Why Harshit Rana Came To Bat Ahead of Shivam Dube In 2nd T20I? Abhishek Sharma Spills The Beans

Abhishek Sharma's heroics went in vain as India lost to Australia by six wickets in the second T20I match at Melbourne Cricket Ground. The 25-year-old smashed a brilliant 68 but ran out of partners as India lost wickets in quick succession.

Abhishek Sharma Reveals Why Harshit Rana Came Ahead of Shivam Dube

India didn't make any changes to the team, but Josh Hazlewood ran through the batting order like a pack of cards. Abhishek maintained his onslaught, but a lack of partnership caused India severe trouble. Harshit Rana came at number seven, ahead of Shivam Dube and forged a solid 56-run partnership for the 6th wicket.

Later in the post-match press conference, Abhishek revealed Harshit came ahead of Dube, keeping in mind the left-right combination.

He said, “I knew Harshit could bat - he hits sixes off me a lot in the nets. He told me, 'let's play a little normal', and that helped. The right-left combination worked well, and that's why he went up the order ahead of Shivam Dube.”

“Our plan was to dominate up front, but it was a little unexpected for us. When wickets are falling in front of you, no matter who the batter is, you have to play for the team. The wicket was difficult, it wasn't easy to hit shots.”

Indian Batting Order Failed Against Australian Bowlers

Shubman Gill had another flop show as an opener as he could only manage five runs before getting dismissed by Hazlewood. Samson was elevated to number three but didn't capitalise. Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Axar Patel failed to live up to the expectations with the bat.

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Indian bowlers did manage to strike at a quick rate as Australia have lost six wickets in a span of 73 runs. But the run proved to be insufficient for the Men In Blue to inflict any more damage.

Also Read: After T20I Heroics, Josh Hazlewood Makes 'All-Rounder' Demand To Selectors For Ashes: 'They Can Bowl As Much As They Want'