Abhishek Sharma on Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav: 'These two will win lot of games for India in the World Cup'

Abhishek Sharma is arguably the best batter in India's T20I squad at the moment. The aggressive left-hander, who made his debut in 2024, raced to 1000 career runs in a jiffy, becoming the fastest player ever to do so. With a career strike rate of 188.98 and average of 36, Abhishek is also among the most destructive batters in the world.

On Sunday (December 14), the southpaw put on another brief show, smashing 35 off just 18 balls to kill the chase in the powerplay itself. However, his opening partner and vice-captain Shubman Gill once again struggled during his 28-ball 28 while skipper Suryakumar Yadav too added a failure to his tally. Both players now haven't scored a fifty in their last 18 T20I innings.

Suryakumar's spot may not be in danger, given that he is the captain and also has a strong resume of matchwinning performances to defend himself. Still, his lean patch is a worrying factor for India and their supporters. Meanwhile, Gill is constantly under severe criticism with an in-form Sanju Samson on the bench. Abhishek, though, strongly backed his captain and vice-captain to find their form soon.

"Trust me, these two are going to win a lot of matches for us in the World Cup, and before the World Cup as well," said Abhishek at the post-match press conference in Dharamsala.

"I have played with them for so long, especially Shubman. I know the kind matchwinning ability he has, in what conditions, irrespective of the team. I have always believed fully in him and trust him. Hopefully, everyone else will soon start to see this."

India lead the five-match T20I series against South Africa by a 2-1 margin and Gill has two games in this series to get back among the runs. If the 26-year-old fails in these two matches, the team management led by head coach Gautam Gambhir will have some serious thinking to do with the T20 World Cup 2026 not that far away.

After the South Africa series, India will play five T20Is against New Zealand at home before the World Cup.