India’s veteran batsman Ajinkya Rahane believes Abhishek Sharma’s high-risk approach at the top could ultimately help India prepare better for the T20 World Cup by reducing over-reliance on the opener. His comments came after India’s 50-run defeat of New Zealand in the Vizag T20I, despite the hosts having already wrapped up the series.
Abhishek’s golden duck in Vizagwhile chasing a steep target of 216, he brought India’s batting depth under the scanner on a day when the opener failed to provide his usual explosive start. With the rest of the top-order also struggling, questions have been raised about how the batting unit will cope if Abhishek’s high-impact approach doesn’t work out. In an interview on CricBuzz, Rahane explained that such results are an inevitable part of playing fearless cricket at the top.
IND vs NZ 4th T20I: Highlights | Scorecard
“It’s going to happen with Abhishek Sharma. He plays a high-risk game. When it comes out, he’s going to be a match-winner – we all know that. But there will be times when he gets out, even on the first ball. That can happen in the World Cup. I thought India’s batting today was not dependent on Abhishek Sharma. Instead, they could clearly see that they were playing with seven batsmen, you had seven batsmen. eight marks on the side.”
Abhishek’s dismissal came off the very first ball of the chase when he tried to fire Matt Henry into the stands, only to be bowled to Devon Conway at deep point. What followed was a collapse at the top, with Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson also falling cheaply as they chased 216.
Indian batting display in Vizag T20I
Despite the failure of Vizag, Abhishek’s overall streak has been outstanding. He remains the third highest run-scorer with 152 runs from four matches, at an average of 50.66 at a staggering strike rate of 266.66. His 14-ball fifty in the Raipur T20I – the second fastest by an Indian – underlined his ability to decide games in the powerplay.
India effectively went for it with six specialist batsmen after Ishan Kishan picked up a niggle and opted to deepen his bowling instead. The middle order responded with intent as Rinku Singh made 39 off 30 balls after being promoted to No.4, while Shivam Dube launched a blistering counter-attack.
Dube smashed seven sixes and three boundaries in a 23-ball 65 to drag India from 82 for five to 145 for six, even eclipsing a rare failure from Hardik Pandya. While a late surge was not enough to prevent a 50-run defeat, the loss reduced India’s lead to 3-1 and highlighted the areas Gautam Gambhir will need to address before the T20 World Cup begins on February 7.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
January 29, 2026
