Abhishek Sharma Taunted By Mentor Yuvraj Singh Despite 20-Ball 68 In 3rd T20I: "Still Can't Get"
Yuvraj Singh took to social media to send a humorous message to Abhishek Sharma, after the latter smashed a 14-ball half-century for India in the third T20I against New Zealand.
- India's Abhishek Sharma was taunted by mentor Yuvraj Singh despite smashing 68 off 20 in the 3rd T20I vs NZ
- Yuvraj taunted Abhishek that the latter was still unable to match the former's record of a 12-ball fifty
- "Still can't get a 50 off 12 balls, can you?" Yuvraj joked in a social media post
Abhishek Sharma smashed a half-century off just 14 balls en route to a breathtaking 20-ball 68 in India's victory over New Zealand in the third T20I in Guwahati on Sunday. However, Abhishek's heroics weren't enough for his mentor and legendary India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh to make a humorous taunt towards the opener after the match. In a post on social media, Yuvraj jokingly said that his record of a 12-ball half-century has still not been matched by Abhishek, despite the latter's stunning form.
For the uninitiated, Yuvraj holds the record for the fastest T20I fifty by an Indian and by a player of an ICC full-member nation. He smashed a 12-ball half century in the 2007 T20 World Cup, during which he also slammed his iconic six sixes in an over against England pacer Stuart Broad.
"Still can't get a 50 off 12 balls, can you? Well played - keep going strong!" said Yuvraj to Abhishek via a social media post on Sunday.
Abhishek himself said that breaking Yuvraj's record might be "more than impossible".
"That's more than impossible for anyone (to break Yuvraj's record), but still, you never know. Any batsman could do it because I think all the batters have been batting really well in this series as well and going forward, it's going to be fun," he said after the game.
Abhishek completed his fifty in 14 balls, setting a record for the most half-centuries in T20I cricket that have been made in 25 balls or less, having done so on nine different occasions. His record was matched by India captain Suryakumar Yadav in the same game.
Abhishek and Suryakumar's blitzkrieg helped India chase down a target of 154 in just 10 overs, also making it the fastest that a target of 150 or more has been chased down in a T20I match by a full-member nation.
The left-hander made his intentions clear by smashing a maximum on the very first ball of his innings, and never looked back. He ended up bludgeoning seven boundaries and five sixes to notch up the second-fastest half-century by an Indian in T20I cricket.
Yuvraj Singh
India Cricket Team