Abhishek Sharma put behind his early struggles in the T20 World Cup 2026 with a blistering knock in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s intra-squad clash, smashing a quickfire 94 to signal his return to form. The left-hander, who endured a mixed World Cup campaign, looked in full flow ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026.
The 25-year-old opened for SRH A in a warm-up game on Saturday and played his trademark attacking brand of cricket, racing to 94 off just 42 balls before being dismissed by Brydon Carse. Speaking after the game on social media, Ravichandran Ashwin noted how Abhishek seemed to be building towards something bigger.
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“SRH ‘A’ just finished their batting innings and ended up making 240+ in their practice match at the Rajiv Gandhi international stadium… Abhishek Sharma narrowly missed a ton to probably save up for the main event…”
Abhishek’s knock was the standout performance in a high-scoring outing, with Heinrich Klaasen contributing 49 off 31 balls, while new recruit Salil Arora impressed with a rapid 47 off just 16 deliveries. Stand-in skipper Ishan Kishan added 18 as SRH A posted a massive total in excess of 240.
The innings served as a timely boost for Abhishek, who had entered the T20 World Cup as the No.1-ranked T20I batter but struggled early in the tournament due to illness and poor form.
HOW WAS ABHISHEK IN T20 WORLD CUP 2026?
Abhishek’s World Cup campaign was a tale of two halves. After missing a group-stage game due to illness, he returned to register three consecutive ducks, raising concerns over his form at a crucial stage.
However, the left-hander bounced back when it mattered most. He finished the tournament with 141 runs in eight innings, including a crucial 52 off 21 balls in the final against New Zealand and a quickfire 55 in the Super 8 stage against Zimbabwe.
Those performances helped him end the tournament on a high, even if the overall numbers did not fully reflect his impact.
With IPL 2026 around the corner, Sunrisers Hyderabad will take confidence from Abhishek’s return to form. They begin their campaign against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, with Ishan Kishan set to lead in the absence of the injured Pat Cummins.
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