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Abhishek Sharma Out Of T20I Team? India Have 3 Reasons To Drop Star Batter From The Format

Abhishek Sharma could be dropped from India's T20I team [Source: @IPLnCricket/X]Abhishek Sharma could be dropped from India's T20I team [Source: @IPLnCricket/X]

After securing a comfortable 61-run victory in the first T20I, India lost the momentum in the ongoing series against South Africa, as the hosts handed them a three-wicket defeat in the subsequent encounter. Bowling first, the Proteas restricted India's star-studded lineup to an under-par 124-run total, riding on their bowlers' disciplined effort. 

Although Varun Chakravarthy bagged a sensational five-wicket haul, the home team managed to chase the target with an over to spare, levelling the series with a three-wicket victory. Regarding India, Abhishek Sharma has been a major disappointment, letting the team down with two successive poor outings. As the hosts gear up for the all-important third T20I, here are three reasons why India might sideline the southpaw from their scheme of things. 

Poor Temperament

Abhishek Sharma's temperament has been a significant reason behind his prolonged rough patch in international cricket. He had an outstanding start to his T20I career, slamming a flamboyant century against Zimbabwe in their backyard. However, he hasn't done anything significant apart from that knock, even failing to breach the 20-run mark since then. 

His tendency to go overboard with his stroke play has led to Abhishek's downfall, resulting in his horrendous outings in the ongoing South Africa T20Is. Therefore, India might consider moving on from the youngster and asking him to learn to be a bit more responsible with respect to his innings-building process. 

Technical Flaws Against Raw Pace

Apart from Abhishek's temperament, his weakness against raw pace has also been a massive concern for India at the top order. The southpaw has struggled to get going against high-pace hit-the-deck bowling, with the likes of Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Gerald Coetzee exposing his technique with some high-class bowling. 

So, India wouldn't want a player who is prone to quality seam bowling to spearhead their top order. Therefore, if they drop him from their T20I team, it will create an opportunity for Abhishek to utilise the hiatus and evolve his game against fast bowling. 

Gaikwad, Gill, Jaiswal Waiting For A Comeback

With Sanju Samson revitalising his T20I career as an opener and the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shubman Gill available, India might axe the out-of-form Abhishek Sharma from the shortest format. There's no dearth of quality batters as far as the white-ball cricket is concerned. So, after the South Africa series concludes, India might bring one of these guys back and drop Abhishek for the betterment of the team.