India’s explosive opener Abhishek Sharma’s recurring vulnerability to straight balls was starkly exposed by West Indies bowlers in the crucial series decider in Bengaluru, raising questions about his consistency.
IMAGE: Abhishek Sharma struggled again as West Indies exploited his weakness against the straight ball. Photograph: Screenshot/Jio Hotstar
Key Points
- Abhishek Sharma scored just six runs in the series decider in Bengaluru on Saturday.
- Keemo Paul dismissed Sharma, exploiting his known weakness against straight balls.
- Ian Bishop highlighted the West Indies bowlers’ effective strategy of targeting Sharma’s body with straight deliveries.
- Sharma has consistently struggled against this bowling tactic in recent matches.
- Despite his power, Sharma needs to address this weakness for greater consistency.
With the series on the line, India needed Abhishek Sharma to deliver in Bengaluru on Saturday.
Instead, the explosive opener lasted just four balls, smashing a six before falling while attempting another big hit, leaving India with just six runs from their star batter.
He had just launched a six, and the very next ball he went for another big shot and got out.
It was Keemo Paul who got him, the same bowler who dismissed him in the previous T20I. Paul tweaked his length ever so slightly after the six, and that was enough.
Analysing Sharma’s Dismissal
Ian Bishop, on commentary, spotted it straight away:
“That is a terrific adjustment by Keemo Paul, after the last ball went for six. West Indies bowlers targeted him with that straight ball into his body. That last ball was full, and he adjusted his length just ever slightly, and they get the reward. That’s little weakness of Abhishek Sharma that was well exposed by the Windies bowlers. Abhishek in a series decider fails to deliver.”
A Recurring Batting Weakness
This isn’t a one-off. For a few matches now, the West Indies bowlers have kept it straight and into his body, and Abhishek hasn’t found an answer.
They’ve clearly noticed it works, and they keep coming back to it.
Here’s how his last five innings looked:
- 1st match: 21 (11)
- 2nd match: 20 (12)
- 3rd match: 69 (30)
- 4th match: 29 (24)
- 5th match: 6 (4)
That adds up to 145 runs at an average of 29 and a strike rate of around 179.
Abhishek has the power and the fearlessness to take a game away in a few overs, and that’s why India back him. But he needs to figure out the straight ball and find more consistency.