Melbourne: Left-handed opener Abhishek Sharma’s explosive 68 off 37 balls was the lone highlight in an otherwise disappointing batting effort, as India were bundled out for 125 in 18.4 overs in the second T20I against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday.
India never quite recovered from an early collapse triggered by Josh Hazlewood, who produced a brilliant spell of 3 for 13, exploiting seam movement and bounce with relentless accuracy to leave the visitors reeling inside the powerplay.
Amid the top-order turmoil, Abhishek counterattacked with confidence, mixing power and timing to collect eight fours and two sixes. He also forged a crucial 56-run stand with Harshit Rana (35 off 33), who made the most of his promotion to No.7.
Abhishek set the tone early, flicking and lofting Xavier Bartlett for a four and six in the opening over. However, the momentum soon shifted as Shubman Gill miscued a drive to mid-off against Hazlewood, followed by Sanju Samson’s lbw dismissal to Nathan Ellis, who got one to seam back in sharply.
As the ball continued to move, India’s middle order faltered — Suryakumar Yadav edged behind off Hazlewood, while Tilak Varma’s mistimed flick to deep square leg gave the pacer his second wicket of the over. India were reduced to four down inside the powerplay.
A run-out of Axar Patel deepened the slide before Abhishek and Rana steadied things briefly with a few crisp boundaries. Abhishek reached his half-century off just 23 balls, displaying fine placement and composure under pressure.
Rana’s dismissal, caught by Tim David off Bartlett, broke the resistance, and India’s innings quickly unraveled. Shivam Dube edged behind, Kuldeep Yadav holed out to mid-on, and Abhishek was finally trapped lbw by Ellis. Jasprit Bumrah’s run-out ended the innings, with the rest of the batting lineup managing only 19 runs combined outside the two main contributors.
Brief Scores:
India 125 in 18.4 overs (Abhishek Sharma 68, Harshit Rana 35; Josh Hazlewood 3-13, Nathan Ellis 2-21) vs Australia.
