Former India player turned veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has opined the significance of India’s T20I series against England for Abhishek Sharma as well. He stated that the talented opener might have to leave his place for Yashasvi Jaiswal if he does not score runs. However, India will play against England in a five-match T20I series, with the first game taking place in Kolkata on Wednesday, January 22.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra’, he said, “Abhishek Sharma has been given a vote of confidence, which I liked, as he has been kept with the team. However, he was hanging by a thin thread. Let’s be fair, Yashasvi Jaiswal won’t let him breathe. He is breathing down his neck and it’s absolutely right. He is also a left-hander who plays similarly. He is a three-format player and is in form currently. After some time, you might start thinking as an Indian fan that he won’t get a chance in ODIs as Shubman (Gill) and Rohit (Sharma) will open, and then what cricket would he have played when he goes for the Champions Trophy?”
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“Only Ranji Trophy, that’s not a great story. If you see from that angle, this is a massive opportunity for Abhishek. He hasn’t made the most of his opportunities thus far. The century he scored in Zimbabwe was excellent. Then he played one good knock in South Africa,” Chopra added.
He has stated 256 runs at an average of 23.27 in 11 T20I innings as well. On the other hand, Yashasvi Jaiswal has scored 723 runs which came at a much better average of 36.15 in 22 T20I innings. However, Aakash Chopra added that the England seamers would try and take advantage of Abhishek Sharma’s issues against the short ball as well.
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“Short balls are troubling him and short bowling will be done to him here also. Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Gus Atkinson are there, and they are all going to bowl bouncers. Jamie Overton is also a tall bowler. So all of them will try to trouble you with short balls. That’s when I feel he will have to find a different way. The team’s philosophy has become that they will hit. However, if you have two bad innings while trying to hit, the story will change completely. It seems like Abhishek might get all five games as the selectors haven’t picked a third opener. However, it doesn’t take time for things to change in Indian cricket these days. So there will be immense pressure on Abhishek Sharma,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
