Abhishek Sharma’s celebration after registering his second IPL hundred on Tuesday was all about proving his ability to bat till the end of the innings.
If an explosive opener like him can last all 20 overs — as is his focus this IPL — his team will invariably go past 220 batting first, which is always a tough total to chase down regardless of the conditions.
“I had a plan with Frankie (James Franklin, SRH assistant coach) and it was just he wanted me to bat till 20th over and even Murali (Muttiah Muralidaran, spin bowling coach and mentor) said the same thing. Maybe this is the first time I ever batted 20th over.
So that was just the celebration for that,” Abhishek said
at innings break on Tuesday following his unbeaten
138 off 65 balls against Delhi Capitals.
The 25-year-old managed just a lone boundary off the last 16 balls of his innings. Still, he finished at a strike rate of 198.52, underlining the breathtaking speed of his run-scoring. It augurs really well for the Sunrisers going forward and more so, as they have won three games on the trot.
If Abhishek can consistently bat right through the innings, that counts more for Team India as it makes their T20I batting even stronger than it already is.
Of course, with the left-hander’s high-risk game, there will be occasions he departs early without scoring enough, just as during this year’s T20 World Cup. One’s also yet to be sure whether his game against off-spin has improved.
Capitals’ skipper Axar Patel tried to negate Abhishek’s threat through Nitish Rana’s off-spin. But given his abilities as a batter, Abhishek will certainly not be fazed by part-time off-spin. Rather, diligent utilisation of left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who bowled only two overs, might have had tested Abhishek a little more.
Moving ahead, whether the Sunrisers’ opponents will put him to test against proper off-spin remains to be seen. But to be fair, since his 21-ball 52 against New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final, Abhishek has looked sharper and what’s more important, has been precise in executing the strokes.
So far in this IPL, and particularly on Tuesday, Abhishek relied on timing and placement as well on a slow surface rather than just hitting through the line or unleashing the stand-and-deliver stuff.
Show of maturity
In Abhishek’s words, the Sunrisers’ team environment in 2024 had been a “game-changer” for him as the franchise focused on their youngsters. Abhishek had tallied 484 runs that season, averaging 32.26 with a strike rate of 204.21, before making his
India debut on the tour of Zimbabwe.
The growth in maturity has been a big factor in his progress, believes Sunrisers’ bowling coach Varun Aaron. “Abhishek’s maturity been there over the last couple of years. You can’t be the No.1 T20I batsman in the world without being mature.
“Obviously, he’s somebody who sees the opposition, the surface and then decides to play a certain way. He did exactly that on a surface which wasn’t one where you could go hell for leather,” Aaron said.
