Less than four years ago, when Shikhar Dhawan, seeming to defy mortality, hit his third World Cup century to set up India’s magnificent 36-run victory over the then defending champions Australia, none could dare to look beyond him for the opening setup. This was his 17th overall hundred in the ODI format, and by this time, he had already become a raging white-ball force. 

But how good was he? In the ten World Cup matches that he has featured so far, Dhawan amassed 537 runs at an average of 53.70 with three hundreds under his belt. Having been ruled out of the 2019 edition after only two matches, the two-time ICC Player of the Tournament rose to prominence once again with a match-winning century against Australia at The Oval.