Abhishek Sharma’s campaign with the bat in the ongoing T20 World Cup went from bad to worse on Wednesday, February 18, as he registered his third consecutive duck. This time, the Netherlands’ off-spinner Aryan Dutt got the better of the southpaw at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Abhishek tried to pull a delivery through mid-wicket but misjudged the length of the delivery. The ball wasn’t short enough, and it sneaked under his bat and made a mess of the stumps.
Former India opener Virender Sehwag said that the ball was there to be hit. He said he can understand what Abhishek would be going through as he got dismissed for nought in consecutive innings during his career. Sehwag suggested that instead of trying to whack the ball from the outset, Abhishek should give himself a bit of time in the middle.
“It was a ball to be hit, but he missed it. I have been in his shoes, making 2-3 zeroes, but making a comeback is not that difficult because it is just about the mindset. It is about shot selection, which is where he is making a mistake. The expectations from him are to score right away, and he may make a mistake. But he should play some balls while he is not scoring runs, try to play some balls,” he said on Cricbuzz.
Meanwhile, former India pacer Mohit Sharma mentioned that either Suryakumar Yadav or Tilak Varma should have tried to up the ante during India’s innings. The Mumbai Indians’ pair added just 30 runs in their 28-ball partnership.
“You cannot be batting with the same strike rate all the time. Someone in the partnership has to decide when and how to counter. That is very important,” Mohit Sharma said.
India eventually posted 193/6 on the back of Shivam Dube’s blistering 66 off 31 balls. In reply, the Netherlands were restricted to 176/7, with Varun Chakaravarthy bagging a three-for.
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