T20 WC: Pujara said, will try to score runs in the off-side against Abhishek Archer

By Sandy Verma On Mar 10, 2026

New Delhi : Former India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has said that Abhishek Sharma, with his changed stance, can counter the threat of England paceman Jofra Archer by scoring maximum runs on the off side in the men’s T20 World Cup semi-final at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday evening.

In the head-to-head clash between the two teams in the T20Is, Abhishek has completely dominated Archer, scoring 61 runs in 5 innings without getting out at a tremendous strike rate of 185. Despite this, Archer has achieved success against India in T20Is by taking 14 wickets, his most against any opposition team.

“If you look at his stance, his front toe is now towards cover, and his shoulders are straight. Earlier, his toe was towards mid-off, and his shoulder was open. With the current stance, his hands are very close to his body, which is also helping him maintain good balance with his head.

“Abhishek is very strong on the off side. If you look at his boundary options, anything in that zone, in the fifth or sixth stump line, close to the wide line, he is very strong and his strike-rate is very good. Now, what is Jofra Archer’s strength? Most of his deliveries, when he releases the ball, go away from the left-hander.

“That’s why Abhishek has been very successful against Jofra Archer in the past. I still believe that even at Wankhede, he will try to give himself some space, try to go over point or cover, and score as many runs as possible on the off side,” Pujara said on JioHotstar.

Archer’s play with the new ball has been the highlight of England’s campaign so far, the pacer has taken 10 wickets in the tournament, eight of which have come in the powerplay. But his match against Samson, who is coming after scoring a memorable 97 against West Indies, could prove crucial.

Archer has dismissed Samson three times in five innings at an average of just 8.3, and has used the short ball very well. “Jofra will continue to bowl short. Throughout this World Cup, we have seen that most of his wickets against right-handed batsmen have come from back-of-a-length balls, which are around eight meters or even shorter. He will continue to do the same against Sanju Samson.

“Normally, Samson stands on the leg stump. Now, against Jofra, how do you score runs? One option is to create a little more space, try to go outside the leg stump, and as he is about to bowl, move a little to the off side to create space. Another option for Sanju is to focus on rotating the strike initially and give Abhishek as many balls as possible,” Pujara said. Give, because someone like him would want to face Jofra Archer.”