Abhishek Sharma, the opener of India, scored an amazing century during the second T20I against Zimbabwe on Sunday to rebound well after he was dismissed for a duck while making his debut. The advice of his father that was encouraging played an important role in Abhishek’s comeback thus enabling him to achieve the third-fastest Indian T20I century jointly.
India set up a challenging total of 234/2 in 20 overs with Abhishek’s breathtaking 100 off just 47 balls leading to their dominant 100-run win which leveled the five-match series at 1-1.
Abhishek’s dad Rajkumar Sharma described what happened after his son’s disappointing first game.“He was a little disappointed. It is difficult to blame him. When you get a zero on your first match then surely there are doubts about whether you did things right. He blamed himself for depending too much on hit sixes out of the stadium obsession. I reminded my son that reaching here would have been impossible without him playing such shots beyond the boundary six times. I reminded him that it is better for him not to change his style now and always maintain his character,” – said Rajkumar according to Indian Express.
True to these words, Abhishek opened up with a six in the second T20I and continued with this aggressive approach till he completed his hundred including three consecutive sixes, showing glimpses of his natural game all over.
Rajkumar added, “He wanted his first runs to come from six. He misread length and missed connection but today, he has started with a six and ended up with another one.”
Having failed to chase down their modest target of 116 in their series opening match where they lost by just 13 runs, India made amends for this poor display in the second match largely through Abhishek’s heroics.
Rajkumar also praised Rohit Sharma for his son’s career.
“This is T20 cricket, you have to attack from ball one. You have to be fearless. Right now, Rohit Sharma is the role model for all Indian youngsters. He has set a trend and I am happy that Abhishek is following in Rohit’s footsteps. This method of playing will continue and it is not a double-edge sword as far as I am concerned. I don’t think he has been inconsistent.”
Abhishek’s remarkable performance in the IPL 2024 season scoring 482 runs at an average of 32.27 with a strike rate of 204.22 in 16 innings earned him his first national cap; thus proving that his attacking approach fits well into international rugby world.
