Shikhar Dhawan wanted to cast THIS cricketer in a Bollywood film

Former India opener Shikhar Dhawan recalled his first impression of MS Dhoni during the launch of his memoir `The One: Cricket, My Life and More`. Dhawan revealed that he was instantly struck by Dhoni’s charismatic presence, comparing him to a `film star`.

“I wanted to cast him in a Bollywood movie; he looked like a film star with that long hair and easy smile,” Dhawan wrote. The Ranchi-born Dhoni, in his early cricketing days, sported signature shoulder-length hair, that quickly became a trend among the youth across India.

Dhawan added that when he shared his cinematic idea with Dhoni, the former India captain burst into laughter, throwing his head back in amusement.

“We were having a chat about my motivation when I suddenly blurted out, `I want to play for India and I want to make you a Bollywood hero!` He threw back his head and laughed,” expressed the 39-year-old.

The One-Day Internationals (ODI) being his premier format, Dhawan made his debut on October 20, 2010, against Australia. Though he was chosen for the three games, the first and third matches were washed out.

Expressing views ahead of his debut match, the former left-handed batsman stated that he was nervous and was unable to sleep the night prior to the game day.

“Before the first match in Kochi, there was so much nervous energy bubbling inside me that I could not sleep the whole night. But when I got up in the morning, it was raining heavily, and all my hopes turned to nought. No action was possible that day,” the New Delhi-born wrote in his book.

The nervousness continued to bother Dhawan ahead of his second ODI match. The veteran then consumed a sleeping pill to calm his nerves.

“Then, just ahead of the second ODI at Vizag, I took a sleeping pill to soothe my nerves. I thought it was important to sleep well, and I was worried that my performance would suffer if I went through another round of insomnia as I had done on the eve of the first match,” he added.

The day arrived when Dhawan stepped onto the field donning the Indian colours. The `Men in Blue` won the toss and elected to field first.

The Aussies posted a total of 289 runs. In an attempt to chase down the target, the left-hander then opened the innings with Murali Vijay. The debut did not turn out as expected for Dhawan, as in the very first over, he was bowled out for a duck on a Clint McKay delivery.

Dhawan, who usually smiles through wins and losses, did a similar gesture. “I walked off from the crease with a smile pasted on my face, but inside, I was kicking myself hard. I had visualized myself playing dazzling shots and piling up a huge amount of runs for India for so long that I found it difficult to wrap the reality around my head,” he wrote in his book.

(With PTI Inputs)

This article first appeared on Mid Day