Abhishek Sharma (Image Credit: BCCI)
Back to Wankhede, Team India The opener will be hoping to rediscover his fearless touch on the pitch where he smashed 135 against England last yearMUMBAI: Considering the way Abhishek Sharma punished everything thrown at him in the run-up to the T20 World Cup, he has been tipped to light up the tournament. It also means that opposition teams put in extra effort to look for chinks in his armour.Go beyond boundaries with our YouTube channel. Subscribe now!With the exception of the Zimbabwe match – where the left-hander scored a half-century – the opponents have largely succeeded in keeping him quiet. Its results were 0, 0, 0, 15, 55 and 10. However, the team management showed their confidence in the 25-year-old, supporting him despite his obvious decline in confidence. With the semi-final against England on Thursday at Wankhede Stadium, changes to the starting line-up appear unlikely.
Indian fans have been waiting more than four hours to see their heroes outside Wankhede
India trained in full force on Tuesday, with the players spending a significant amount of time across the four nets on the field. Abhishek was the last of the XI to bowl, as he faced most of the net bowlers, with Arshdeep Singh and Tilak Varma the only regulars to bowl to him. He faced a leg-spinner, two off-spinners – working from both sides of the crease and bowling back length – and two right-arm pacers.
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s opener focused on playing as straight as possible, a routine they adopted after their early struggles in the tournament. His six dismissals so far show a clear pattern. Teams tried to disrupt his scoring areas, cramp his space, and keep the ball away.Against Pakistan, Netherlands and West Indies, he fell to spinners who fired long darts from behind middle and leg, keeping the ball outside his arc as he tried to pull or stick towards the leg side.
Against South Africa and Zimbabwe, he was fooled by slow deliveries from the fielders, which led to misfires.A high-stakes approach carries its own risks, and changing it overnight is never easy. However, there were signs of adjustment during his 30-ball 55 against Zimbabwe – the second slowest fifty of his T20I career – as he showed more intent to play with a straight bat.He has been troubled by Salman Agha and Aryan Dutt, so it will be interesting to see if England use Wheeljack early, although India have tried to balance their top-order left-winger with the inclusion of Sanju Samson.For Abhishek, the immediate challenge will be to postpone the pull against spinners in the early overs and plan for late deliveries. He could, for example, take a leaf out of Samson’s playbook against the West Indies – creating space to cut across the square of the wicket or get inside the line to get to the leg side. Experts believe he should trust his natural instincts but give himself enough time before changing gears.Just over a year ago, Abhishek scored a 54-ball 135 – his highest T20I score and second century – against England at Wankhede, facing an attack that included Jofra Archer, Jimmy Overton and Adil Rashid. The Indian think tank hopes he can draw inspiration from those innings and rediscover the gritty style of play that once made him the toast of Indian cricket.