"He doesn't do anything funky" - Murali Kartik's massive praise for Team India star after IND vs PAK Asia Cup 2025 Super 4 clash

Former Indian spinner Murali Kartik praised opener Abhishek Sharma for maintaining an incredible strike rate without attempting unorthodox shots after the latter's heroics against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 Super Four clash at Dubai on September 21. The 25-year-old justified his No. 1 ranking in T20Is with a sparkling 39-ball 74 to help India pull off another comfortable win by six wickets.

Chasing a challenging 172 for victory, Abhishek got into his elements right away, smashing ace pacer Shaheen Afridi for a maximum off the first delivery. The southpaw continued the onslaught throughout his stay, with six boundaries and five maximums.

Talking about the youngster post-game on Cricbuzz, Kartik said (5:45):

"He (Abhishek) has every shot so he doesn't need to do any cheeky stuff, the only one he plays is the occasional ramp. He sees it so well and has such beautiful wrists, with the great gift of timing. I don't think he needs to do anything funky and he doesn't do anything funky. And more importantly, his base is so solid, his head is so still. Sometimes people swing too hard for a big hit but he has got a great rhythm and tempo to his batting."

He added:

"He has such long levers. The way his bat flicks, top of the handle there is a beautiful flow. Even the slogsweep, he reacts very late. He doesn't commit himself. It's a very reactionary shot from him. I am not saying it is reminiscent of Yuvraj Singh, who is seen as his role model. But Yuvi had a great flow when he played that slogsweep as well."

Abhishek has been in sparkling form in the ongoing Asia Cup, scoring 173 runs at an average of over 43 and a strike rate of 208.43 in four games.

"He wasn't trying to outdo his partner" - Murali Kartik on Shubman Gill

Murali Kartik hailed vice-captain Shubman Gill for playing the perfect second fiddle to Abhishek Sharma in India's win over Pakistan. The duo added 105 runs for the opening wicket in 60 deliveries before Gill was dismissed for a 28-ball 47.

"Just the way Shubman played as well, he wasn't trying to outdo his partner. That's something you want to see. He allowed Abhishek to flourish and yet was still going toe-to-toe. So it was two mates out there taking on 11 people and they got stuck into them from the get-go. That was a brilliant partnership which set the roadmap to victory," said Kartik (via the aforementioned source).

Gill had struggled for form in the tournament before the Pakistan clash, with only 35 runs in the first three games. It was India's fourth consecutive win in as many outings in the 2025 Asia Cup.

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Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran