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Abhishek Sharma stole the show as the India National Cricket Team completed a 3-0 clean sweep over Afghanistan in the three-match T20I series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on September 17.
The opener smashed a record-breaking century and sealed the game for the Men in Blue with his explosive batting against Afghanistan. The hosts could not recover from Abhishek’s brutal assault and ended up facing a massive 127-run defeat in the third T20I against India.
Abhishek Sharma leads India to a 3-0 sweep over Afghanistan
Abhishek Sharma has delivered a breathtaking performance, hitting his third T20I century in just 30 balls against Afghanistan in the third T20I in Delhi. With this ton, the left-hander broke Rohit Sharma’s record for the fastest T20I hundred by an Indian.
Rohit had scored his century in 35 balls against Sri Lanka in 2017. Apart from Abhishek, Sanju Samson also smashed a stunning fifty, although India lost some momentum in the middle overs. Afghanistan's chase started badly as they lost three wickets inside the first two overs.
The Indian bowlers then kept striking at regular intervals, with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Ravi Bishnoi taking three wickets each, as Afghanistan were bowled out for 92 in the final game.
Abhishek Sharma opens up after historic ton, talks about India’s tough phase
After the match, Abhishek was named Player of the Match for his record-breaking century and Player of the Series for his blistering batting performance throughout the three-match T20I series. Amid this, Suryakumar Yadav hails Abhishek Sharma after record-breaking century in 3rd T20I vs Afghanistan.
Abhishek said his record-breaking 100 off 30 balls is the result of the approach India has been following for the last two years. He believes that one or two poor series can’t affect the team’s confidence, referring to India’s losses in Ireland and England.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Abhishek Sharma said (as quoted by Cricbuzz) "We have been doing this for the last 2 years. I told this previously as well; one or two bad series won't define us as a batting unit. Because we wanted to dominate throughout the whole year before the World Cup, no matter against whom we were playing."
"But I feel as a cricketer, sometimes, it is going to go up and down. It is the team momentum and the way we think about it. I feel that's very important; that's when we need to be one unit and just focus on the next game and keep on dominating."
Abhishek Sharma reveals secret behind his fearless batting approach
The Punjab lad also explained that his attacking batting depends on having a clear process and knowing which bowlers he wants to target. He credited the head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shreyas Iyer for backing this high-risk batting style.
He added, "It all depends on the process. It is very particular for me, whom I am going to take down. I feel once you want to play in this way, it is important that the coach and captain are on your side. I feel it is because of them; we have been doing this for quite a few years. We wish to continue this."
Abhishek added that he does not want to restrict himself to any particular area, so he simply focuses on watching the ball and hitting it while making the most of the power play.
The Indian opener signed off by saying, "I feel I don't want to restrict any area. I just want to go and express myself. I don't want to force the ball. I just want to see and hit the ball. As I said before as well, you can't be sure all the time that you will do well. We have built a culture in the team that we need to maximize the power play."
