India vs New Zealand, 2nd T20I playing XI:
New Zealand (Playing XI): Finn Allen, Tim Seifert(w), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Bevon Jacobs, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner(c), Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson
India (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav
After showcasing a brilliant bowling performance. The Indian batters stepped up on the ground to chase down the target of 181 runs. Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson opened the innings for the men in blue.
Both batters gave a good start to the innings by displaying some impressive shots for their side. Sanju Samson started hitting some boundaries for India and displayed his attacking mindset in the second T20I game.
On the other hand, Abhishek Sharma took some balls to settle at the crease. Later on, Abhishek also played some impressive shots to help his side get a good start and come closer to the mammoth of 181 runs.
Speaking about their innings in this second T20I match. Sanju Samson scored 14 runs off 17 balls, including 1 four and 1 six. Meanwhile, Abhishek Sharma scored 27 runs off 21 balls. In his knock, he smashed 3 fours and 1 six at a strike rate of 128.
With this short and crisp innings, Abhishek Sharma achieved a huge milestone in his career as he became the first Indian opener to score 1000 runs in a year in the T20I format in 2026. He equals legendary players like Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar.
Sunil Gavaskar was the first Indian opener to score 1000 runs in a year in a Test in 1976. Meanwhile, Sachin Tendulkar was the first opener for India to score 1000 runs in a year in an ODI format in 1994.