India, Sept. 22 -- Abhishek Sharma is an affable young man. You wouldn't think that, seeing how much violence he subjects the hapless cricket ball to. But take the bat out of his hand, and all you will see is a fun-loving youngster who hardly has an angry bone in his body.

On Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, a largely unseen version of Abhishek surfaced, in the T20 Asia Cup Super Four contest against Pakistan. His evening started poorly; off the third ball of the match, he put down a straightforward catch with Pakistan yet to register a run. Sahibzada Farhan, the right-handed opener who has taken a shine over the last week to Jasprit Bumrah, charged Hardik Pandya and attempted a booming drive down the ground, only for t...