Former Indian cricketer Zaheer Khan was impressed by the performance of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) batter Abhishek Sharma against the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Saturday April 29 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.

Veteran Indian pacer Zaheer Khan thinks Sunrisers Hyderabad should remain at the top of the batting order with Abhishek Sharma following their impressive performance against Delhi Capitals. Abhishek hit an amazing 67 carries on 36 balls as he took charge from the start against the Capitals' bowlers, hitting 12 boundaries and a six. Sunrisers ended their triple losing streak with a 9-run win over the Delhi Capitals at Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday.

Abhishek Sharma got the team off to a flying start on the power play by taking on the fast bowlers of the Delhi Capitals. The Punjab-born cricketer scored a match-defining knock of 67 runs from 36 balls using 12 boundaries and a six. The southpaw showed fighting spirit despite regularly falling wickets. The Hyderabad-based franchise recorded a 9-run win over the Delhi Capitals.

Zaheer Khan believes SRH is one of the strongest squads on paper but is unable to live up to expectations with constant chipping and chopping down the batting order.

“He should continue to bat at the top of the order even though (Harry) Brook has 100 points. IPL is such a tournament that if you make mistakes at the top of the order you will pay heavily. There is a lot of planning going into finalizing these things even before the tournament starts,” said Khan.

“They went back to the pair of Mayank Agarwal and Sharma to open the innings today and it paid off. Brooks' previous rise to the top had caused much confusion among their ranks. Also today I reiterate that SRH is a very good side on paper but they are not producing the best results and this has to do with something unrelated to cricket. How you approach games, the choices you make are a big part of IPL," added Khan.

Abhishek Sharma started the 2023 IPL as an opener before giving way to Harry Brook in the top order. The left-handed batsman was down to accommodate the playing XI. Team management decided to use him to open the inning against the Chennai Super Kings. However, he came fourth in Hyderabad on April 24 against the Delhi Capitals.