The One: Cricket, My Life and More, Shikhar Dhawan’s autobiography, offers an unexpected look into his personal life. He talks about how he fell in love with a woman he lovingly refers to as “Ellen” while on the 2006 India A tour in Australia.
The team became suspicious when Dhawan secretly brought her inside the hotel room he shared with fellow tour participant Rohit Sharma.
The southpaw also shared Rohit Sharma’s reaction when he smuggled his girl into the room
As quoted by Sportstar, Dhawan wrote in his autobiography,
“My plan to meet up with this Englishwoman started taking shape, and we started partying regularly during that tour. She was very beautiful, and suddenly I was in love again! I thought to myself, ‘She is the one for me, and I am going to marry her. “
He went on,
“I would go over to visit Ellen after every game, and I quickly began sneaking her into my hotel room, which I shared with Rohit Sharma. Occasionally, he would grumble in Hindi,
“Mujhe sone dega?” (“Will you let me sleep?”)
Their little secret was soon discovered. What was private became squad lore when a senior selector on tour finally caught a glimpse of Dhawan and Ellen strolling hand in hand in the hotel foyer, but he didn’t feel guilty about it. He stated,
“One evening, when I headed for dinner with Ellen, news of her presence spread like wildfire throughout the entire squad. A senior national selector, who was on tour with us, spotted us walking in the lobby with our hands linked. It didn’t even occur to me that I should let go of her hand, because to me, we were committing no crime”
Dhawan freely acknowledges that his on-field performance suffered as a result of this infatuation, as he was unable to make an impression on the senior Indian team during that visit.
Even though Shikhar Dhawan’s cricket career is full with memorable events and classic innings, it’s tales like this that serve to remind supporters of the man who wears the jersey. His candid, humorous admission that he had secretly brought a woman into his hotel room, much to Rohit Sharma’s chagrin, has further enhanced his public persona and solidified his status as one of cricket’s most likeable celebrities.
On-field Dhawan ended his international career as one of the greats of the game. He played 34 Test matches, 167 ODIs, and 68 T20Is for India, but it was in the 50-over format that he really made an impression, scoring 6,793 runs at a remarkable average of 44.
During an ODI series against Bangladesh in December 2022, he was last spotted wearing the Indian jersey. Dhawan did not make the 2023 ODI World Cup roster, despite his stellar record in ICC competitions and steady performances over the years. His incredible career came to an end in January 2024 when he formally declared his retirement from all forms of international cricket.
How do you feel about Dhawan’s covert disclosure? Tell us in the comments section.
