It was during the T20 World Cup earlier this year when former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir, once implicated and convicted in a horrible match-fixing case, talked out of his ass that India batsman Abhishek Sharma was only a slogger. That he had no real batting credentials, and with a bit of smart moves, a bowler could have the better of him. His highly offensive remarks on a TV show, unfortunately, coincided with Abhishek’s poor returns with the bat, and for a large part of the T20 World Cup, it was a hot topic of discussion on both sides of the border.
But Abhishek didn’t take long to hit back. He ended up playing two highly important knocks in the tournament. First against Zimbabwe, in a match where India needed a big win to improve their net run-rate, the left-hander scored a 30-ball 55 and set the tone for 256, the second-highest score in the history of T20 World Cups. The team got the result it needed and eventually qualified for the semis.
Also Read; The unravelling of LSG captain Rishabh Pant is a sad sight and he is now racing against the clock
And then in the all-important final against New Zealand, he upped the ante big time and scored a 21-ball 52. India ended up scoring 255 and winning the contest one-sidedly by 96 runs to successfully defend their title. Amir was silenced for good after getting slapped in the face twice, by those two innings.
But as far as Abhishek is concerned, the slapping can’t stop. Presently playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), he is showing Amir how not thinking before speaking can have long-term repercussions. People don’t forget, and they humiliate you again and again. SRH have played seven games so far, and in four of them, Abhishek has been top-notch. 1 century, two fifties and a 48! What slogger has that kind of consistency with the bat?
Take that, Mohammad Amir!
A couple of days ago, Abhishek went berserk against Delhi Capitals and smashed a 68-ball 135 not out. A team score of 242 meant DC, an average batting line-up, couldn’t win the contest. He hit a whopping 10 sixes and 10 fours during his marathon innings — by T20 standards, of course. 100 runs off just big shots. A century by boundaries.
On the other hand, Amir is playing in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), and his team Rawalpindiz has lost all eight of its matches so far. Genius of a bowler that he is today (irony alert), he has failed to inspire his team, and in a couple of matches was taken to the cleaners by opposition batsmen. Let’s be fair, he isn’t a bad bowler, and he has put in some good performances too, but since his team is struggling big time, the spotlight has eluded him.
It appears to be a case of bad karma. The way he was gloating when India were not exactly convincing in their initial few T20 World Cup matches. He kept saying all through that there was no way India could make the semis. Then, when India lost their first Super 8s encounter to South Africa, rather badly, Amir’s gloating knew no bounds. He beamed from ear to ear, showing a perfect set of white teeth. That image has stuck with Indian fans.
His unpalatable comments also appear to have stuck with Abhishek. It appears he is not hitting big shots; he is slapping Amir in the face, and continues to give him the shut-up call long after he has already shut up. How cruel on Abhishek’s part!
For the rest of his life, every time Abhishek plays an innings of impact, Amir and his remarks will be remembered, and he will be ridiculed and laughed at. See, all of a sudden, some of us have begun to sympathise with him.