Shivam Dube has revealed his conversation with skipper Rohit Sharma in early January that gave him an inkling about his possible selection in the squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad.
Dube admitted to having “sleepless nights” ahead of the squad selection for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
The 30-year-old all-rounder, who made his T20I debut way back in 2019, had fallen out of favour until last year when his performances in the Indian Premier League for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) saw him claw his way back to the Indian team for the Ireland tour.
That was a first step for Dube, whose phenomenal ball-striking in the middle-order for CSK continued in IPL 2024. However, even before the start of this season, Dube had put himself in contention for the T20 World Cup squad with a Player of the Series performance against Afghanistan in January.
With scores of 60* (40) and 63* (32) Dube impressed the management. The all-rounder revealed his chat with skipper Rohit Sharma, who was also on a comeback trail in T20Is in that series.
“When I got picked for the Afghanistan series, Rohit [Sharma] bhai told me I will [get a chance to] bowl and bat as well,” Dube said in a video shared on BCCI.tv.
“He asked “show us what you can do.” If the captain tells you we want to see you do this, you feel motivated to express yourself. My only thought then was how I could perform and help the team win.”
With scores of 60* (40) and 63* (32) Dube impressed the management. The all-rounder revealed his chat with skipper Rohit Sharma, who was also on a comeback trail in T20Is in that series.
“When I got picked for the Afghanistan series, Rohit [Sharma] bhai told me I will [get a chance to] bowl and bat as well,” Dube said in a video shared on BCCI.tv.
“He asked “show us what you can do.” If the captain tells you we want to see you do this, you feel motivated to express yourself. My only thought then was how I could perform and help the team win.”
The striking aspect of Dube’s hitting is the unmistakable similarity with Yuvraj Singh, who was unveiled by the ICC as an ambassador for the 2024 tournament.
“It feels nice when people compare my batting to his [Yuvraj],” Dube laughs.
“If I can also perform like him, it”ll be nice. When I came into the national team, Ravi bhai [Shastri, who was the head coach then] told me “you hit sixes like Yuvraj Singh.”
“From Yuvraj, I learnt that even if he wouldn”t hit off the first seven-eight balls, he covered it up towards the end. It’s something I’ve prepped myself up for mentally. If people think I can [hit like Yuvraj], maybe I actually can do it. It”s important to apply the right things at the right time.”
