Indian opener Abhishek Sharma thanked head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav for their strong support during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. The young batter said their faith helped him stay confident despite a difficult tournament.
Abhishek struggled for runs in most matches of the tournament. Before the final, he had scored only 89 runs and even registered three ducks. However, he produced his best performance when it mattered the most.
In the final against New Zealand national cricket team at Narendra Modi Stadium, the left-hander played a fearless innings. He smashed 52 runs from just 21 balls. His half-century came in only 18 deliveries, which was the fastest fifty of the tournament.
His aggressive start gave India national cricket team the perfect platform. India went on to score a massive 255 for 5 in their 20 overs.
Abhishek Sharma Opens Up About Tough Phase in Tournament
After the match, Abhishek Sharma spoke honestly about the challenges he faced during the World Cup. He admitted that he even started doubting himself after a series of low scores.
“I wanted to share this before as well but today is the best day to talk about this thing: The coach and the captain had faith in me. Even I was doubting myself because it wasn’t an easy tournament for me,” he said.
The young opener also said that playing in his first World Cup was a special experience. He praised his teammates for supporting him during difficult moments.
“I hadn’t experienced [anything like] this before – playing my first World Cup. But everyone was so like, you are going to win one big game, one big game. So I was doing my process but it was not that easy as a young player, just one or two years in the Indian team and then going through this phase. But I just love this team for the way they treated me in those days; I have never felt this way before,” he added.
“It was not that easy for me. Through the whole year, I was doing so well for the team but at the big occasion, I wasn’t able to do well. But the faith and confidence the players and the coaches showed in me… I got emotional in between as well. I wanted to do really well in all the games but I couldn’t. Then I was like, I wanted to talk to the coach or the captain. They always said one thing: ’You are going to win us the big games.” I just wanted to wait for that day. You cannot ask for a better day than this,” he concluded.
India’s victory made them the first team to defend the T20 World Cup title successfully and also the first team to win the trophy three times.
