Suryakumar Yadav, Abhishek Sharma NEW DELHI: Amid opener Abhishek Sharma’s poor form in the T20 World Cup, India captain Suryakumar Yadav on Saturday backed the explosive batter, saying, “Now it’s our turn to cover him”.“Abhishek Sharma ki forma ki jo chinta kar rahe hain, unki chinta mai kar raha hu. (I am worried about those who are worried about Abhishek Sharma’s form),” Surya said at a pre-match press conference in Ahmedabad.“He’s been covering us all year, now it’s our turn,” the India captain added ahead of Sunday’s Super 8 match against South Africa. Abhishek Sharma has failed to score a single run in the three matches he has played so far in the T20 World Cup and was dismissed for a duck in all three matches against USA, Pakistan and Netherlands in the group stage. The prolific opener, with a monstrous 192-plus strike tally, is enduring a sudden slim patch, which can be largely attributed to his return to competitive cricket less than a week after being hospitalized.The slow notes didn’t help his cause either.So far, the team has been able to successfully ensure that the results are not affected, but with the Super Eights starting on Saturday, it would be crucial for his bat to speak loudly. India will face South Africa in their opening match of the stage on February 22.Earlier, India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel also backed the left-handed batsman on Friday, saying the left-hander was just one innings away from returning to the zone.It was absolutely not discussed in our team group,” Morkel said of Abhishek’s three ducks.“He is a world-class player. Now we are going to a very important stage of the World Cup and I am sure he will do it.”“I’m pretty sure he’s hitting the ball in the net. “It’s just a matter of getting started and getting the innings going.”
