Abhishek Sharma’s dismissal in India’s second T20I against Zimbabwe on Saturday was, paradoxically, both an anomaly and entirely familiar.
An anomaly because of how it unfolded. Sharma – the world’s No. 1-ranked T20I batter not too long ago – meekly pushed a Blessing Muzarabani delivery straight to Ryan Burl at backward point. Stripped of context, it could easily have passed for a routine fielding drill. This manner of departure – on a whimper, and not aplomb – is not in synchronisation with the southpaw’s batting style. But while it seems like an exception in isolation, it was the 10th time in his last 17 T20Is that Sharma had fallen for 10 or fewer, raising fresh questions about how long the ‘longer rope’ the team management has given him is.
Sharma’s form took a nosedive during the initial stages of this year’s T20 World Cup, wherein he was dismissed for a duck on three consecutive occasions. The rut effectively ended with a 55 against this very opposition, but perhaps Zimbabwe seemed intent on testing whether the revival was real. Accordingly, they began the bowling with Sikandar Raza – a right-arm everything spinner, bowling off-spin on this particular occasion, which proved to be Sharma’s Achilles’ heel at the World Cup.
The plan did not reap rewards, as the opener struck two boundaries off that first over. Both were in the extra cover region, but the manner of shots was contrasting – the first was lofted with elegance, the second was slapped with disdain. The promise, however, proved fleeting. An over later, Muzarabani dismissed him with a delivery that was far from the best he bowled all afternoon.