Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan was critical of Abhishek Sharma even though he played a sensational knock of 68 runs against Australia in the second T20I of the five-match series. Pathan remarked that though Abhishek batted incredibly well in the powerplay, he wasn't able to score runs at the same pace as the innings progressed, showcasing his lack of game awareness.
“Abhishek Sharma once again showed that while everyone else seemed to be batting on one pitch, he was batting on another. It was a brilliant half-century, a superb innings, but if you look closely, you’ll notice it had two parts. During the power play, he batted beautifully, but after it ended, he should have continued with the same intent and awareness, which he didn’t," Pathan said on his YouTube channel.
Abhishek's inning keeps India afloat
Notably, Abhishek was by far India's top-scorer against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). While the Men in Blue's top-order completely failed and they had gotten restricted to 49/5 at one stage, it was the left-hand batter's 56-run partnership with Harshit Rana that provided the side with some much-needed stability and helped them cross the 100-run mark.
One of the main reasons why Abhishek's flow of scoring runs was broken was due to the fact that Harshit ended up consuming a lot of deliveries. While the latter did score 35 runs, he ended up taking 33 deliveries and maintained a strike-rate of just 106.6. However, Pathan feels that Harshit did what was required during the situation, ensuring that the team didn't lose another wicket and was instead critical of Abhishek for not taking responsibility when he needed to do so.
“Harshit did his job. He ensured the team didn’t lose another wicket and managed a decent 35-run knock. As a lower-order batter, that’s all you can ask for. You can talk about strike rate later, but he did what was required," Pathan stated.
"Now, what was Abhishek Sharma’s responsibility there? The powerplay went well, he played freely, and even when wickets fell around him, he stayed composed. But during that stand, most of the strike went to Harshit Rana — Abhishek faced only 14 balls out of 47. That’s where he needed to take charge. No doubt he’s India’s No. 1 T20 batter at the moment, but he must show better game awareness," he added.
Australia's comprehensive 4-wicket win over India
Meanwhile, Australia had a rather comfortable day at the office against India at the MCG. The visitors could only score 125 runs on the board before being bundled out and the Aussies went on to chase down the target with 40 deliveries left to spare. The Baggy Greens have taken a 1-0 lead in the series and the Men in Blue will be desperate for a victory in the third T20I that will take place at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart on November 2.