SRH vs PBKS, IPL 2023: 'More than a hundred!' Shikhar Dhawan wins heart on Twitter

Shikhar Dhawan played his best IPL 2023 knock so far as the Punjab Kings batter scored a 66-ball 99 not out against Sunrisers Hyderabad at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday. The SRH vs PBKS game otherwise looked like going in the hosts' favour but Dhawan held on to the other end, earning rave reviews on Twitter.

Dhawan, who scored 86* in the last game, helped the side recover from 88/9 to 143/9 as his 55-run stand with No.11 batter Mohit Rathee, saw the latter scored just 1 run while facing two balls in a crucial and match-saving effort.

Dhawan, who shot 12 fours and five sixes during the course of the innings, also put himself at front of the Orange Cap race as he overtook Ruturaj Gaikwad by taking his runs tally to 225 runs in three games at an average of 225.00. His strike rate has been commendable as well at 149.00.

Likes of Prabhsimran Singh (0), Matthew Short (1), Jitesh Sharma (4), Sikandar Raza (5) fell flat on the day when Mayank Markande (4/15) was the architect of the PBKS batting collapse. Marco Jansen (2/16) and Umran Malik (2/32) had their say in the collapse too as Punjab were struggling to post 100 at one stage.

At 22/3 by the fourth over, all-rounder Sam Curran made an effort to resurrect the PBKS innings with Shikhar Dhawan. The Englishman was the aggressor too as he shot three fours and a six during his 15-ball 22 but was taken down by Markande in the ninth over.

Shikhar Dhawan made a desperate effort by bringing in Sikandar Raza as an impact substitute after Curran's fall but the Zimbabwe batter was sent back to the pavilion by Umran Malik. PBKS were soon down to 88/9 before the Punjab Kings captain took matters in his own hands.

Here are some of the Tweets praising the Shikhar Dhawan's 99 not out:

99*

Way more than a hundred for us! 🤩👏#SRHvPBKS #ShikharDhawan

— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) April 9, 2023

A captain-tivating performance by @SDhawan25 🏏💯#ShikharDhawan #SRHvsPBKS #RPSwing pic.twitter.com/kAH6XrY8aW

— R P Singh रुद्र प्रताप सिंह (@rpsingh) April 9, 2023

99* out of #PBKS 143. Unbelievable effort by Shikhar Dhawan. What an incredible day for left-handed batters in today’s #TataIPL
Rinku, Nitish, Iyer, Sai Sudarshan, Shikhi boy.

— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) April 9, 2023

Shikhar Dhawan deserves a chance in WC 🫡 pic.twitter.com/Y2j6xJp3Rb

— 💛 (@Alreadysad__) April 9, 2023

Mid-innings scorecard of the #SRHPBKS game where Shikhar Dhawan scored 99 out of Punjab's 143 runs 😯#IPLonJioCinema #IPL2023 #TATAIPL pic.twitter.com/sB1F735N69

— JioCinema (@JioCinema) April 9, 2023

Shikhar Dhawan - the lone warrior!

99* (66) with 12 fours and 5 sixes. The whole PBKS unit struggled, but the captain stood up and performed exceptionally well. Missed out on a century here! pic.twitter.com/U1bztz6zcx

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) April 9, 2023

Nothing, You're watching the most selfless cricketer of team India ever. Shikhar Dhawan, very less appreciated. pic.twitter.com/7fUo04QPry

— EngiNerd. (@mainbhiengineer) April 9, 2023