The date was 21st January, and it was India vs New Zealand 1st T20I, and the game was a must-win for the Indian team after they lost the ODI series 2-1 after winning the first ODI. The Indian team was missing a few players, and they had to start their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 preparation with a bang, and they did so. Now, the question is whether India’s star batter, Abhishek Sharma, really revealed his weakness.
Suryakumar Yadav, India’s T20I captain, again lost the match as New Zealand team captain, Mitchell Santner, decided India would bat first in India. The Indian captain said that their would be times were he could face the same situation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. The cricket pundits before the match said there were many cracks, and we could see a low-scoring match. At the end, unexpected things happen in cricket, as we saw a high-scoring game.
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India vs New Zealand 1st T20I: Did Abhishek Sharma really reveal his weakness?
Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan looked good but were dismissed early, but on the other hand, Abhishek Sharma was not stopping. He added a 99-run stand with the captain Suryakumar Yadav. It was great to see Suryakumar get some runs. Abhishek Sharma scored 84 runs in 35 balls, which included five boundaries and eight massive sixes. At the end, Rinku Singh ended the innings well as he scored 44* in 20 balls, which included four boundaries and three big hits. India scored 238/7 in 20 overs, and it was India’s highest total in T20I against the New Zealand team.
New Zealand lost two quick wickets as they are 1/2 as Arshdeep and Varun dismissed Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra. Glenn Phillips was the sole fighter as he scored 78 runs in 40 balls. Mark Chapman also chipped in with 39 runs. At the end, New Zealand could only score 190/7 in 20 overs as they lost the match by 48 runs. This is what Abhishek Sharma had to say in the post-match presentation:
If you watch videos of bowlers or if you watch your batting videos as well, you get an idea of where the bowler is planning to bowl to you or maybe where I’m going to play my shots.
But it’s always about me backing my shots because I don’t have a lot of shots. It’s just a few shots. I’m going to practise a lot and just execute
I feel I’m more of a timing batter. So, for me, I have to just watch the ball and get used to the conditions because we are playing all over India right now, and so I have to adapt to the conditions very quickly
In the interview, he said that he does not have many shots and he has very few shots. He said that he has practiced more and just tries to execute. Abhishek also mentioned that he is more of a timing batter. He just watches the ball and smashes. We all know that not every player is a power hitter. This surely was not the weakness he reveal becuase he is smart with what he speaks.