Abhishek Sharma was all guns blazing right from the start and it didn’t take him long to record his fourth T20I hundred. India, already 2-0 up, locked horns with New Zealand in the third T20I in Wellington, eyeing a series win on October 27. The hosts, on the other side, aimed to record their first win and avoid a 3-0 hole, began the game by posting 199 for three on the scoreboard.
While the bowlers had almost lost control of the game, the batters made a staggering comeback in the game. While the Blues were unchanged, they made some adjustments in their batting lineup, sending Vaibhav Sooryavanshi to open with Abhishek Sharma. The change turned out to be fruitful and the two gave the side a fiery start.
Sharma and Sooryavanshi pulled off a crucial 133-run partnership for the opening wicket and bridged down the gap between the target. Not only this, but they also went on to put up India’s highest powerplay score in Men’s T20Is at 113, leaving the New Zealand bowlers in a miserable state.
Abhishek Sharma records fourth T20I hundred, reaches milestone in 35 balls
Opener Abhishek Sharma continued the batting carnage with Sanju Samson and came up with a remarkable 35-ball hundred. This marked the 26-year-old’s fourth ton in the shortest format. Sharma celebrated the milestone by pulling off the Meditation and ‘Om Namah Shivaay’ pose as he received a hug from Sanju Samson while fans and team India gave him a standing ovation.
The batter was dismissed off a Kyle Jamieson delivery after being caught out by Glenn Phillips. Sharma walked back to the dug out on 113 runs in 38 deliveries, with a combination of nine boundaries and a total of 11 maximums, at a strike rate of 297.37.
