Eclipsing Rohit Sharma’s record for the fastest men’s T20I century by an Indian batter through a breathtaking 30-ball hundred against Afghanistan, left-handed opener Abhishek Sharma said achieving the feat at the Arun Jaitley Stadium stands as a defining milestone in his career. Abhishek tore into the Afghanistan bowling attack, smashing 108 off just 34 balls to take India to a formidable 221/7, as they won by 127 runs to complete a 3-0 series sweep. His 30-ball century broke the record for the fastest T20I hundred by a batter from a Test-playing nation, surpassing the previous mark of 33-ball tons held by Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza and New Zealand’s Finn Allen.
He also attributed the blistering knock to a fearless team environment that backs him to play aggressively.
Abhishek Sharma tore into the Afghanistan bowling attack, smashing 108 off just 34 balls to take India to a formidable 221/7, as they won by 127 runs to complete a 3-0 series sweep.
Because once they are on your side, I feel it gives you more freedom and confidence, big mention to coach and captain. Because if you see a T20 game, it is mostly about the powerplays, “I still remember once I started when Sky was there, so he always wanted me to utilise the powerplay,. So that’s what GG bhai was saying. Because i feel when a Punjabi speaks in Punjabi, it actually motivates the whole team, “GG bhai came to me before the game and said that I have to speak in the huddle, so I asked him if I could speak in Punjabi,. I called the team Soormas, which means warriors. Soormas are those who always play in their way and win games, so that’s why I wanted to create that intent in the team just before the game,” he added. Because we are playing in Delhi, we have this line, explaining the light-hearted ending to his speech, Abhishek said, “After that, as I said,.
Abhishek further revealed that Gambhir explicitly tasked him with driving that high-tempo mindset from the outset by giving a pep talk in the pre-match team huddle in Punjabi.
“I said on the first day as well when I got the Man of the Match award, we dominated the whole two years before the World Cup and probably just after the World Cup. One or two series can’t define our batting department and the way we want to play. “It’s our responsibility as batters to make sure we create that atmosphere again, where we have the freedom to just go and express ourselves. He wanted me to create that atmosphere and create that in the team dressing room where you can just go, be fearless, play the way you want and express yourself,” he explained. I think Navjot Singh Sidhu sir used to say it a lot, so I wanted to make the atmosphere in the team a bit lighter.”
