Brisbane, Nov 8 : The fifth T20I between India and Australia at The Gabba has been halted due to severe weather conditions and lightning. At the time of interruption, India reached 52/0 in 4.5 overs, before bad weather forced players to go off the field and spectators in the front rows had to be evacuated to the stands with shelters.

The severe weather alert on the scoreboard in the stadium said, 'It is unsafe to remain in open areas. Please seek shelter under cover and follow instructions.' With the weather radar also showing heavy rain arriving to hit the stadium for an hour, the interruption in the game could well be for a long period.

Before rain halted the proceedings, left-handed opener Abhishek Sharma survived early chances to be unbeaten on 23 and become the second fastest Indian batter to reach 1000 T20I runs, while Shubman Gill hit glorious boundaries to be 29 not out.

After India were inserted into batting first, Abhishek was dropped twice in the powerplay - first by Glenn Maxwell at long-off off Ben Dwarshuis, and then by Dwarshuis himself on the boundary after he miscued a pull against Nathan Ellis.

Despite the nervy start, Abhishek capitalised on the reprieves to hit two glorious boundaries and reached the 1000-run milestone in T20Is in just his 28th innings since making his debut in July 2024.

While Abhishek rode his luck, Gill looked assured at the other end by hitting six boundaries to give India early momentum, before rain forced them to go off the field. If rain eventually forces the game to be abandoned, then India will win the five-game series with a 2-1 margin.

/IANS