Veteran Pakistan bowler Mohammad Amir, who described India opener Abhishek Sharma as a “batsman” before last Sunday’s match in the 2026 T20 World Cup in Colombo, issued a warning to the batsman after he registered three successive ducks in his first three matches in the tournament.
On Wednesday, in India’s final Group A match against Netherlands, Abhishek was dismissed off the third ball of the opener by Aryan Dutt. As he attempted to bowl, he was beaten off pace when the ball slid into the stumps, registering his third duck in as many matches, across just eight deliveries.
With the dismissal, Abhishek equaled the unwanted record of most ducks by an Indian in a T20 World Cup, along with Ashish Nehra. Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi and Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan top the overall list with five ducks each.
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Speaking on Pakistani show Game on Hai, Amir compared Abhishek’s struggles to those faced by Pakistani opener Saim Ayub at the start of his career during the Pakistan Super League (PSL). He noted that inexperienced batsmen are often tested by quality bowlers who quickly recognize technical weaknesses.
“Sim had the same problem when he came to play PSL a few years ago. He was new and used to bowl no-look shots. No one knew his weakness because most of his shots were on the leg side. Now, if you bowl on the third or fourth line, he struggles to take the decision. Even in his last two matches, he was dismissed for playing on the off side. Unless he improves his off side game, he won’t be able to progress. Strong bowlers will always test your weakness and take you out of your comfort zone,” said Amir.
“It’s the same with Abhishek. He wants every ball in the hole so he can hit it. But on bigger stages, or in ODIs, I can’t wrap every ball (You can’t hit every ball in compact cricket.) It has been directed by Salman Agha and Aryan Dutt in a similar manner. International cricket will expose you.
India hopes that Abhishek can recover from this poor run and rediscover his level before the Super 8 stage of the World Cup.
