“What I liked about Abhishek Sharma's batting was…” - Irfan Pathan heaps praise on dashing opener batter

Former Indian all-rounder and commentator Irfan Pathan has lauded the dashing opening batter Abhishek Sharma for his disciplined batting through the ‘V’ to top-score with his 55-run knock off 30 balls against Zimbabwe.

Notably, Abhishek Sharma, who usually likes to play square, looked a bit different in the game against Zimbabwe, playing through the ‘V’, scoring his first half-century of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026 campaign. 

"What I liked about Abhishek Sharma's batting was the way he played in the V (mid-on to mid-off section of the field). 68 per cent of his runs came in front, which was a welcome change in approach, especially from a player who likes to play square. The pitch also helped. There was some poor bowling from Zimbabwe as well,” Irfan Pathan said on JioStar.

Furthermore, Pathan also backed the Indian team management’s decision to open with the left-right combination, while he had reservations about Ishan Kishan moving to the No.3 slot in the batting order.

"I am interested to see how this left-right combination pans out for Team India. Yes, I would not have preferred Ishan Kishan to bat at number three, but you understand what the Indian team was trying to do,” he added.

Furthermore, Pathan was a bit surprised by Zimbabwe’s approach in the powerplay overs as their skipper Sikandar Raza wasn’t seen bowling early on in the innings. However, he felt that the difference in the top-order combination might be the reason behind Raza coming to bowl later in the innings.

"I was actually a little surprised that Sikandar Raza didn't come on to bowl early. I think he was waiting for the powerplay to finish, but he should have come in as soon as Ishan Kishan came in to bat. That would have been the right way to go about it. This is what the Indian team management wanted to do, to avoid having three left-handers coming in one after another, so it worked out for them,” he observed.

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