PHOTOS: How Dhawan spends his day off in Sydney

India opener Shikhar Dhawan had a good start to the Australian tour with his exploits on field.

The leading run-scorer of the recently-concluded T20I series, Dhawan is on a well-earned break and, boy, is he soaking it all in!

In the first T20I in Brisbane, he struck a blazing 76 off 42 balls, albeit in a losing cause. After the 2nd ODI was washed out, Dhawan continued from where he left off and scored a superb 41 off 22 to help India to a series-levelling victory.

And the 32-year-old spent his day off taking in the sights and sounds of Sydney.

Dhawan, whose wife Ayesha hails from Melbourne, took a boat ride cruising along the beautiful waterway with the splendid Sydney Opera House and SydneyHarbourBridge in view.

A relaxed Shikhar mentioned, ‘While I’ve strolled around the spectacular Sydney Harbour several times, it is for the first time that I’ve indulged in taking a yacht ride across, and it definitely is a great way to experience the two amazing Sydney icons,” he said.

“During all my previous visits to Australia, I’ve always been fascinated by the natural beauty, unique wildlife, iconic attractions, and the multicultural cities. It’s easy to see why it is so popular as a holiday destination for Indians and some of my personal favourite family holiday experiences are also from Australia -- including an unforgettable visit to the Great Barrier Reef, sipping the best brews in the lanes of the coffee capital of the globe -- Melbourne, and meeting the world’s happiest animals -- the quokka at Rottnest Island near Perth,” he added.