Abhishek Sharma might not have been able to open his T20 World Cup account so far, but that doesn’t seem to bother the Indian camp as the defending champions gear up for their first Super 8 clash against South Africa in a rematch of the 2024 edition’s final.
Both India and South Africa have been clubbed in Group 1 of the Super 8 stage after finishing on top of their respective groups in the round-robin stage. Coming into the tournament, a lot was expected from Abhishek at the top of the order. However, the 24-year-old is yet to make a mark as he became the first Indian with three consecutive ducks in a T20 World Cup.
While bowling coach Morne Morkel claimed that Abhishek is just one innings away from finding form, the Punjab left-hander recently gave a pep talk to the entire camp at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, to keep the positive vibes intact.
“Just going to motivate the guys. Just going to keep the momentum, that’s it. I hope it helps,” said Abhishek to the BCCI.tv camera before joining the rest of his teammates in a huddle and asked his teammates to do the basics right.
“It’s a sign of a champion team. Let’s keep enjoying each other’s performances. That’s the best thing we are doing right now. The energy we are showing in all the games is fantastic. And we are here to win every game. Let’s keep enjoying, and one thing, ‘Jo bole so nihaal, sasriya kaal’,” concluded Abhishek with the Sikh jaikara.
As soon as Abhishek ended, the whole Indian team said the slogan loudly, with Gambhir and Suryakumar breaking into laughter. The body language of the entire camp showed that how relaxed the Men in Blue are despite Abhishek’s failures at the top and in the right frame of mind.
Gambhir’s 1-on-1 chat with Abhishek Sharma
Earlier, Abhishek had a lengthy one-on-one chat session with Gambhir, while Sanju Samson had a lengthy batting session at the venue. One-down Tilak Varma too looked patchy in front of the spinners. While it is yet to find out what is going on the team management’s mind, Samson’s return in the playing XI can’t be ruled out.
With Morkel backing Abhishek, and if Samson makes the playing XI, Tilak might have to sacrifice his spot in the batting line-up against the Proteas on Sunday. So far, Ishan Kishan has carried the load at the top of the order.
