Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar believes India should drop out-of-form Abhishek Sharma for the T20 World Cup final against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium. The 1983 World Cup-winner believes Abhishek should be shown the door, given that he hasn’t learned from his past mistakes and keeps getting dismissed in the same way. The 25-year-old has been in woeful form in the tenth edition of the tournament, registering just 89 runs at an average of 12.71.
His numbers would have been all the more appalling had he not scored a half-century against Zimbabwe in the Super 8s. He has been dismissed for a duck on three occasions in the tournament, while he has lost his wicket to spinners four times in the T20 World Cup.
Abhishek has also not been willing to take a backward step and bide his time in the middle, going after the bowling right from the start and losing his wicket in the process. In the semi-final, the left-hander fell right into the trap and gave away his wicket to England spinner Will Jacks in just the second over, walking back to the hut after scoring just 9 runs.
“It’s a very tough call. Abhishek Sharma is the No. 1 batter in the ICC T20 rankings, but he hasn’t learned from his dismissals. He keeps getting out in the same region where his arms are cramped for room,” Gavaskar told India Today.
“Bowlers are targeting that area and forcing mistakes. My concern is that he either hasn’t adjusted yet or is unable to change his approach,” he added.
‘Ishan Kishan open’
Gavaskar stated that he would like to bring in Rinku Singh in the place of Abhishek, and Ishan Kishan can open the batting alongside Sanju Samson in the final on Sunday.
“I would like to see Ishan Kishan open the batting with Sanju Samson, with Rinku Singh coming into the side. Rinku has that belief, you’ve probably seen the ‘God’s Plan’ tattoo on his body, and sometimes things just work out for players like him,” Gavaskar said.
Apart from Abhishek, the Indian management would also need to take a call on Varun Chakaravarthy, who has lost form since the start of the Super 8s stage. The spinner leaked more than 60 runs in his quota of four overs against England in the semi-final, and it remains to be seen whether the management brings in Kuldeep Yadav into the side in his place.
“The other change I would consider is bringing in Kuldeep Yadav. Varun Chakravarthy’s confidence looks shattered at the moment. Since the Super Eight stage, when he faced stronger teams, he has struggled and conceded a lot of runs. At a ground like the Narendra Modi Stadium, with big boundaries, Kuldeep Yadav could be a good option because he can turn the ball even on flat surfaces,” Gavaskar said.
