Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha has expressed hope that India opener Abhishek Sharma will be fit in time for their ICC T20 World Cup showdown, saying his side wants to face India at full strength. Abhishek endured a tough start to the tournament with a golden duck against the USA and then missed the Delhi fixture against Namibia after being hospitalised with a stomach infection.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Agha said, “I really hope – we all know he is a good player, and I really hope he plays tomorrow because we want to play against the best team they have, and I really hope he is recovering well and can play tomorrow.” India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav responded with a light-hearted remark when asked about Agha’s comment. “If the (Pakistan cricket team’s captain) wants him to play, will play him (Abhishek Sharma) tomorrow,” he said. Abhishek, who made his T20I debut after India’s 2024 World Cup triumph, has been in outstanding form in the format. In 38 matches and 37 innings, he has scored 1,297 runs at an average of 37.05 and a striking rate of 194.74, including two centuries and eight fifties, with a highest score of 135.He came into this year’s T20 World Cup as the world’s top-ranked T20I batter. Against Pakistan, he has featured in three matches, scoring 110 runs at an average of 36.66 and a strike rate of 189.65, with a best of 74. India will take on Pakistan on 15 February at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.
