In the opening encounter of the five-match T20I series, Abhishek Sharma lit the lamp in spectacular fashion by plundering quick runs, ransacking 79 off 34 balls as a scintillating knock containing eight towering sixes set him up. This put India at a strong spot. Abhishek’s 50 came off just 20 balls, making him the second-fastest Indian batter to reach the milestone against England, only behind his mentor Yuvraj Singh, who achieved the feat in a record 12 balls during the 2007 T20 World Cup.
𝘼 𝙎𝙩𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝 𝙁𝙞𝙛𝙩𝙮 😎
Abhishek Sharma starts the #INDvENG T20I series on the right note 👍
Follow The Match ▶️ https://t.co/4jwTIC5zzs#TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/U7Mkaamnfv---Advertisement---— BCCI (@BCCI) January 22, 2025
Abhishek Sharma’s T20I career started with an explosive century against Zimbabwe but after that he was struggling to gain back his form. In the 1st T20I against England, he regained it and took control over the innings. His aggressive play guided India to chase down a target of 133 runs in just 12.5 overs.
India won the toss and elected to bowl first, Arshdeep Singh made sure that the England’s batting lineup was crushed and he reduced them to 17/2 within the first few overs. Varun Chakaravarthy and Axar Patel also weaved their magic followed by Hardik Pandya.
Abhishek’s performance helped India secure a dominant victory. Till now he has scored 335 runs from 13 T20Is at an average of 27.91 and a strike rate of 183.06.