25 February,2026 06:36 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Abhishek Sharma (Pic: File Pic)
Team India will face Zimbabwe in their upcoming fixture of the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2026. The match is scheduled to be played on February 26 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Ahead of the match, the cricket fans will expect a big knock from Team India's swashbuckling batsman Abhishek Sharma. The left-handed batsman is struggling to find himself among the runs in the ongoing global showpiece.
In Team India's previous clash against South Africa, he scored 15 runs in 12 balls, including two boundaries and a maximum. The knock came after registering three consecutive ducks in the tournament.
Speaking about him, Team India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said that the management's job is to keep him in a good frame of mind.
"We lost one game only, it was a good game for them, we did not bat well. Abhishek looked good in the last game; overthinking about one individual does not make sense. It puts too much pressure on them. Our job is to keep him in a good frame of mind," he said.
The coach then said that no player can guarantee a performance in the next clash. He also expressed confidence in the left-handed batsman by saying that he is not far from delivering a big knock.
"When he was scoring 80, 70, 90 in 30 balls, 100 in 40, 50 balls, that time nobody was discussing his game. Once he starts hitting the ball again, you will see the same Abhishek again. There is no doubt. Now, in this game, nobody can give a guarantee that he will do it in the next match. But I think he is not far (from a big score)," said Kotak.
India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Sanju Samson (WK), Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishan Kishan (WK), Rinku Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Abhishek Sharma, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Tilak Varma.
Zimbabwe: Graeme Cremer, Sikandar Raza (C), Ryan Burl, Wellington Masakadza, Richard Ngarava, Dion Myers, Blessing Muzarabani, Tony Munyonga, Brad Evans, Ben Curran, Tadiwanashe Marumani (WK), Tashinga Musekiwa, Clive Madande (WK), Brian Bennett, Tinotenda Maposa.
(With ANI Inputs)
