SA v IND, T20Is | Like Virender Sehwag, Abhishek Sharma cannot expect much consistency from him: Robin Uthappa

According to Robin Uthappa, it is unfair to expect consistency from Abhishek Sharma and the young opener should be allowed to play freely in T20I cricket. The former Indian cricketer compared Abhishek Sharma to Virender Sehwag of the early 2000s and said that the young player’s contribution should be measured by impact and not consistency.

Abhishek Sharma grabbed attention in the Indian Premier League 2024 with his opening combination with Travis Head for SunRisers Hyderabad. Punjab’s opener has hit 484 runs in 16 matches at a staggering strike rate of 204.21 in the season, hitting 42 sixes and 36 boundaries. Abhishek played risk-laden cricket and was rewarded for being fearless, especially in the power play.

SA vs IND, 1st T20I: Live Reactions

Abhishek made his T20I debut after his breakthrough IPL season. HE He reached a hundred as early as his second T20I in ZimbabweWe get there with only 47 balls. However, Abhishek failed to cross 20 runs in any of his other seven innings in T20I cricket. Many times, Abhishek was dismissed early while trying to make big moves in the power play. Against Bangladesh at home in October, Abhishek scored 16, 15 and 4.

On Friday, Abhishek was dismissed for 7 out of 8 shots and fell to Gerald Coetzee on his debut in the game. Abhishek was caught by Aiden Markram while trying to clear the 30-yard circle and collect the boundary.

“I won’t look for too much consistency with someone like him. I would like to give him as much freedom as possible, like a Virender Sehwag in the early 2000s, when people said ‘just go and have fun’. Because if this is a 100 or 80 match-winning match , if he gets off to a fast start he is still serving the team, so I wouldn’t worry too much about consistency when it comes to Abhishek,” Uthappa told Sports 18 ahead of the T20I series opener in Durban.

It was a disappointing end to Abhishek as he tried to play too many shots in the powerplay and was left out in the first of the four-match T20I series.

WHY SHOULD INDIA RETURN ABHISHEK?

Uthappa backed Abhishek and said that the Indian batting order will benefit from the left-handed opener’s days of aggressive starts.

“The kid can play, so I think the two of them are at the top – him and Head have set the whole IPL on fire with their batting. So I think they fit together nicely as well. So I think the key is to give him the confidence to go out there and play the way he wants, I agree that’s when he’s at his most dangerous.” He’s not the type of guy to be consistent, but when he comes in, he’ll win you a game.

“I think he plays a huge role in generating momentum in the Indian side as well. And the rest of the batting line-up and a tall batting line-up that can feed into that momentum. We have seen what happens when a Suryakumar comes in and runs are on the board,” he said.

Despite losing Abhishek Sharma early, India got off to a flying start with Sanju Samson and Suryaikumar Yadav breaking into South Africa’s new-ball attack. Aiden Markram won the toss and chose to bowl on a cloudy afternoon in Durban.