Former Indian spinner Rahul Sharma has showered praise on Abhishek Sharma after India secured a six-wicket win against New Zealand in the third T20I at the Hnry Stadium, Wellington, on Tuesday. Sharma compared the Indian opener with legendary Indian batter Rohit Sharma for his ability to hit sixes.
Meanwhile, the left-hander completed his fifty off just 15 balls as he was able to hit the ground running in the Powerplay overs, in which India posted 118 runs.
The southpaw eventually went on to score a magnum opus knock of 113 runs off 38 balls, including nine fours and 11 sixes. This is Abhishek’s fourth T20I century as he once again proved his mettle.
The left-hander added 133 runs off just 43 balls with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who scored 45 runs off just 19 balls, for the opening alliance.
“Abhishek had the opportunity to see and grow with T20 cricket because of the time he came in. But he (Rohit) used to hit the ball outside the ground even in U-19. I have played with him from that time. T20 was not even there at that time. Rohit used to play that way before. Both have come from different setups. So you cannot compare Abhishek to Rohit. But Abhishek is showing good game awareness and better shot selection,” Rahul Sharma said on ‘Ash ki Baat’.
Rahul admitted that playing ODIs is different from playing T20Is. Abhishek has scored 2196 runs in 69 List A matches at an average of 33.78.
“ODI is a different game. 50 overs is long. You need to know how to set the game. In T20, you can play with the same gear, and even if you flop in ten games, the coach will back you, as they know you can win the game once you get going. But Rohit has batted differently in each format. But yes, going forward, you can put Abhishek in ODIs,” he said.
The fourth T20I between India and New Zealand will be played at Eden Park, Auckland, on Friday.
