"He's really a good bowler": Varun Aaron following Abhishek Sharma's bowling performance in Qualifier 2

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 25 (ANI): Former right-arm seamer Varun Aaron lauded Abhishek Sharma's bowling performance during the Qualifier 2 clash between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League 2024 at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
After a day-off with the bat, the young Abhishek delivered a marvellous spell of spin bowling with the ball, picking up two crucial wickets to help his side secure a spot in the Indian Premier League (IPL) final with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after a win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Chennai on Friday.
Abhishek had till this point, won acclaim with his six-hitting abilities and consistent hitting in powerplay overs. Showing why he is one of the future stars to look out for, Abhishek picked up the ball and got crucial wickets for RR skipper Sanju Samson and later hard-hitting Shimron Hetmyer with a stunning turning delivery as an opener who can chip in useful overs of spin. He is indeed a player worth paying attention to.
Speaking after the game at ESPNCricinfo's Time Out show, the former pacer asserted that Abhishek is a very good bowler. He is one of those bowlers, who tosses up deliveries a little more than the other bowlers.
"When I saw the starting XI, I knew he's [Abhishek] going to bowl today. He's a really good bowler. I've seen a lot of him in domestic cricket. He's one of those bowlers who tosses it up a little bit, more than the others. He bowls that carrom ball that comes out from the front of the hand, that was a really good ball. That shows he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve and he's a full-time bowler for Punjab," Varun Aaron said on ESPNcricinfo.
"He's one of those who likes to bowl and tells the captain, 'I want to bowl in domestic games, it helps me be in the game more.' He's one of those all-rounders who look forward to bowling. The other thing is he would have been wanting this chance to bowl for the longest time and he lapped it up really well," the former cricketer added.
Coming to the match, Rajasthan won the toss and opted to bowl first. Sunrisers lost wickets regularly, but knocks from Heinrich Klaasen (50 in 34 balls, with four sixes), Rahul Tripathi (37 in 15 balls, with five fours and two sixes) and Travis Head (34 in 28 balls, with three fours and a six) took SRH to 175/9 in their 20 overs. Avesh Khan (3/27) and Trent Boult (3/45) were the pick of the bowlers for RR.
In the run-chase, Rajasthan lost wickets at regular intervals, with spinners Shahbaz and Abhishek getting rid of some important batters. Yashasvi Jaiswal (42 in 21 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes) and Dhruv Jurel (56 in 35 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) fought it out for RR but were left 36 runs short of a victory as RR was restricted to 139/7.
Shahbaz Ahmed (3/23) was the pick of the bowlers for SRH, while Abhishek took 2/24. Cummins and T Natrajan also got one wicket each.
Now, it will be the final between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and SRH at Chennai on Sunday. (ANI)