Abhishek Sharma scored a blistering 35-ball 84 in the New Zealand T20I series opener.
The highly anticipated ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is set to begin on February 7, and former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri has backed the star Men in Blue opener Abhishek Sharma to own the stage in the 20-over championship.
While discussing which player will have the most impactful campaign in the upcoming mega ICC tournament, Shastri noted the youngster’s pulsating 84 just a day before against New Zealand. Even after two early wickets in the first innings, the southpaw’s explosive knock at an astonishing strike rate of 240 fueled India to a huge total of 238/7.
“Abhishek, without a shadow of a doubt. [He’s] the No.1 T20 batsman in the world, and in a rich vein of form. He took the game away from New Zealand last evening. You’ve got to watch out for him, because his confidence level is high. If he takes off, India take off. He’ll be backed by the home crowd,” he stated at an event on Thursday.
Ex-England batter Kevin Pietersen also backed the call of Shastri, acknowledging the 25-year-old’s swashbuckling innings of 135 against the side in January 2025. After notching up a massive 247/9 on the scoreboard, powered by Abhishek’s fierce batting blitz, India had bundled out Jos Buttler and Co. for just 97 runs in the final fixture of the five-match series.
“I remember when Abhishek got that 150 [135] against England, remember at the Wankhede Stadium last year? We were watching this and, when he came over, we interviewed him after the game. I just put my hand on his shoulder, and I said, ‘Young man, that is the best T20 innings I’ve seen in international cricket’,” added the former player.
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The batter has entirely changed the T20 landscape of India since his international debut in July 2024. After a commendable outing against England at home, Abhishek also continued his scorching-hot form in the ACC Asia Cup 2025.
With 314 runs in seven matches of the subcontinental event, the opener broke the record for putting up the most runs in a single edition of the tournament. His heroics included three fifty-plus knocks, striking at a blazing rate of 200.
After two average outings facing Australia and South Africa, Abhishek once again smacked a fiery half-century against the Black Caps in the T20I series opener. The youngster’s return to his usual smashing form will be a huge plus point for the reigning champions ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ishan Kishan, and Washington Sundar.
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