough competition from younger players, Dhawan said that he is not bothered by any such kind of chatter as he has been facing it for the past 10 years.
When he was asked on the eve of the tour opener if he finds the criticism odd, Dhawan responded, "Ajeeb kya lagega, ab toh 10 saal hogaye (I don't feel odd, I have heard it for 10 years). People keep talking, I keep performing. If I listened to them, I wouldn't be here.
"I have the experience, so I'm not too worried. As long as I self-analyze and improve, nothing else matters," Dhawan added.
"I'm a very positive person. For me, positivity is about self-belief and the confidence you take in. I have that since I've been playing for so many years. I'm here because I've done some good things. That is the positivity I want to pass on to the youngsters."
With young talented players like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, and Sanju Samson, Dhawan will be facing competition from them.
Speaking about the atmosphere in the dressing room, Dhawan said, "Earlier, we had team dinners. Now, we do reels. We want to create the kind of energy where we put faith in each other to ensure the result takes care of itself. There is pressure in international cricket, sure, but it's not the kind of pressure that will change my personality or style of play. I have a lot of belief in myself and the team."
Full squads for the ODI series:
Team India - Shikhar Dhawan, Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh
Team West Indies - Shai Hope, Nicholas Pooran, Brandon King, Shamarh Brooks, Kyle Mayers, Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Jayden Seales, Keemo Paul, Keacy Cart
(Inputs from PTI)
