Abhishek Sharma Mohammad Amir. Image Credits: X
Abhishek Sharma's recent slump in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, where he has yet to trouble the scorers, has caught a lot of expert and fan attention in the media. One of the renowned names in Pakistan cricket, Mohammad Amir, also recently weighed in his opinion on Sharma and called him a blind slogger in a recent interview.
Amid backlash on the statements from the former left-arm quick, his ex-captain, Salman Butt, has backed Amir's right to make such bold comments. While doing so, he believed someone of Amir's class with the ball can see batters' weaknesses easily and suggest how they could be trapped by the bowlers.
Salman Butt bats in support of Amir's statement on Abhishek Sharma
The incident happened on February 18, days after India defeated Pakistan, when Salman Butt was asked about his opinion on the telling remarks from Amir in the lead-up to the India vs Pakistan game. The former Pakistan opener thought Amir was well within his rights to say such things.
During the interview, he listed out the former bowler's credentials at the international level and felt he did nothing wrong in voicing his opinions.
"There have been a lot of talks about the statement that [Mohammad] Amir gave. He called him [Abhishek Sharma] a slogger. The pedigree that he is talking about and how good a bowler he was — he can say such things. He has dismissed many such big batters — Virat Kohli also terms him as the most challenging bowler," said Salman Butt.
"He has dismissed all the big batters in the world from a very young age of 18. He has the right to make such statements because he can see if you bowl with certain plans against him [Abhishek], then he can get out. What happened if someone of his stature said it?" he further asked.
Also Read: Mohammad Amir Compares Abhishek Sharma To This Pakistani Player After 3 Ducks
Amir's impressive record against India
During his short international career, Amir faced India in 10 innings. As mentioned by Salman Butt, the bowler boasted fine numbers against the opposition across ODIs and T20Is. In 7 ODI innings, he dismissed 8 Indian batters at an economy rate of 4.93, including the famous 3/16 in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 final.
In T20Is, he only faced India three times and got 6 wickets at an economy rate of 4.73. These three innings included his failed attempts to clinch the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup matches in 2016, despite bowling well and a solitary match in the T20 World Cup 2024.
Is Abhishek Sharma's form a concern for India?
Abhishek Sharma came into the tournament with incredible hype around him as the best T20 batter in the world for his swashbuckling batting in the powerplay. However, since the start of 2026, he has scored 68* (20) and 30 (16) against New Zealand in two innings, while the rest of the 5 innings have been ducks.
He is yet to score a run in the tournament after a massive build-up. However, in his short career, he has shown a lot of confidence in his style and backs himself and his approach to take on any bowler in the world. He is capable of winning any match for his team single-handedly and has shown no signs of changing his approach despite the recent slump.
Notably, the player was also hospitalised in the middle of the tournament, which must have hampered his preparations. It will be interesting to see how he fares in the business end of the competition, but India will ideally not worry about his form just yet.
Also Read: India Discarded From T20 World Cup 2026 Semifinal Spot
