5 major statements made by Abhishek Sharma in recent talk show appearance

India’s youngster Abhishek Sharma has been in the continuous limelight for his brilliant form in T20Is. The southpaw played a key role in helping the Men in Blue win the Asia Cup 2025, earning the Player of the Tournament award.

In seven games, the 25-year-old amassed 314 runs at an average of 44.85 and a strike rate of 200.00, including three fifties. Overall, Abhishek has appeared in 24 T20Is, scoring 849 runs at an average of 36.91 and a strike rate of 196.07, with five fifties and two hundreds. His performances have contributed to him becoming the No. 1 ranked T20I batter with 926 rating points.

The southpaw recently appeared on the talk show ‘Breakfast with Champions,’ hosted by Gaurav Kapur, where he discussed various aspects of his game and journey. Here, we look at five major statements made by the Punjab batter during his recent talk show appearance.

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#1 “He made an innocent face that day” - Abhishek Sharma reveals a stunning childhood incident involving Shubman Gill

During his appearance on the talk show, Abhishek Sharma spoke about Shubman Gill’s ability to change his expressions to avoid getting caught after mischief. The southpaw shared an incident from their U-16 days when this skill helped Gill escape punishment. Abhishek Sharma shared:

“There is one guy who did a lot of mischief in age-group cricket but never got caught, and that is Shubman. I will tell you an incident. We were in Dharamsala for Under-16. Our hotel was 500m away from the stadium. We used to go there by bus. The driver was stopping the music, but we wanted to play Punjabi songs. He said no, and we got into an argument with him. And the one who was shouting the most was Shubman.”

“The incident went to the coaches and the drivers complained. They asked the drivers to identify who did it. There were 4-5 of us. Five of us were standing in a line and Shubman was last. The coach pointed towards each of us and asked the drivers. They said no it was not him (Shubman). I was shocked. They called the four of us out and made us sign a letter that was to send us back home. I was sad that how come the one who started it was not called out. He has a talent to change expressions. He made an innocent face that day,” he added.

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#2 “Imagine he was meeting him for the first time” - Abhishek Sharma shares an astonishing statement about his father

Abhishek Sharma also spoke about his father, Raj Kumar Sharma, calling him his first coach and describing his strict nature. He said:

“In the beginning, I felt that as a youngster, even if you are talented, till your Under-19 days, you need someone who can push you. That was my dad. He was a different coach. He was very strict. But I also feel I needed someone like that for the way I was. I would be so scared. Even if I was out in any game by hitting a lofted shot, I would not sit next to him while he would be driving. I would sit behind. He would start anytime talking about my shot selection.”

Abhishek also recalled an IPL incident when his father confronted Rahul Tripathi for playing a false shot. The 25-year-old added:

“My dad got hold of Rahul Tripathi also once. He said, "Why do you keep hitting like this? You have such a good range of shots playing straight". And imagine he was meeting him for the first time. I let all the Indian players know that this can happen.”

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#3 “He told me I am making you ready to win games for India” - Abhishek Sharma on mentor Yuvraj Singh

During the interaction, Abhishek Sharma also spoke about the guidance he received from former cricketer Yuvraj Singh. He revealed how Yuvraj watches their videos and helps them prepare. He shared:

“I am very grateful. During the lockdown we would have camps at his place. Me, Shubman, Prabhsimran, Anmolpreet. Basically I needed it. We were going on a flight and I asked him if we could have a camp for a few days. He said yes right away. I was struggling a bit at that time, honestly. I was not consistent in the IPL and I was not even in the playing XI. Shubman was already playing for India.”

“I started feeling that I was behind, as people from my age group were doing well already. We were having lunch at his place and paaji told me straight away that he was not preparing me for the state or the IPL or even to get a cap for India. He told me I am making you ready to win games for India. Write this and it will happen in the next two to three years. After that camp, I realized my goal is something else,” he added.

Abhishek Sharma continued:

“He would sit at home and watch our videos, make notes from it, and then take screenshots from different videos to compare before and after. No one knows how Yuvi paaji goes into this much detailing. And while we are practicing for over five hours, he will be there with us throughout.”

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#4 “This was a very big thing for me coming from the captain” - Abhishek Sharma on receiving backing from Suryakumar Yadav

Abhishek Sharma also talked about how T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav supported him after his low scores in the initial games. He shared:

“When I first came in the Indian team, I got out early in the first three to four games. Suyakumar Yadav told me "You are such an important player for me, if you make 15 zeros as well, you will play the 16th game, take this in writing." This was a very big thing for me coming from the captain.”

“I understood one thing that if I have to go higher up the ranks in the Indian team I have to do something different. That was striking for me. I felt that I would stop myself due to the pressure of playing a long innings. I removed that thing. I thought I will back myself even if I get out throughout the season,” he added.

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#5 “I did not remember I had it” - Abhishek Sharma opens up on his chit celebration during IPL 2025

The Indian youngster also spoke about his chit celebration that went viral during IPL 2025. Playing for SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) against Punjab Kings (PBKS), he smashed 141 off just 55 balls. After reaching his century, he pulled out a chit that read, “This one is for the Orange Army.” Speaking about it, he shared:

“Shikhar Dhawan had told me that manifestation is important, just manifest that you have already done it. He invited me to his home to have this conversation. He made me start writing in a diary. One thing is visualizing that I will do it, and the other is to visualize that I am doing it. That I am the best player of India, I have won many matches for the team, he made me write this.”

“I do journaling before every game in the morning. So instead of that, I thought of writing a chit. I wrote ‘This one is for Orange Army.’ I kept it in my pocket. When I got to my fifty, I did not remember I had it too. I kept playing and the moment I made a hundred and celebrated, I remembered it and took the chit out,” he added.

Abhishek Sharma is next expected to take the field when India face Australia in the five-match T20I series, starting October 29 in Canberra.