Abhishek Sharma made his mark in IPL 2024 and that paved the way for his T20I debut for India. He scored 486 runs for Sunrisers Hyderabad and along with Travid Head, redefined T20I batting in the powerplay. The only other team to match him was Kolkata Knight Riders, who won their third IPL title.
Abhishek Sharma was out for a duck on his T20I debut against Zimbabwe but scored his maiden T20I hundred in just his second game and became the fastest Indian to score a T20I hundred in terms of innings played. Unfortunately, he was pushed down the batting order when Shubman Gill, who was the captain of the Indian team in that series, opened the batting.
Recently, Abhishek Sharma, in a conversation with his former India U-19 teammate Manjot Kalra, spoke about his IPL experience and especially about his sister’s excitement while watching SRH matches from the stadium. He spoke about how she became a lucky charm for him and the team and how people started recognising her after the IPL season.
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She became our lucky charm: Abhishek Sharma talks about his sister Komal
“Whenever Komal came to the matches, her biggest concern was choosing an outfit. I used to tell her to wear something related to the team. The way she supported us this time, the entire team saw it and she became our lucky charm. People in Hyderabad started recognising her and she enjoyed it a lot,” Abhishek Sharma said on Manjot Kalra’s YouTube channel.
“It was the first time she came to the games and the team reached the final. So I think luck was a factor. Teammates asked me if she came to the games or not,” he added.
During the conversation, he further spoke about his friendship with Shubman Gill, who is now India’s vice-captain for the T20I and ODI series against Sri Lanka. He said that the two share a very good bond between them.
“He is quite busy now but whenever we meet, we talk about childhood. We were roommates in our childhood and we talk about such things. He is still the same. I don’t think there has been even one per cent change in him. His nature is such that he opens up only to people who are close to him. I don’t think our bond will ever change,” Sharma said.
Interestingly, Abhishek Sharma, despite his brilliant debut in the series against Zimbabwe, was not picked for the T20I series against Sri Lanka. India decided to include Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, who are expected to open the batting.
The Gautam-Gambhir-led team arrived in Sri Lanka on May 22 and is already in practice sessions. Suryakumar Yadav has been named as the new captain of the team in the T20I in place of Hardik Pandya, who is part of the squad.
The tour begins on July 27 with the T20I series at Pallekele before the teams move to Colombo for the ODIs.
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