However, as the conversation deepens, he realizes that Abhishek’s mind is as clear as water in a bottle. Soon he will talk about his goals. One of them is for him to win the Punjabi title. His Abhishek, 22, will lead Punjab in the next domestic season, starting with the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s on October 11th.
“Obviously, the ultimate goal is to play in India,” Abhishek said on a Zoom call.
Abhishek’s conversion from bowler to all-rounder was when his father, Raj Kumar Sharma, realized his son’s multi-faceted abilities.
“He was also a Punjab cricketer,” says Abhishek. Also, through his father’s influence, he began acting as a left arm spinner “when I was probably his five or his six.”
“But slowly, I must have been eight or nine when he realized I could bat too. I started batting,” he says. “It was my father who recognized my talent.”
Being a lower-intermediate batsman in domestic cricket is tough. You’re not always on the selection radar, you rarely score big, and your failures tend to be amplified even more. Abhishek is currently the starting pitcher for Punjab.
“Uvi paasi “Looking at the way I’ve developed myself, I realize that his tips have really helped me. [playing] Short balls, strength throughout and strength helped me a lot. ”
“I think you have to work hard at bowling if you want to play all three formats, so I’ve been working on variations,” he says. And it worked really well. Those were the factors I wanted to develop.”
Time away from competition has helped him develop a training routine. During this off-season he was not part of the India A side that played against New Zealand A, and Duleep was not selected for the Trophy and Irani. I was. off spinner.
“So I tried [bowling] i think i’m doing well. We are currently working on 3 or 4 variations for the new ball, which I think will be very helpful. ”
Batting and bowling aside, captaincy means Abhishek’s plate is full. But he accepts responsibility and wants to build on his early initiations. Punjab is a strong team filled with his players on the fringe of the IPL. The team seems to have moved on from the days of Yuvraj and Harbhajan Singh with plenty of experience in the form of Mandeep Singh, Gurkirat Singh Man and Jiwanjot Singh.
Abhishek led Punjab at the age group level and also captained the India U-19s heading into the 2018 World Cup. Is it any different to lead a senior Punjabi side?”No, because I’ve been playing with some players in his Punjabi side since the U-16 era,” he says. “But even top-level teams have seniors. That’s your challenge: how to treat them and create that atmosphere. Captaincy has made me a more mature hitter and leader.”
“Rahul sir always told me to believe in myself,” recalls Abhishek. “He never asked me to change anything about my batting. He always wanted me to bat to the end. I’m one of those positive people.”
“He was calling all the hitters for one-on-one meetings. He asked me, ‘What do the successful starters of the last two years have in common? All of them are good players,” but he actually wanted me to hit 30-35 pitches every inning. So that’s what stuck in my mind. When someone like Sir Lara trusts you, you gain that trust.
On a daily basis, Abhishek has a close circle of trusted friends and elders who provide information.
Abhishek is a feisty 16-year-old entering his fifth season as a domestic cricketer. He’s at a stage where he’s ready to make a big leap. His close associates from the U-19 era – Prithvisho, Shubman Gir and Ashdeep Singh – all represent his team senior. However, Abhishek found the transition a bit difficult. Especially since I didn’t get enough chances to make an impression for a long time.
After 13 first-class matches, Abhishek averages just 29 and has a best of 98. His List A numbers are slowly increasing, if not quite there. The average after 30 innings is almost 31. He’s looking forward to pushing them this season, but he already has bigger goals on his mind.So how does he see himself in five years’ time? Huh?
“It’s only natural to host the World Cup for your country!”
The clarity is there and Abhishek wants to increase that number. Winning the title could start the next chapter of his young career.
Himanshu Agrawal is Associate Editor of ESPNcricinfo.