Former Indian national cricket team off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has chosen India’s next batting superstar, and surprisingly it is not Shubman Gill or Abhishek Sharma.
Ravichandran Ashwin said explosive opener Abhishek Sharma is India’s next batting superstar as he has all the ingredients to be highly successful across all formats.
Abhishek Sharma – World No. 1 T20I batsman
Indian T20I opener Abhishek is currently ranked No. 1 in the ICC Men’s T20I Batting Rankings with a historic 926 rating points, and second on the list is Phil Salt with 849 rating points.
Abhishek’s 926 rating points are the best points scored by any batsman in the history of T20I cricket as he has broken the all-time record of former English batsman Dawid Malan.
He has been a revelation for Team India when opening the innings in T20Is, and he looked in great form in the second game against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
At a time when all other Indian batsmen were struggling to get ahead, Abhishek played his natural aggressive cricket and gave a tough challenge to the Australian bowlers.
He continued his very aggressive batting throughout the middle order and scored 68 runs off 37 balls with the help of 8 fours and 2 sixes, leaving India all out for 125 runs.
I really believe, man, that India’s next batting superstar is Abhishek Sharma – Ravichandran Ashwin
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Ravichandran Ashwin said that Abhishek Sharma is India’s next batting superstar, and his only challenge will be to control the downswing. Ravichandran Ashwin elaborated:
“I really believe, man, that India’s next batting superstar is Abhishek Sharma. Look, he doesn’t really have any problems, no problems, but there is a challenge. “Problem” is a very big word. His challenge is to be able to control that downswing. I was reading somewhere that he still talks about Brian Lara because Lara had a big backlift. His bat swing was also fantastic, so Abhishek has to be able to play Test cricket. “Talked to Lara about controlling the swing of that bat.”
“So just think about his mentality, it’s sticking to that level. Even that day in Canberra, when the match got called off, he was talking to Shubman Gill. His body language looked like he was talking about the bat swing and the pull shot. I even have a screenshot of the last game; he was a little late on the pull shot then. But in this game, he improved that. He found a way to top it.”
Abhishek Sharma has that gift – Ravichandran Ashwin
Ravichandran Ashwin further said that Abhishek Sharma has got special abilities as a batsman, which is God given and his bat swing is also remarkable. He said:
“All said and done, he swings the bat, he really came out today, charging down the track, and Australia also bowled really well. They were bowling tight lines, full lengths, getting the pace down. But that full ball, especially when you charge a fast bowler and they try to bowl yorkers, you don’t have the width to free your arms. Yet, he was still able to open his arms and bowl it to a boundary. Was able to hit over cover.”
“These are all very special abilities that a player has. I always say, we all work hard, but to make that hard work shine, you need a little gift, a God-given gift. Abhishek Sharma has that gift. He has a mind to think deeply about the game, and he is an exceptionally talented batsman. I wish I could keep watching him all day. On a tough pitch and a tough day for India, he once again gave us the best in T20 cricket. Gave a beautiful exhibition of good batting.”
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