Abhishek Sharma was once again at his best as he took on the South African attack in the third T20I at Dharamsala on Sunday night. Even though the target was a modest one, still it needed the Indians to be wary of a South African comeback. Southpaw Abhishek ensured that with an 18-ball 35 which knocked the winds out of the South African pacers. By the time he fell, Abhishek had ensured that more than half the required runs were on the board.
Even before the South African series, Abhishek has been toying with rival bowlers in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The southpaw’s strength is his mental ability and alertness. He is able to gauge the situation and play accordingly.
Former India opener Robin Uthappa lauded Abhishek for his mental fortitude and said the Indian reminded him of Sri Lankan opener and legendary batter Sanath Jayasuriya. “Even before the series, he was playing the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and was just gunning teams down. So, you knew he was in good form. It’s about spending some time out there, and I think that first ball from Lungi Ngidi really set things up for him. From there, there was no looking back. He understood that they were trying to stifle him with tight lengths on middle and leg stump, but if they erred even slightly, he was there to punish them. He’s already hit over 300 sixes in T20 cricket, which tells you what a powerful and dynamic batter he is. In fact, he reminds me of Sanath Jayasuriya—sheer dominance as an opening batter. It instils intimidation and fear in bowlers, something you only see when players are in scorching form. Despite being a youngster, he’s had a prolific year. Teams are planning for him, trying to bowl in areas where he doesn’t score, but he seems to have solutions. That proactive thinking is quite amazing,” Uthappa said on JioHotstar.
Uthappa said he was impressed with Suryakumar Yadav’s captaincy in the game. “It was smart captaincy from Suryakumar Yadav to extend the spells of both fast bowlers. He trusted Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya to do the job later if needed. The way he rotated and changed the bowlers was very well paced, pretty astute captaincy, definitely.”
Bangar praises Indian bowlers
The Indian bowlers were on spot in the game and former Indian player Sanjay Bangar praised them for their discipline and execution. “Such a disciplined effort from the Indian bowlers. On a ground considered to be a batter’s paradise, where you expect to come under pressure, they made sure they picked up wickets with the new ball and swung it both ways; both Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana. That has been the hallmark whenever they’ve got it right; they’ve troubled most top-order batters. Getting Reeza Hendricks at the top was a terrific setup from Arshdeep, followed by Harshit Rana with a special delivery—hurried and sharp through the air, which helped break the back of the middle order. This was followed by brilliant support bowling from Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube. All in all, whatever was on offer for the seamers was exploited brilliantly by the Indian bowlers,” Bangar said.
Steyn bemoans SA’s inconsistent show
Consistency has become South Africa’s bane and former pacer Dale Steyn said it was a matter of concern. “The combination South Africa are trying to mix up is never quite the same every game, and I’m not sure what exactly they’re looking for. It creates insecurity among the batters because they don’t know where they’re batting or what their role is. David Miller batted superbly in the last game to guide South Africa past 200 along with Donovan Ferreira, and then in a game like this—at a ground where Miller has played the most, he’s sitting on the bench. I’m not understanding what South Africa are trying to do. If they’re saying they’re just experimenting, it almost sounds like they don’t care whether they win the series or not. There needs to be stability in selection. Continuous changes over the time makes it very difficult for the team to consistently perform,” he stated.
The pacer was highly impressed with Harshit Rana’s performance. “What impresses me most is that he wants the ball in his hand. He didn’t play the first two games, got his opportunity in this game, and ran in hard and fast. You rarely see a captain push an opening bowler through three overs straight away, but both opening bowlers did that. It shows that Harshit Rana really wants to be part of this team. He grabbed his opportunity with both hands. He bowled on merit, exactly how he wanted to—very skillful. Above all, you can see the desire. It’s fantastic to see a player make the most of his chance,” Steyn said.
