IND vs PAK: 3 reasons behind Abhishek Sharma's failure against Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2026
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Abhishek Sharma got out for a duck against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2026.
Indian opener Abhishek Sharma returned for the clash against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2026. After playing the opening game against the USA, he missed the previous clash against Namibia due to a stomach issue.
The IND vs PAK match is underway at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Pakistan captain Salman Agha won the toss and opted to field first in the encounter.
At the time of the toss, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav said that India made two changes in the playing XI. Replacing Sanju Samson and Arshdeep Singh with Abhishek and Kuldeep Yadav, respectively.
Abhishek flopped with his batting show in the opening match against the USA, getting out for a golden duck. His poor show continued in the match against Pakistan as well, as he lost his wicket without scoring a run.
This time, he became a victim of spinner Salman Agha with 0 runs off four deliveries. Amid his batting woes, below are the three reasons behind Abhishek’s poor show in the IND vs PAK game.
Reasons behind Abhishek’s failure
3. Aggressive mindset
Abhishek Sharma is an aggressive batter and looks to dominate bowlers right from the start. His hard-hitting batting style has helped India to get quickfire starts and also allowed him to score big knocks in many games.
He has a strike rate of 193.29 in the shortest format. However, bowlers have utilised this strategy against him on a few occasions. Against Pakistan, he tried to hit Salman Agha for a six in the first over itself but was caught by Shaheen Afridi at mid-on.
2. Pressure of the big stage
The left-handed batsman is playing in a T20 World Cup for the first time. He got out for a golden duck in the first game against USA as well. With competition being high, the pressure stays for all the top-order batters as the management has made frequent changes in the opening slot in recent times.
For instance, Sanju Samson was snubbed as an opener just ahead of the tournament and replaced by Ishan Kishan. The constant shuffling has also put pressure on openers. Due to his maiden T20 World Cup tournament and pressure at the opening slot, Abhishek’s form might have been affected.
1. Health issue
Abhishek has recently recovered from a stomach infection. He faced stomach issues in the clash against USA and did not take the field in the second innings. He was admitted to the hospital in Delhi and also missed India’s training session at Arun Jaitley Stadium ahead of the match against Namibia.
The left-handed batter then missed the encounter against Namibia, where Samson replaced him in the playing XI. He recently recovered from a health issue and needs some time to regain his form. Hence, this might be another reason behind his struggle against Pakistan.
Who replaced Sanju Samson in the India vs Pakistan clash?
Abhishek replaced Sanju Samson in the clash.
How many runs did Abhishek Sharma score against Pakistan?
Abhishek got out for a golden duck.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.