Senior Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan’s dazzling batting in Napier gave Team India an early lead of 1-0 in the ongoing five-match One Day International (ODI) series against New Zealand.

During the opening ODI against the Kiwi team, Dhawan reached the milestone of 5000 runs. Speaking about his achievement, the Delhi batsman said it was all “part of the journey”.

“This milestone is part of the journey. I am happy to achieve it and will be looking forward to scoring more runs for my team and do well consistently. Once you get the experience, you take the things with ease and you know what to do and what not to do. I back my instinct and know my technique suits. It is a mental adjustment… once I am at the pitch I create a plan in that particular moment,” Dhawan said on Friday.

The ongoing ODI series against New Zealand is being seen as a preparation for the upcoming ICC World Cup 2019.

Speaking about the Indian squad, the 33-year-old said competition was high. Dhawan also credited Indian youngsters with creating a lot of healthy competition in the team.

“Take the case of Prithvi Shaw, the way he came into the Test team and scored a century and then 70 runs. Everyone has to be on their toes. Our team has been performing very well. Our bench strength is also very strong,” Dhawan explained.

Dhawan also said his partnership with Indian skipper Virat Kohli was quite a “normal thing” as the duo had been playing together for a long time.

“We (Virat Kohli and I) rotate the strike very well, that is one thing that keeps the pressure off. If one hits the boundary, it boosts the other,” Dhawan said.

“We always plan that our top order scores more and stays longer at the pitch. But it also depends on the target, match to match, score to score and a little bit on the mood. If the target is 300 or plus, we cannot play slow. In the first 10 overs as an opener we have to put up scores quickly and create momentum,” Dhawan said.

India have taken a lead of 1-0 in the ongoing ODI series against New Zealand. The two teams will next meet in the second ODI of the five-match series at Mount Maunganui on January 26.