Abhishek Sharma was a key member of an Indian U-19 World Cup-winning squad, but it took him almost six years to make his senior team debut. He is happy that he wasn’t given the same opportunities as some of his teammates.
His former captain Prithvi Shaw made his Test debut and his best friend Shubman Gill made his ODI debut within a year of the 2018 junior World Cup victory.
Abhishek acknowledges that he benefited from using the “staircase” even though they used the “lift.” With three scores of fifty or more and an incredible strike-rate of almost 200, the 25-year-old was India’s most impressive batsman in the Asia Cup, scoring 314 runs in seven games.
“Some get straight (into the team). Some do everything. So I felt that I needed to do everything. Because as a player, if I had come straight into the team, then I would not have got a chance to learn all the things that I did learn,” said the newest heart-throb of India’s T20 set-up.
He improved his skills and had a better understanding of his own game during the years he played domestic cricket.
“I got a lot of time to try many things. To work on my game as normally, many players do not get that chance. I got more time hence worked a lot on my game,” he said.
His bat swing and modest tweaks when going on offense, even when he could defend, were what made him stand out during the recent campaign.
“Like now, I am playing T20. I used to think how could I come in the team. What more could I have done and obviously, I feel that this is just the beginning of (journey) of our team. There is still a long way to go. Miracles will happen,” the youngster exuded confidence.
Abhishek appeared at ease against the old rivals, scoring at a strike rate of 200 or more, with the exception of the last match against Pakistan, where he was dismissed early. He praised captain Suryakumar Yadav and head coach Gautam Gambhir for letting him take chances.
“I have never felt that this is a pressure match. We have prepared for all the matches equally. The way I play, I needed confidence and both Gauti paaji and Surya paaji gave me a lot of freedom because when you want to play like this, your performance can go up and down,” he said.
“Obviously, if you want to play at such a high risk, then there will be failures. But the way they handled me at that time, the way they talked to me at that time.”
“I think because of that I am able to play like this. Because it is very important that you have such support from the team.”
