India’s Batting Coach Backs Abhishek Sharma Despite Early Struggles in T20 World Cup
– Ahmedabad, India – Concerns over opener Abhishek Sharma’s form in the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup have been dismissed by India’s batting coach, Sitanshu Kotak, who emphasized the team’s unwavering support for the aggressive batter.
Sharma has registered two ducks in his first two innings of the tournament, lasting a combined five deliveries. However, Kotak stated that the team management is not “over-analysing” the situation and recognizes the value of Sharma’s high-risk, high-reward approach to batting.
“The one thing we definitely don’t unnecessarily do is over-analyse,” Kotak said at a recent press conference. “Sometimes you [as batters] start making more assumptions than the opposition do. He has his plans sorted, he follows the way he wants to, and obviously we discuss the opposition, their bowling, their strengths, what they’ve been doing – all that is normal for everyone, not just Abhishek.”
The team’s confidence in Sharma is underscored by his impressive strike rate against spin. Since the start of 2024, Sharma boasts a strike rate of 206.59 against spin bowling in T20 Internationals – the highest among batsmen who have faced at least 100 deliveries.
Sharma recently returned to team training after being hampered by an illness that kept him out of the match against Namibia. During an intense net session on , he faced a barrage of deliveries, including repeated attempts to disrupt his rhythm with round-arm bowling – a tactic likely intended to prepare him for facing Aryan Dutt of the Netherlands in Wednesday’s crucial clash in Ahmedabad.
The session revealed Sharma’s focused intensity. Reports from the nets indicated he was heard loudly connecting with the ball, even piercing the insulation of the media centre glass. He repeatedly asked for more spin bowlers, including Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, and Kuldeep Yadav, and practiced aggressively for approximately 30 minutes before a brief interruption due to drizzle.
Kotak acknowledged Sharma’s earlier struggles, noting that he was dismissed for a duck against the USA after attempting his signature step-out stroke, and mishit a delivery to mid-on against Pakistan. However, he downplayed the significance of these dismissals, stating that failures are inherent in the high-risk nature of T20 cricket.
“Before he fell ill, he made runs. In the T20 format also, sometimes a 10-ball 30 is as important,” Kotak explained. “It’s not like he hasn’t scored runs. T20 format is high-risk, someone will get out [playing attacking cricket]. If we stress so much on it [the occasional failures] players will be under pressure. He is in good form, he has got clear plans, has a clear mindset and that’s what matters to us.”
India coach Mike Hesson reportedly spent three days prior to the Pakistan match planning for Sharma’s dismissal, a fact that Kotak met with amusement. He suggested that such detailed planning from opponents was a testament to Sharma’s effectiveness as a batsman.
“A lot of credit to Abhishek, if that’s how they are planning so much against him,” Kotak said. “I’m sure he must be doing so well that they’re concerned. We plan, he also comes up with ideas. I don’t genuinely think in the last game they planned to get him out and he was caught at mid-on – you can’t plan to get anyone out like that. He got hit high on the bat. But if they’re so concerned [that they have to plan] it’s a great sign for us, and a great credit to the way he plays.”
Kotak also emphasized the importance of adaptability in T20 cricket, citing Suryakumar Yadav’s innings against the USA – where he scored an unbeaten 84 after India had been reduced to 77 for 6 – as an example of a player adjusting to the demands of the situation. He stressed that a player’s recent form is less important than their ability to execute the team’s requirements at any given moment.
“I think playing aggressive cricket is important. But I don’t think plans change based on whether a player has failed or not,” Kotak said. “If anything, plans will change according to situations. No matter whether somebody has scored runs for two innings or somebody hasn’t, it’s important to adapt to what the team needs. Like the Mumbai game where Surya had to stay there for a while, and he had to go at run-a-ball more or less for 30-35 balls – that’s playing to the situation. Whether someone scores runs or not is not important, what team requires at a time and players trying to execute that is more important.”
