Abhishek Sharma slammed 113 in 38 balls with 11 sixes and 9 fours in Wellington T20I.
Chasing a 199-run target to win the game and pocket the series, Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi opened the innings, adding 133 runs in 7.1 overs for the first wicket. India made a world-record score of 118 in six overs of the powerplay.
Sooryavanshi made 45 in 19 balls, while Abhishek’s century came in 35 balls, as he hit 11 sixes and 9 fours overall, helping India overhaul the target in 13.2 overs and win the game by 6 wickets.
After the match, former India all-rounder and 2007 T20 World Cup winner Irfan Pathan had plenty of praise for the daring left-hander.
Irfan pointed out that people call for Abhishek to be dropped as soon as something goes wrong, but he reminded everyone that the left-hander rises above any criticism to deliver his most destructive form.
"If anything goes wrong, even a little bit, people want him to be dropped. This happens especially on social media; I am not talking about the team management or selectors. They are very clear; they know that he is our number one player and performs whenever he gets a chance," Irfan said, speaking on his YouTube channel.
"You would remember the World Cup final. I had given a statement that I would still back him when he was not performing. He has done a wonderful job. He is the best and most fearless hitter in the world. The way he hits on the off side is unbelievable," Irfan added.
Abhishek had obliterated the record for the fastest T20I hundred by a player from an ICC full-member nation by slamming a 30-ball ton against Afghanistan.
Irfan elaborated why Abhishek is so dangerous.
"If you keep bowling the same line to him, allowing him to play on the off side, he won't spare you. That's why it is very difficult to bowl to him. If the pitch is not slow, or you don't change your lines again and again, it is difficult to survive. The century was a once-in-a-lifetime achievement because scoring a century on New Zealand soil is not a regular thing for an Indian player," he said.
Thanks to his performance, Abhishek Sharma regained his no. 1 rank in T20I batting rankings that he had lost to Ishan Kishan.