• PBKS all-rounder Rishi Dhawan bowled with a face shield against CSK on Monday.

  • Dhawan returned with impressive figures of 4-0-39-2.

IPL 2022: Reason why PBKS all-rounder Rishi Dhawan wore a face shield while bowling against CSK
Rishi Dhawan wore a face shield during PBKS vs CSK match (Image Source: @IPL)

After missing out on the last five seasons, Punjab Kings’ (PBKS) all-rounder Rishi Dhawan made his Indian Premier League (IPL) comeback during his side’s recently-concluded clash against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Monday.

The 32-year-old grabbed attention straightaway when Mayank Agarwal introduced him to bowl the fifth over of CSK’s chase. Dhawan was seen sporting a face shield while bowling, which left many wondering the reason for it.

Notably, the seamer had a decent outing with the ball for Punjab. He first cleaned up in-form batter Shivam Dube (8) and then dismissed dangerous MS Dhoni in the final over, helping PBKS beat the Super Kings by 11 runs at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

For the unversed, Dhawan wore the safety gear for protection as he recently underwent surgery for the nose injury that he sustained during Ranji Trophy.

The Himanchal Pradesh cricketer also opened up about getting the chance to participate in the IPL 2022 after that painful injury. Ahead of the match against CSK, PBKS posted a video on its official Twitter handle in which Dhawan revealed the reason for his absence from the initial phase of the fifteenth season.

“I am making an IPL comeback after 4 years, so it was a little disheartening when I got injured in the Ranji Trophy. I had to go through surgery which ruled me out of the first four matches, but I’m totally fine and available for selection now. I’ve been training hard and hope to have a strong comeback,” Dhawan said in the video.

“It was absolutely a low phase for me because I’d worked so hard to make a comeback, and I finally got a chance in the IPL after 4 years. I performed well in domestic cricket. I tried continuously for 3-4 years to make a comeback, so I was a little scared wondering whether I’d miss out on playing due to my injury,” he added.

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