Ahmedabad: Ahead of the tournament if there was a competition to write India’s T20 World Cup script, most would have had Abhishek Sharma as the central character. Such had been the left-handed opener’s impact on India’s fortunes since hammering a 47-ball hundred in Zimbabwe in his second T20I in July, 2024.
There was no looking back for the dashing batsman. A couple of blazing cameos in South Africa was followed by a hurricane 54-ball 135 against England at the Wankhede Stadium. What truly established his reputation was his superb run in the 2025 Asia Cup in the UAE.
On surfaces where most batters struggled, he got runs in almost every match, amassing 314 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of 200. It even led to the talk of the team’s batting being over reliant on Abhishek.
The script however went awry for him at this marquee event. It affected India’s plans in the tournament. With their main man out of sorts, the domination went missing. Except for the semi-final against England, India hardly played to their potential. There were just scrappy wins on the way to the last four.
Abhishek had only one fifty to show – having hit a 55 versus Zimbabwe in the Super 8s at Chennai. It had even put his place in the playing XI in jeopardy. The team management though kept faith and persisted with him for the final against New Zealand. It would have been strange if India had won the Cup without Abhishek not doing anything of note in the tournament. The final was his last chance.
To the delight of every Indian fan, Abhishek finally stamped his authority on the World Cup with a typically dominating knock on Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium, an 18-ball half-century (52 – 21b). It is the quickest fifty of this World Cup as well as all knockout matches in World Cups.
For the Kiwis, it would be difficult to believe there was anything wrong at all with the Indian opener’s game. For them he looked the same player they had faced in the five match T20 series in the build-up to the World Cup. The 25-year-old had played a couple of outstanding knocks, starting with a 35-ball 84 at Nagpur.
Big things were expected from him at the World Cup but unfortunately he struggled with health issues, afflicted by a stomach bug right before the first game against USA. It showed in his game, affecting his rhythm. He suffered weight loss and even missed the second group game against Namibia.
On Sunday, Abhishek batted like a dream. The last time he played at the Narendra Modi Stadium, the batter couldn’t buy a run. He started this tournament with three ducks in a row. Playing against Netherlands, he was out in an ungainly fashion, bowled by off-spinner Aryan Dutt. It was his third duck in a row. He had issues with the off-spinner and was poor in shot selection too. The next game at Ahmedabad against South Africa he was guilty of throwing away a start of 12-ball 15, getting too early into a lofted shot off Marco Jansen.
His fielding was getting affected too. In the do-or-die game against West Indies, he dropped two catches and was out for a 11-ball 10. In the semi-finals, he was the only batter to miss out, again falling to an off-spinner, Will Jacks, picking out the lone fielder on the leg side to be out for a 7-ball nine. He had lost his wicket after getting a couple of fours in the over. It indicated a muddled mindset. He was just playing into the hands of the opposition.
In the final, New Zealand started with the obvious plan, bringing on off-spinner Glenn Phillips. Abhishek, however, displayed clarity. He played with control, curbing his ego of hitting every bowler. He was content with just five runs from the second over. After a watchful start against Phillips, Abhishek rattled off the quickest half-century in a T20 World Cup knockout, in 18 balls. It is also the fastest fifty of this tournament.
Once in, the strokes flowed. He opened with back-to-back fours off Jacob Duffy, first lifting him over mid-on, the next ball over mid-off. He had the crowd going by smashing express bowler Lockie Ferguson for a straight six before lofting Matt Henry’s slower ball over extra cover. In the final over of Powerplay, Duffy was taken for 20 runs as Abhishek completed his fifty with six fours and three sixes, powering India to 92/0 in six overs. It was the joint-highest Powerplay total at the men’s T20 World Cup.
