Former Indian batter and analyst Subramaniam Badrinath heaped praise on dashing opening batter Abhishek Sharma after India’s comfortable six-wicket win in the third T20I against New Zealand on Tuesday, October 27.
Abhishek was the wrecker-in-chief in the 199-run chase, smashing 113 off 38 with nine fours and 11 sixes at a strike rate of 297.37, bringing up his fourth T20I century. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Badrinath hailed Sharma as the No.1 T20I batter at the moment.
Badrinath further stated that former West Indies opener Chris Gayle is widely regarded as one of the most explosive T20 openers. However, he believes Abhishek Sharma has established himself among the best openers in modern-day cricket.
“One T20 opener who we always remember is Chris Gayle. We have seen many times that there is no other opener as dynamic as he is. But now, if you take modern-day T20 cricket, it is Abhishek Sharma. He may not have a physically enduring appearance like Gayle, but his game is definitely very imposing and aggressive. We can say that he is on another level. For me, in modern-day T20 cricket, he is one of the best openers,” Badrinath said on his YouTube channel.
“What a performance this has been. It is very difficult for any team playing against India. No matter how much they score, 200 or 250, any score is not safe in front of this batting line-up. And the main reason for that is Abhishek Sharma. The team is in a good mindset as they are playing and winning this way. For me, Abhishek is the No.1 T20 batter in the world right now,” he added.
Abhishek has played 70 T20Is for India, scoring 2,240 runs in 69 innings at an average of 33.43 and an impressive strike rate of 196.83. He has registered four centuries and 14 half-centuries, with a highest score of 135.
