Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan didn’t hold back after India’s dramatic batting collapse led to a four-wicket victory for Australia in the second T20I. Pathan sharply characterized the contest as a “mismatch,” emphasizing India’s profound difficulties with the bat on a challenging, bouncy pitch where the ball moved considerably.
“The match between Australia and India in the 2nd T20 was not a match but a mismatch. This is a fact,” Pathan declared in his latest analysis. “It wasn’t visible anywhere that the Indian team was the number one side of the T20. Whether they are the World Cup winner or the Asia Cup winner, especially in batting, the struggle that we saw… especially on the bouncy pitch, which had a spongy bounce and the ball was moving around.”
Abhishek Sharma was the lone warrior for India, top-scoring with a valiant 68 runs off just 37 balls in the 2nd T20I against Australia. Despite his efforts, India was bundled out for a mere 125 runs in 18.4 overs after being asked to bat first.
Australia’s Josh Hazlewood was instrumental in triggering India’s downfall, claiming an impressive 3 wickets for only 13 runs. Following this, Captain Mitchell Marsh led the chase with a quickfire 46 off 26 balls, guiding the visitors to comfortably reach the target with 40 balls to spare.
Pathan specifically lauded Hazlewood’s performance, stating, “Hazlewood’s game was also very attractive. In front of Hazlewood, it felt like India were completely defeated.”
While India’s top order crumbled, Pathan acknowledged Abhishek Sharma’s composed innings but also pointed out crucial areas for improvement. “Abhishek Sharma definitely showed once again that everyone else was batting on one wicket, it looked like he was batting on the other pitch,” Pathan observed.
However, Pathan suggested that the young opener could have approached the powerplay differently. “When you are batting in powerplay and when it is ending, the style in which you should play — I didn’t see him playing in that style.” He further elaborated that Sharma should have taken on a greater share of the strike during the first six overs, rather than allowing his batting partners to face the majority of the deliveries. Pathan stressed the importance of applying more game sense in such critical moments.
Abhishek’s 56-run partnership with all-rounder Harshit Rana, who contributed 35 off 33 balls, stood out as the only notable highlight in India’s otherwise disappointing innings. Australia now holds a commanding 1-0 lead in the five-match series, with the third T20I eagerly anticipated for Sunday.