‘Fearless mindset’: Abhishek Nayar believes Josh Hazlewood stands no chance against Abhishek Sharma

“If Abhishek Sharma is in form, Hazlewood will be out of form. The way he bats, he is known to hit the first ball for a four or a six. If you instill fear in the powerplay, it continues throughout the innings. That’s Abhishek Sharma’s impact on the game. If he bats six overs, India will score between 60 to 80. It will ease the pressure for his batting partner, while it will increase for the opposition,” Nayar told the broadcaster ahead of the game in Canberra.

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In all three of the ODI series' games, Hazlewood tormented India's batters. In the first two games, he extracted a lot of bounce off the Perth and Adelaide wickets, making life challenging for the top order. Although he did not take any wickets, his spell in the second ODI was really outstanding.

After doing well in India and the UAE, Nayar continued that Abhishek will be keen to dominate in Australia and that facing Hazlewood would be a significant task for the young batter.

“It will be a big test for him, especially against Hazlewood, who is in good rhythm and extracting extra bounce. However, I feel that he has gained enough experience by playing in the IPL and in South Africa,” Nayar said.

“He has a fearless mindset and will want to make a name for himself in Australia. This is a good chance for him, as it is very satisfying to earn respect here. From what I know of him, he would definitely want to make a name for himself in this series,” he concluded.

On October 29, Canberra, the nation's capital, will host India's first Twenty20 International against Australia.