As per the recent reports of ESPNCricinfo, it has been understood that the Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan will be playing for the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Delhi Daredevils (DD) in the next season of India’s biggest money-spinner. It has also been reported that the southpaw was not satisfied with the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) not retaining him before the auction in 2018. Furthermore, he has expressed disappointment about his pay tag which is ₹5.2 crores. The SRH management used their RTM card for the left-hander in the earlier auction.

Earlier, there were several which suggested that Mumbai Indians (MI) or the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) will be buying Shikhar. But the final deal seems to have been penned with DD. It is after a gap of 11 years that Shikhar Dhawan is back with the Delhi franchise.

WATCH – Shikhar Dhawan Receives A ‘Gabbar’ Send-off

Dhawan has been traded in exchange for three players from the Delhi setup. Shahbaz Nadeem, Vijay Shankar, and Abhishek Sharma will join the SRH set up for the next season. This seems to be quite a strategic move from the Hyderabad franchise where they have covered most of their bases.

Nadeem has been one of the most consistent performers in the domestic circuit, from the last couple of seasons and he will now give SRH an additional Indian spinner. Vijay Shankar is back with the franchise after a one year gap. He along with young Abhishek are expected to strengthen what is a relatively weak middle-order. Shankar (₹3.2 cr), Nadeem (₹3.2 cr) and Abhishek (₹55 lakhs) were brought for a total of ₹6.95 crore. Hence, SRH will have to pay the balance amount in cash.

Shikhar played IPL 2008 for Delhi. Then he moved to Mumbai before going to Hyderabad. He played for the Deccan Chargers for one season before he represented the Sunrisers. With a tally of 2,768 runs in 91 innings, he is the highest run-scorer for the franchise. The Warner-Dhawan combo is one of the most brutal pairs in the IPL and it will be surely missed.