Abhishek Sharma's Maiden Century Leads India To Victory Against Zimbabwe

Abhishek Sharma credited his father and teammate Shubman Gill after scoring his first international century in India's 100-run victory over Zimbabwe in the second T20I at Harare Sports Club on Sunday, July 7.

In only his second T20 international, Sharma smashed a remarkable 46-ball hundred. This came after he was dismissed for a duck in his debut match on Saturday, July 6. His aggressive approach was evident as he opened his account with a six off the first legal delivery he faced.

The young all-rounder, who earned his national call-up after an impressive IPL 2024 season, continued his form by hitting a half-century with a six. He then completed his century with three consecutive sixes in the 14th over. Six-hitting has become a hallmark of his game.

Sharma finished as the top six-hitter in IPL 2024, smashing 42 sixes in 16 innings for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He scored 484 runs at a strike rate of over 200, which secured him a spot in India's T20I squad for the series against Zimbabwe.

After the match, Sharma shared that his approach remains consistent with how he played in the IPL. He aims to attack bowlers from the start and score heavily during powerplay overs, similar to his partnership with Travis Head at SRH.

"My approach is always very much similar to this because if I feel it, even if it's the first ball, I'm going to go for it and I usually go for it," Abhishek said in the post-match press conference.

Father's Influence and Six-Hitting Ability

The youngster credited his father for his six-hitting prowess. His father's advice during his early days—"always look to clear the boundary if you want to play lofted shots"—has been instrumental in shaping his game.

"Special mention to my dad, who in my childhood didn't allow too much interference from coaches. He asked me to hit the big aerial shots. But he always told me this thing that if you want to play a lofted shot, it should go out of the boundaries," Abhishek added.

Record-Breaking Century

Sharma's 46-ball ton equalled KL Rahul's record for the joint-third fastest century by an Indian in men's T20Is. Rohit Sharma holds the record with a 35-ball century against Sri Lanka in 2017.

He revealed that he used Shubman Gill's bat during this match. "Today I played with Shubman Gill's bat. So a special thanks to the bat as well. And this happens, I think, from the under-12 days," Abhishek revealed.

Childhood Friendship and Future Matches

"Whenever I think like, this is a pressure game or this is, you know, a match where I should perform, I usually take his bat. Even in the IPL also, I usually ask for one bat. And today he gave me his bat. So I think it went really well."

Gill and Abhishek have been friends since their under-19 days and played together in India's victorious campaign at the 2018 ICC Men's Under-19 Cricket World Cup.

The duo will aim for a bigger partnership when India faces Zimbabwe again at Harare Sports Club on Wednesday, July 10.