Calcutta: For a batsman set to make his maiden appearance in a multi-team international competition, the No.1 rank is certainly a big boost. Top-ranked among batters in T20Is, young Abhishek Sharma should be in a strong mindset as he goes into the upcoming Asia Cup, which will also mark his first tournament for India featuring several other countries.
After a consistent showing for Sunrisers Hyderabad, especially in the last two editions of the IPL, Abhishek backed it up with performances for India that were not just explosive, but more importantly, impact-making. He has proved so in India’s last two T20I series against South Africa (away) and England (home).
Struggling initially against the Proteas in their conditions, the 24-year-old showed he’s a quick learner with scores of 50 and 36 at a strike rate of 200 in the last two games. Thereafter, against the Englishmen, the left-hander was at his destructive best, with his 79 off 34 balls at Eden Gardens and the masterful 135 off just 54 balls at the Wankhede underlining it.
In this Asia Cup, the UAE conditions may pose a challenge or two at times for batsmen, especially against quality spinners and those tweakers who don’t usually err much in terms of line and length. From that perspective, there could be a little bit of pressure on Abhishek, as India too will be expecting him to make full use of the Powerplay.
However, batswing is one aspect that could come to the Punjab batsman’s rescue. And having worked with India’s World Cup winner and former limited-overs specialist Yuvraj Singh, that batswing has simply improved further.
“Even during his early days, I was always confident about Abhishek’s capability of playing big strokes and big innings. His batswing was quite good then itself and now, having worked under Yuvraj’s supervision, it looks even better.
“Those England quicks, like Mark Wood and Jofra Archer, were bowling at close to 150kmph (at the Wankhede), yet his execution of shots against such pace was superb. For a batter, batswing is crucial in T20 cricket in particular, and for Abhishek, that’s one of his biggest strengths,” former national selector Surendra Bhave, also Punjab’s coach till the end of the 2021-22 domestic season, told The Telegraph from Chennai on Wednesday.
The focus on proper cricketing shots along with efficient handling of the short-pitched stuff also bodes well for Abhishek in the assignments ahead, Bhave pointed out. “His improvement when dealing with the short stuff was expected as he has also had the guidance of Brian Lara in the Sunrisers team.
“Another aspect giving him an edge is playing in the ‘V’. Besides, when he’s a top-order batter and has all the copybook strokes at his disposal, why does he need to be cheeky?” Bhave explained.