AUS vs INDIA: Player of the Series Abhishek has World T20 on the radar
Men in Blue wrap up series 2-1 as final match in Brisbane is called off due to inclement weather
When India won the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean in June 2024 under Rohit Sharma’s leadership, Abhishek Sharma was waiting in the wings to make his international debut. Now in little over an year since he took his bow, the explosive opener from Punjab has emerged as India’s go-to batter as they brace to defend their title at home next February-March.
The journey had been a fascinating one for the baby-faced Abhishek, a close friend of Shubman Gill, but far from him in terms of his batting mantra.
There is a method behind the madness in the way he goes about his task as the world No.1 ranked T20I batter was expectedly awarded the Player of the Series in the just concluded India-Australia series, which India wrapped up 2-1 after the fifth and the final game in Brisbane was abandoned on Saturday.
The truncated series, where only three matches could be completed due to rains, saw the in-form Abhishek compile a modest total of 163 from five matches but more significantly, he completed the 1000-run milestone in T20Is in only his 29th innings. He now has 1012 runs from 28 innings and an average of 37.48 with a strike rate of 189.51, which includes two centuries and six fifties.
The sequence of his scores Down Under shows only one fifty (23 not out, 28, 25, 68 and 19) but there was ample evidence of his growing confidence as he seemed to be carrying on from where he had left him in the Asia Cup in the UAE. If there was any doubt if Abhishek could cope with the extra bounce on Australian wickets, he seemed to be revelling in them – taking a chance by making room against some quality pace bowling for his clean hits in the powerplay.
“I’ve been waiting for this tournament. When I got to know we’re going to Australia for T20Is, I was very excited. Have seen throughout my career that Australia is very batting friendly. Feel that we could’ve got better totals in between,” Abhishek said after the match.
With the T20 World Cup set to take place in three months’ time, Abhishek said after the Brisbane game that it’ll be his dream-come-true moment to play the tournament. “It’s one of the biggest tournaments. It’s my dream come true moment if I’ll be playing the World Cup. As a kid I’ve always dreamt about this – winning the World Cup. Will make sure I’m ready for that tournament,” Abhishek said.
The 26-year-old batter of Sunrisers Hyderabad, a member of the 2018 Under-19 World Cup winning team along with the likes of Gill and Prithvi Shaw, also lauded Josh Hazlewood, who skipped the last three T20Is to prepare for the Ashes.
“The way he (Hazlewood) was bowling, it was beneficial for any team. I’ve said before that I always enjoy the battle between batters and bowlers. He’s a world class bowler. If you want to play good cricket and do well in the future, you have to face world class bowlers. I was practicing for these kind of bowlers only because that’s how you’re going to do well for your team,” he added.