WATCH: Shikhar Dhawan turns emotional on his WC exit, thanks fans for their support

Dhawan picked up the injury during the June 9 clash against Australia in London and was initially ruled out of the next three games

The Indian cricket team, on Wednesday, received one of the biggest blows in the ongoing World Cup 2019 as opener Shikhar Dhawan got ruled out due to a fractured thumb. The left-hander picked up the injury during the June 9 clash against Australia in London and was initially ruled out of three games -- against Pakistan (June 16), Afghanistan (June 22) and the West Indies (June 27). Since he didn’t show any signs of recovery, the Indian team management was forced to take this decision. Dejected over his unfortunate exit, the Indian opener sent an emotional message to his fans before leaving the tournament midway. Dhawan took to his official social media handle and wrote, “I feel emotional to announce that I will no longer be a part of #CWC19. Unfortunately, the thumb won’t recover on time. But the show must go on.. I'm grateful for all the love & support from my team mates, cricket lovers & our entire nation. Jai Hind!” Here’s the post:

I feel emotional to announce that I will no longer be a part of #CWC19. Unfortunately, the thumb won’t recover on time. But the show must go on.. I'm grateful for all the love & support from my team mates, cricket lovers & our entire nation. Jai Hind!🙏 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/zx8Ihm3051

— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) June 19, 2019

Young wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant was brought in as cover for Dhawan after the team management decided to wait on the senior opener's recovery but the assessment of the injury this week did not throw up encouraging results. As a consequence, the 21-year-old Pant, whose omission from the original squad had kicked up a storm given his exceptional form in the past one year, has got the big break. Pant's addition to the side was backed by the likes of the legendary Sunil Gavaskar. The former captain felt that the Delhi-lad deserved to be in if Dhawan was to be forced out given the youngster's "cracking hot form". Pant had scored impressive hundreds during the Test tours of England and Australia. He also enjoyed a good run in the IPL last month, scoring 488 runs with a strike rate of over 160.