"He will enjoy the conditions" - AB de Villiers backs Asia Cup hero to thrive in AUS vs IND 2025 T20Is

Ex-South Africa skipper AB de Villiers believes Abhishek Sharma will enjoy the conditons in Australia when he plays the upcoming T20I series Down Under. De Villiers observed that the left-hander plays both sides of the wicket, making it conducive for him to hit the ball well in Australia.

The 25-year-old has been in fearsome form of late, bagging the Player of the Tournament award in a successful Asia Cup 2025 for Team India, accumulating 314 runs in seven innings. However, the upcoming series in Australia will be the first time he plays an international match Down Under.

Speaking in the latest video of his YouTube channel, De Villiers assessed India's T20 squad for Australia series and claimed the bounce will suit Abhishek, who is in the form of his life. He elaborated (7:47)

"Obviously, Sky, I’ve watched him captain before. I like the way he approaches the game. Very good body language, obviously fantastic batter and a great thinker of the game. Abhishek Sharma is in the form of the life, some are saying he is the best opening batter in the world right now in this format. Will be great to see what he can get over there in Australia. I think he will enjoy the conditions because there’s quite a bit of bounce.

"He likes freeing up his arms over the off-side, opening up the blade, covering the point to third man boundary, hitting sixes over there. He can also clear up or open up the leg side as well. All round player, fantastic batter to watch."

In 24 T20Is, Abhishek has 849 runs at a strike rate of 196.02 with two centuries. He is also currently ranked No.1 for batters in men's T20I cricket.

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"India are benefitting from a clever cricketing mind selection panel" - AB de Villiers

AB de Villiers. (Image Credits: Getty)

De Villiers went on to claim that India were yielding the results of some exceptional decisions right at the top. He could spot no weaknesses in their T20I squad to tour Australia. He added (7:00):

"This is an all out fire powerhouse team. All the guys who have been performing in the IPL and have been playing good cricket leading up to this tour have made the side. I feel India are benefitting from a clever cricketing mind selection panel. I don’t know how else to explain that. But it seems to me they are making quality cricketing decisions from the top and you can see the way these teams line up and the way they are performing. Very consistent, there’s not a lot of weaknesses in this team. You know what these guys are capable of. We’ve seen it in the IPL. Now, the best crop and the group of the IPL, the individuals who perform there find themselves together in one team. It’s all power from start to finish."

India and Australia are currently the top two sides in the ICC men's T20I rankings.