Rahul Dravid's call to exclude Shikhar Dhawan from T20I squad, says BCCI official

Shikhar Dhawan has been one of the most consistent batters in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the past few years. Dhawan, who is currently with the Punjab Kings (PBKG), has managed to gather 460 runs. However, the leading run-getter for them this tournament finds himself out of the Indian T20I squad for the home series against South Africa.

An official from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has now confirmed that it was on India head coach Rahul Dravid's remarks that youngsters were preferred ahead of the veteran.

According to Insidesport, a senior official said, "Shikhar has been a great servant of Indian cricket for over a decade. But in the T20s, you have to give chances to youngsters who have been doing well. Rahul had to make the tough call and we all agreed. Shikhar was informed by Rahul before the team was announced on Sunday."

Reports indicated that Dhawan might be given an opportunity given the team management was planning on resting senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. However, Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) Ruturaj Gaikwad and Mumbai Indians' (MI) Ishan Kishan have been picked over Dhawan.

The five-T20I series against South Africa will start on June 9 and be played over five cities - Delhi, Cuttack, Visakhapatnam, Rajkot, and Bengaluru.

The left-hander's last T20I for India was against Sri Lanka on their tour of the Emerald nation under Dravid's first coaching assignment with the national senior men's side. The Delhi-born has played 68 T20Is scoring 1,759 runs.

He is the second-highest run-scorer in the history of the IPL, with 6,244 runs at 35.08, including two hundred and 47 fifties, playing for different franchises (Dehli Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Mumbai Indians, Deccan Chargers, and now Punjab Kings).

During the ongoing session, Dhawan became the first player to hit 700+ fours in the history of the IPL, way ahead of second-place and former franchise teammate David Warner. This is also the seventh straight season where Dhawan has scored more than 400 runs.