Semis vs England: Can Abhishek fire much like his 2025 Mumbai knock?

The last time India and England played in a bilateral match in Mumbai in 2025, it saw the best of Abhishek Sharma when he lit up the Wankhede Stadium with a breathtaking innings of 135 off 54 balls. Come tomorrow in the pressure cooker atmosphere of a T20 World Cup semi-final, the odds are now stacked against the explosive opener to shake off his self doubts when it matters the most.

 A sequence of three ducks in as many games set the alarm bells ringing in the Indian camp and even in the business-end of the tournament, things haven’t really improved with him showing an aggregate of 80 runs from six innings – with 55 being his highest score against Zimbabwe. The team management, however, continues to bat for him with bowling coach Morne Morkel wanting him to take a leaf from Sanju Samson.  

 Speaking at the pre-match media briefing, Morkel backed the 26-year-old who had a phenomenal last year to take over the mantle of world No.1 T20 batter and continue at the top of the heap despite the current poor run. “I think just sometimes this game can be hard on you, cruel on you, similar to the situation that Sanju found himself in,” the South African said.

 Samson’s magical innings of unbeaten 97 from 50 balls, which came in the wake of a nightmarish run in the bilateral series against New Zealand just on the eve of the World T20, powered India past the West Indies into the semi-finals at the Eden on Sunday. “In your career, you’re going to find moments like this and this is good growth for him, it’s good learning for him, for a young sort of guy finding his feet in international cricket, this will only help him down the line and for Indian cricket.”

“Abhishek, his way of playing is one or two shots that can find him that rhythm, that can give him that confidence back and that for me is a pleasing sign,” Morkel said.

 Recalling Abhishek’s blazing century against the same opposition last year, the former premier paceman said it may work for him to glance through some of his best moments from that innings. “It’s a fresh page for him tomorrow and an opportunity to go and do well. He scored a hundred here against England not so long ago, so for him it's just tapping into those little videos and looking at his feel-good moments and building a blueprint and knowing he's starting on zero tomorrow, it’s a new opportunity for him and enough for him to make a play.”

Looking ahead at Friday’s rivals, Morkel said he had the highest respect for Harry Brook’s men as an opposition. “I think playing against England, a team that is streetsmart and obviously there is a lot of quality in their side. Their batting is quite long and deep, which makes them a very dangerous side and then with the ball also, they have got wicked taking options,’’ he added.

“I feel tomorrow is going to be a good shootout between two aggressive teams. The side that can hold their nerves and read some of the conditions quite well and the quickest, I reckon will come out on top,” Morkel signed off.