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Ahead of his side's ICC T20 World Cup match against Netherlands, Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak backed Abhisek Sharma to come good after two ducks to start off his tournament, saying that his failures would not be "unnecessarily overanalysed" since the batter "has his plans sorted".
It has been a rocky start for the world's number one-ranked T20I batter as Abhishek got out for a duck in two matches he played against USA and arch-rivals Pakistan. In between these two matches, he faced a stomach infection, which led to him getting hospitalised and reportedly losing weight, ruling him out of Namibia clash in Delhi. Against Netherlands, the left-hander will be aiming to bow out with a massive score to his name and head into Super Eights with momentum. Speaking during the pre-match presser, Sitanshu said, "Obviously, we plan (about how players' approach the game and their tempo), but he was not well, so he did not play the game (against Namibia), he got out in first over. So, one thing we definitely do, we unnecessarily do not overanalyse because sometimes you only start making a lot of assumptions than the opposition are." "He is someone who has got his plan sorted and he follows the way he wants to. And obviously, we discuss about the opposition, their bowling, their bowling strength, whatever they have been doing in the last few games they have played. All that is normal for everyone, not only for Abhishek," he added. Abhishek, who has made four ducks in his last seven innings and has had scores of 84, 68* and 30 in other matches, has full backing of his coach, who insists that the focus should be on all the batters, given the "high risk" nature of T20 cricket. He said, "I think Abhishek, even before fell sick, made runs in recent matches. Now, in T20 format, sometimes in 10 balls, 30 runs are equally important. So, it is not that he did not make runs. Secondly, honestly, we focus on all the batters or all the players. We do not focus on just one player. Because in T20 format, it is a high-risk game. One or the other player will get out. If we start stressing so much, I think players will get unnecessary pressure. So, he is in a good form. He has got a clear plan. He has got a clear mindset. And that is what matters for us." (ANI)
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