Abhishek Sharma made his Super 8 debut match with South Africa after having scored three consecutive ducks in the group round. The Indian opener would have been keen to kick off and he did so with a boundary at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, 22 February.
It was now time to make a start as Abhishek, and India had a daunting task of 188 runs in front of them. Aiden Markram had crossed out the in-form Ishan Kishan in the first over. The over was finished off with a strike to Abhishek. Markram bowled a short outside off-stump ball and the southpaw took a square cut to get a boundary.
The fans at Narendra Modi Stadium had gone silent after the dismissal of Kishan, but with the boundary of Abhishek they were back to life.
Watch the video below:
https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/2025597185027694592/vid/avc1/720×1280/QyxkP5uk46qp6jXd.mp4?tag=14This border increased the confidence of Abhishek and he hit Kagiso Rabada with a sneaky six in the third over. The 25 year old exploited the speed of the South African driver and overtook Quinton de Kock to the maximum speed.
However, Abhishek Sharma and the Indian fans’ jubilation proved short-lived, as the flamboyant left-hander fell in the penultimate over of the powerplay while attempting to loft Marco Jansen over mid-wicket. The Punjab batter generated height but failed to get enough distance on the shot. Sensing an opportunity, Keshav Maharaj and Corbin Bosch sprinted in from the deep, and although a collision briefly seemed possible, Bosch kept his eyes on the ball and completed a superb catch to hand the Proteas a crucial breakthrough. In the end, Abhishek managed just 15 off 12 deliveries.
