India’s explosive opener Abhishek Sharma’s name is being discussed on tea stalls, offices, dinner tables, pre-match shows by experts and other places. Everyone is wondering what happened to a free-flowing Abhishek who destroyed batting lineups for fun. After three ducks, Abhishek scored a scratchy fifty against Zimbabwe. Not able to find that same bat swing, Abhishek has still got the backing of former cricketers, his teammates and the team management. Many have advised Abhishek to take his time as he can make up for it in just a few deliveries. Former India wicketkeeper-batter, Parthiv Patel, who has had a coaching stint with Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Gujarat Titans (GT) was asked the same question. Patel had a straightforward answer.
"Basically nothing. If I were there in the dressing room, I would tell Abhishek Sharma to just react to whatever delivery is being thrown at him. We have seen how skillful he is, not just six-hitting ability, but to score those big runs. He needs to go back to just timing the ball again. I felt, even in Kolkata, he was trying to hit the ball out of the Eden Gardens," said the 40-year-old.
Patel feels that timing the ball is the key alongside holding the shape. He is against the idea of the opener changing his attacking mindset, just respect a good ball.
"Here on this ground, the bounce will be true, there will be pace, and he has to make sure that he just tries to time the ball, so that he has that stable base to launch into bigger shots. To me, that's where he is losing his shape a bit. Nothing apart from that. I don't want him to change his mindset. You have to respect the ball, but you have to still be attacking with your mindset," Patel added.
Abhishek’s happy memory against England in Mumbai
The no.1 T20I batter has good memories in Wankhede against England. Last year, he blew away the England bowling lineup with his career-best 135-run knock. From five T20Is, he scored 279 runs against the English at an average of 55.80 and strike rate of 219.68. He has a half-century against them as well.