New Delhi: Flamboyant batter Abhishek Sharma’s participation in India’s high-octane T20 World Cup match against Pakistan will be decided after Saturday’s training session, mentions a report in PTI. Abhishek, along with other team members, arrived in Colombo on Friday evening after departing from Delhi in the first half.
After participating in the first game against USA, Abhishek missed the second match against Namibia due to a stomach infection which even kept him in the hospital for two days. In his absence, he was replaced by Sanju Samson in the opening slot. The Indian team management and the fans are hoping for Abhishek’s timely recovery before the February 15 encounter.
Abhishek’s participation call after Saturday’s session
Ahead of the game, India will engage in a net session on February 14 and his fitness will be monitored closely before taking a final call. India would be desperately wanting Abhishek to be match-fit for the high-voltage clash as Samson will not be able to fill in his shoes as the Kerala batter has been struggling with his forms recently.
Though he showed glimpses of class during the game against Namibia but that won’t be enough against the Men in Green. The report also mentions that the parents of the Indian opener too arrived in Colombo ahead of the Pakistan match. Rajkumar Sharma has been a constant source of support for Abhishek, and had coached the left-handed batter from the childhood. The parents were also present in Dubai during the Asia Cup.
Just in case Abhishek continues to be unavailable then India can either persist with Samson as they did in the last game. Meanwhile, whichever of the two teams wins the Group clash on Sunday, they will automatically proceed to the Super Eight stage while other team will have to clear their final group encounter to book a spot.