Irfan Pathan questioned Abhishek Sharma's intent and awareness during the second T20I at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, October 31. The former India all-rounder said that Abhishek batted well inside the powerplay in the first innings but didn't continue in the same vein once the field restrictions were lifted.
After Mitchell Marsh won the toss and opted to bowl first, India lost four wickets inside the powerplay. Five out of the top six batters were dismissed for single-digit scores. However,
Abhishek held the innings together at a healthy strike rate. Harshit Rana was promoted up the order and stitched a 56-run stand with the Punjab all-rounder. However, during the partnership, Abhishek couldn't get much of the strike. In the 47-ball partnership, the opening batter faced only 13 deliveries.
India were eventually bowled out for 125 in 18.4 overs, with Abhishek top-scoring with a 37-ball 68, belting eight fours and two sixes. Australia went on to win the match by four wickets, chasing the target in just 13.2 overs.
“Abhishek Sharma once again showed that while everyone else seemed to be batting on one pitch, he was batting on another. It was a brilliant half-century, a superb innings, but if you look closely, you’ll notice it had two parts. During the powerplay, he batted beautifully, but after it ended, he should have continued with the same intent and awareness, which he didn’t,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.
Pathan opined that Abhishek should have shown better game awareness during the partnership with Harshit and tried to farm the strike, with an eye on scoring more runs for the team.
“Harshit did his job. He ensured the team didn’t lose another wicket and managed a decent 35-run knock. As a lower-order batter, that’s all you can ask for. You can talk about strike rate later, but he did what was required. Now, what was Abhishek Sharma’s responsibility there? The powerplay went well, he played freely, and even when wickets fell around him, he stayed composed. But during that stand, most of the strike went to Harshit Rana — Abhishek faced only 14 balls out of 47. That’s where he needed to take charge. No doubt he’s India’s No. 1 T20 batter at the moment, but he must show better game awareness,” Pathan added.
