“I was in a zone where I was going to react to the ball. I didn’t even know my score,” Abhishek said after the match. “I just asked Surya [Suryakumar] paaji‘ what do you think?’. He said ‘since a wicket has fallen you can take your time, take a couple of balls.’ That really helped me, because of him only I would say the hundred happened and my highest score happened. At that time, I didn’t realise I was going to hit the fastest hundred [second-fastest for India].”
Abhishek got off to a swift start and crossed fifty in just 17 balls. He was on 94 off 32 balls after nine overs and had the Indian record for the fastest T20I century – off 35 balls by Rohit Sharma – in sights. He finished with a 54-ball 135, the highest individual score for India in men’s T20Is.
“It never crossed my mind that I should play till the end,” he said. “I react to the ball based on the team situation. Luckily today, when I was in the 80s or 90s, Surya paaji came in and said you’ve played well so far, worked hard, so you can take two-three balls. When the captain is [batting] with you and tells you something, I felt I should bat carefully. When Hardik [Pandya] came in, he said, ‘since wickets are falling you have to play according to the situation and bat till the end since you are hitting the ball well’. Then Axar came in… these three are senior players and have played well for India, so no better players to listen to in that situation.”
Given India do not play a T20I any time soon, it was a timely knock from Abhishek, who could jostle for spots in the team once Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill return. But he insisted none of that played on his mind.
“I had met Jassu [Jaiswal] and Shubman yesterday [at the BCCI awards]. There has never been a competition among us – we are playing together since Under-16. There was just one dream – to play for India. The three of us are playing now, so there is no better feeling.”
Abhishek has been one of the flag-bearers of India’s high-intent batting template. Since the start of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2023-24, he has scored 1893 runs in T20 cricket. Only five batters across the world have more runs than that, none of them at a faster rate than Abhishek’s 199.47. He was the Player of the Tournament in that SMAT which his domestic team, Punjab, won. His fast starts even helped runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024. How did the transformation happen?
“I worked hard [to bat in a certain way] ahead of that season and when I saw the results, I thought I should back myself and express myself,” Abhishek said. “I practiced a lot of match scenarios in open nets. Brian Lara had told me one thing – just play your shots but make sure that you don’t get out. So that is what I had in my mind. That helped me and I felt I could hit shots off the first or second ball as well.
“When you are young, you don’t explore much, but I did that and realised I could play with more intent and help the team. When you do well, you get the support of your team. So I thought that when it is my day, I have to play this way – whether for Punjab or my franchise. Obviously when it comes to India, it’s a special and a big moment. I felt if I have the ability, I should nourish it. There are ups and downs, but you need to be clear about playing this way.”
“Yuvi paaji was always there for me and put all these things in my mind and believed in me. When Yuvraj Singh tells you that you are going to play for the country and win games, you also try to believe in yourself and give your best. I talk to him after every game, he is the one I listen to. He knows me better than me.
When your captain and coach tell you that you have to play like this and we are backing you, we’ll be there for you always, that is the biggest motivation for a young player in the team. In South Africa I remember Hardik paaji and Suryapaaji telling me, you are100% going to make some runs, just believe in yourself’. In this series Gauti [head coach Gautam Gambhir] paaji came back and I feel grateful that they believe in me, that’s not normal and is the biggest motivation for any player.”
S Sudarshanan is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @Sudarshanan7
