(Source X)
India’s T20I series win against Zimbabwe highlighted their deep bench strength, crucial for carrying forward the legacy of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravindra Jadeja, who recently retired from the format. Despite an initial loss, India bounced back to clinch the series 4-1 with five debutants in the squad.
Abhishek and Riyan, who have been teammates since their U19 days and were part of India’s victorious 2018 U19 World Cup squad, made their senior India men’s T20I debuts together on the Zimbabwe tour, six years later.
Following India’s 42-run victory in the fifth T20I in Harare on Sunday, Abhishek expressed his disbelief at debuting alongside Riyan, a moment he never foresaw.
“Last few games it was pretty good for bowling and as Riyan said after the 1st game we all woke up,” Abhishek said.
“Positive was the next match was the next day so we did not have time to think too much. We were talking about this in the IPL, if we get our caps it will be a dream come true. We never thought we would debut together. We spoke about it long back and it happened,” he added.
Echoing the same emotions, Riyan said, “Feels great. After the 1st game, everyone woke up and we were clinical after that. Really proud of the boys and enjoyed it to the max. We opened our jerseys together.”
“We played the 2018 World Cup together and next 6 years we did not play, now we are playing. Doing it with him was pretty special,” he added.
Abhishek Sharma working hard on his bowling
Abhishek made a stunning international debut by smashing a century off just 47 balls. Across five matches, he contributed 124 runs and also took 2 wickets. Despite his impressive start, the young cricketer acknowledged the need to further refine his bowling skills.
“Special mention to Shubman (Gill) and coaches for trusting in my bowling after the first two games, where I did not bowl well also.
“I’m working hard on my bowling and it’s good to have the backing from the management. We all saw (the World Championship of Legends final) and it is always special when you play Pakistan and even more so when it’s a final, congrats to my mentor (Yuvraj Singh),” he added.
