Delhi: Former Indian wicketkeeper Saba Karim has backed young all-rounder Abhishek Sharma to play the role of an all-rounder in the upcoming five-match T20I series against Zimbabwe. Team India, led by star opener Shubman Gill, will play the first T20 match against Zimbabwe at the Sports Club of Harare on Saturday. Many players have made it to the Indian national team for the first time for this tour and 23-year-old Abhishek is one of them.

The opener performed brilliantly with the bat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 and scored 484 runs in 16 innings at an average of 32.26 and a brilliant strike rate of 204.21. The left-handed batsman made headlines this season by playing fearless cricket and secured his place in the Indian team.

“I think not only is he so brilliant with the bat but he is also a useful left-arm spin bowler, so he plays the all-rounder’s role as well, which is very good for him and if he gets an opportunity, I think his ideal would be to open the innings and then maybe bowl one or two overs, which will be very important for India,” the 56-year-old Saba Karim said during a press conference for Sony Sports.

He further said, “Whether he gets this role (opening) or not, I think the team management and I am sure the selectors will also be looking at him in this way. If he has to play, as I said, then I think the opening slot is perfect for him because he has performed well and has grown as a player. He has more maturity. He did well for Sunrisers. Even before this, he led Punjab in the Mushtaq Ali T20, which he won last season, so those qualities can be seen in Abhishek Sharma.”

Abhishek performed brilliantly in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023

For your information, let us tell you that Abhishek led Punjab to its first win in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2023 and became the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament. He scored 485 runs in 10 innings at an average of 48.50 and a strike rate of 192.46, including two centuries and three half-centuries. Now the explosive batsman would like to continue his excellent form in the first T20I and give a great start to his international career.

In such a situation, if Abhishek plays the role of a proper all-rounder, he can make the users of Dream11 millionaires as a captain, because he is an opener as well as a useful spinner.