Abhishek Sharma and Harshit Rana were the only batsmen to withstand the rampant bowling attack from the hosts (Photo: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images) Captain Suryakumar Yadav threw his weight behind opener Abhishek Sharma’s aggressive batting style after India lost to Australia by four wickets in the second T20I at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday. Abhishek was the standout performer in an otherwise disappointing outing for the visitors, smashing 68 off 37 balls as India were bowled out for 125 in 18.4 overs. Led by Mitchell Marsh’s quickfire 46 off 26, Australia chased down the target in just 13.2 overs to level the series.
The boys are back! Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma will take on the Indian bowlers in the nets
Suryakumar praised Abhishek for sticking to his natural game despite the initial setbacks and wickets that kept falling alongside him. “Abhishek has been doing this for a while now. He knows his game and his identity,” the skipper said at the post-match presentation. “He’s not changing it and hopefully he’ll stick with it and play a lot more shots like that for us,” the skipper said after the defeat. However, the skipper acknowledged that India’s batting collapse in the power-play left them little room to recover and credited Australia’s new-ball attack with taking advantage of the conditions. “The way he (Hazlewood) played the power play, when you’re four down in the power play, it’s hard to recover from. Well over the top…” Suryakumar said.
Abhishek Sharma’s 68 off 37 was the only ray of hope in an otherwise dismal outing for the visitors. (James Ross/AAP Image via AP)
India lost Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar and Tilak Varma in the first five overs, with Hazlewood doing most of the damage during a fiery spell of 3 for 13. Abhishek and Harshit Rana later put on a 56-run stand to help India cross the 100-run mark. Reflecting on the defeat, Suryakumar said the team needed to replicate the disciplined approach they showed in the rain-affected first T20I in Canberra. “I think we have to do what we did in the first game. Bat well first and then come out and defend,” he added. Marsh, meanwhile, credited his bowlers for setting up the victory. “It was a good pitch to win. A bit of moisture and Hoff (Hazlewood) is a great bowler if there’s anything in it,” he said. Man of the match Hazlewood said he was happy with his rhythm.
Vote
What do you think India will focus on in the upcoming matches?
“So I’m just trying to put the ball in the right areas and we’ll see what happens. Everything is in a good place and ready to go (for the Ashes),” he said.He will play no part in the rest of the series and will be part of the first Ashes Test, which starts on November 21.
