Indian opener Abhishek Sharma failed to deliver in all three games against Zimbabwe in the series that concluded on Sunday. In all three of his innings, Sharma could not deal with Blessing Muzarambani and the bounce he created on placid surfaces. In the series before this against England and Ireland too, Abhishek did not look his usual self with the bat.
Former Indian selector Kris Srikkanth said teams have started to figure out Abhishek and that Sanju Samson will return to the Indian side soon.
“Abhishek Sharma has been sorted out (by opponents) in international cricket, right from the World Cup. I think a tough call has to be taken against him now. I feel Sanju will get his chance again now. He will receive a call back 100%. The selectors will have to take a tough call,” he said in a video on his YouTube channel.
In his last 10 innings, Abhishek has registered only 191 runs with a solitary half-century. Notably, the southpaw has been dismissed for single-digit scores in his last four innings.
Out-of-favour India batter Hanuma Vihari questioned why Abhishek has received firm backing from the management while Samson was sidelined despite leading India to T20 World Cup glory with three back-to-back match-winning knocks.
“Before the World Cup, Sanju Samson did not perform in five games and lost his spot in the starting 11. He then made a comeback and became Player of the Tournament. In that same tournament, how many runs did Abhishek Sharma make?
“In the UK series, apart from one fifty, there were no scores at all. Not even 20s and 30s, no significant score. One fifty in the last eight matches. If you include the World Cup, three half-centuries in the last 18 matches,” Vihari said on his YouTube channel.
Vihari questioned why Samson has not received the same treatment during patches of poor form.
“How many matches did Samson play in the World Cup? Three. And fifties in all three. Abhishek’s highest score in the five matches is 16. Why is no one talking about it? When it comes to Samson, they say he is inconsistent. Fair enough. But he can win high-pressure matches on his day.
