Picture Credit: Instagram
Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh has now posted a story on Instagram following Abhishek Sharma’s unprecedented 135-run innings off 54 deliveries in the fifth T20I against England, at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Riding on his fabulous innings, India clinched a 150-run victory and took the series home with a 4-1 margin.
The opener, who smashed his second T20I ton, broke into the record books as Indian batter with the highest individual score in the shortest format of the sport. He also scored the second-fastest T20I fifty, following Yuvraj's 12-ball fifty against the English side in the T20 World Cup 2007. The Punjab batter completed his half-century in just 17 balls and along with that, he also smashed the second-fastest century for India, hitting a 37-ball ton.
Abhishek’s scintillating performance got him a lot of appreciation from the cricketing circles but the most prominent one for the 24-year-old came from his mentor Yuvraj Singh, who reshared a video story on Instagram where a fan had compared the youngster’s stroke play with his, featuring against England in the T20 World Cup 2007. Yuvraj's story captioned "Like Teacher, Like Student."
Earlier, after the conclusion of India’s batting innings, Yuvraj took to X to write a post for the 24-year-old, “Well played Abhishek Sharma! That’s where I want to see you! Proud of you.”
India’s second-biggest T20I victory
Before the start of the game, England skipper Jos Buttler won the toss and elected to bowl first. His decision backfired as Abhishek Sharma looked ruthless against the English bowlers and took them to the cleaners. His fiery innings helped India post a mammoth total of 247 runs on the board. The colossal score shattered England’s confidence as they got bundled out by Indian bowlers on 97 in their 10.3 overs.
Mohammed Shami, who spearheaded India’s pace attack in the game, exuded confidence with the ball. In his 2.3-over spell, he splurged 25 runs and bagged three wickets, hunting Ben Duckett, Adil Rashid, and Mark Wood. Abhishek, who shone with the bat, looked superb with the ball as well. Bowling an over, he got rid of Brydon Carse and Jamie Overton and won the Player of the Match.
