Indian player Abhishek Sharma has been given his first chance as he has been selected for the India vs Zimbabwe series. Abhishek Sharma was chosen by BCCI in the final squad for the IND vs ZIM T20I series; which will see a total of 5 games between both nations.
Abhishek Sharma, who was part of Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2024, revealed that he received a call from Shubman Gill after his selection. It is noteworthy that Shubman Gill has been nominated as the captain for the T20I series, after the retirement of Rohit Sharma and the absence of stand-in Hardik Pandya.
The Indian team led by Shubman Gill will visit Zimbabwe from July 6 to 14 for the T20I series. The first match of the T20I will be held on Saturday, July 6, while the final match will be held on Sunday, July 14. All five matches will be played at the Harare Sports Club in the city of Harare.
I got a call from Shubman Gill after the selection: Abhishek Sharma
Left-handed batsman Abhishek Sharma has been chosen as one of the newcomers to the national team, alongside the likes of Tushar Deshpande, Harshit Rana and Riyan Parag.
Following his selection, Sharma revealed that captain Shubman Gill called him to congratulate him. He also added that his parents were giving interviews to the media when he came home after speaking to Gill.
“I got a call from (Shubman) Gill after the selection, I felt very good. Before my interview, when I reached home, my parents were giving interviews. I felt proud,” he said.
Abhishek Sharma received a national call-up after his impressive performance in the IPL 2024. The left-handed batsman was a member of Sunrisers Hyderabad. Batting as an opener, he scored 484 runs in 16 games at a strike rate of over 201.
The 23-year-old scored 3 half-centuries at a score of 75*. Along with Travis Head, he gave the team a quick start in many games and SRH also broke the record for the highest ever team total (287) in IPL 2024. Sunrisers Hyderabad finished as runners-up in IPL 2024.
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Ishan Kishan snubbed as wicketkeeper in Zimbabwe series
Interestingly, the BCCI again ignored Ishan Kishan as wicketkeeper and Jitesh Sharma and Dhruv Jurel were picked for the first two T20I matches. Later, Sanju Samson will replace Jitesh Sharma.
It is noteworthy that Jitesh Sharma will be replaced by Sanju Samson for the last three games. Some players who participated in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 will also return for the last three games of the IND vs ZIM series and will replace other players in the squad. For instance, Sai Sudharsan will be replaced by Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second half of the series.
Khaleel Ahmed will be back in the squad after a long time. Following the retirement of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, it will be interesting to see who will consolidate their place in the top order in the shortest format.
