Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 25 : Former Australian cricketer Tom Moody suggested that Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) all-rounder Abhishek Sharma needs to bowl more, which will benefit the Indian team in the long run and is going to be a real asset forward.
After a day-off with the bat, the young Abhishek delivered a marvellous spell of spin bowling with the ball, picking up two crucial wickets to help his side secure a spot in the Indian Premier League (IPL) final with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after a win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Chennai on Friday.
Abhishek had till this point, won acclaim with his six-hitting abilities and consistent hitting in powerplay overs. Showing why he is one of the future stars to look out for, Abhishek picked up the ball and got crucial wickets for RR skipper Sanju Samson and later hard-hitting Shimron Hetmyer with a stunning turning delivery. As an opener who can chip in useful overs of spin, he is indeed a player worth paying attention to.
Speaking after the game at ESPNCricinfo's Time Out show, Moody said that Abhishek backs himself 100 per cent and needs to bowl more because he does not do so quite regularly in domestic cricket for Punjab. Moody also points out that Abhishek's bowling is very similar to Australian spin legend Nathan Lyon and he has a "clever carrom ball".
"He backs himself 100 per cent. Yes, he does not bowl as much as he needs to bowl in domestic cricket for whatever reasons but for the future of Indian cricket he needs to be bowling because he is a serious package to be reckoned with. He bats at the top of the order, someone who can bowl left-arm spin whatever the format, he is going to be a real asset going forward," he said.
"The reason that makes him unique as a spinner is he tosses it up and what he tries to do is get overspin on the ball, so the ball comes down like that (with seam upright and facing the batter, not sideways), Nathan Lyon style, it dips. So he does not bowl side spin, he bowls overspin and he has got that clever carrom ball he has been working on which is the one Hetmyer got and was an absolute peach," he added.
Coming to the match, Rajasthan won the toss and opted to bowl first. Sunrisers lost wickets regularly, but knocks from Heinrich Klaasen (50 in 34 balls, with four sixes), Rahul Tripathi (37 in 15 balls, with five fours and two sixes) and Travis Head (34 in 28 balls, with three fours and a six) took SRH to 175/9 in their 20 overs. Avesh Khan (3/27) and Trent Boult (3/45) were the pick of the bowlers for RR.
In the run-chase, Rajasthan lost wickets at regular intervals, with spinners Shahbaz and Abhishek getting rid of some important batters. Yashasvi Jaiswal (42 in 21 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes) and Dhruv Jurel (56 in 35 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) fought it out for RR, but were left 36 runs short of a victory as RR was restricted to 139/7.
Shahbaz Ahmed (3/23) was the pick of the bowlers for SRH, while Abhishek took 2/24.
Cummins and T Natrajan also got a wicket each.
Now, it will be the final between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and SRH at Chennai on Sunday.
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