Impressed by world No. 1 T20I batter Abhishek Sharma’s super show with the bat in the first T20I against New Zealand on Wednesday (January 21), former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has batted for his inclusion in India’s ODI World Cup 2027 plans.
According to Pathan, even though Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad are ahead of the Amritsar-born cricketer at the moment, Abhishek should be considered for the ODI World Cup 2027 because he maximises the powerplay.
“Abhishek Sharma should be in the considerations for the 50-over World Cup. Guys like Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad are ahead of him at the moment. But imagine him maximizing the powerplay in a similar fashion to T20s,” Pathan tweeted on Thursday.
The 25-year-old left-handed batter was on fire for India in the first T20I. He opened the innings for the Suryakumar Yadav-led side at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur and scored 84 runs from just 35 balls. During his stay at the crease, Abhishek slammed 5 fours and 8 sixes for the hosts and needed just 22 balls to complete his half-century.
By reaching the 50-run mark in just 22 balls, Abhishek broke the record of scoring the fastest half-century in T20Is for India against the Black Caps, and in the match that India won by 48 runs, he also broke the record of being the quickest batter to score 5000 runs in T20s.
