Abhishek Sharma is a hard-hitting left-handed lower-order batsman who also bowls fast and precise left-arm spin. In 2016, he led India to victory in the U-19 Asia Cup, and he was a key member of the winning U-19 World Cup squad in 2018.
Career
Domestic Career
Abhishek rose to fame after scoring a century on his Under-19 debut for Punjab in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy, and before that, he was the top run-getter in the 2015-16 VIjay Merchant Trophy, India’s domestic U-16 competition, with 1200 runs at an average of 109.09.
He was India’s captain for the Youth ODIs against England at home in 2017, which India won 3-1, before Prithvi Shaw took over for the return tour to England in 2018 and served as captain during the World Cup.
Sharma played in every game for India at the 2018 World Cup, including a crucial 49-ball 50 against Bangladesh in the quarterfinals.
Sharma represented Punjab in the 2018 Vijay Hazare Trophy after returning from the World Cup. Prior to the World Cup, he made his Ranji Trophy debut for Punjab, turning in brave performances for his home county.
IPL Career
At the IPL auction in January 2018, the Delhi Daredevils purchased him for INR 55 lakh ($85,000). He made his Twenty20 debut on May 12, 2018, for the Delhi Daredevils in the 2018 Indian Premier League, scoring 46 runs off just 19 balls. His whirlwind inning drew a lot of attention, but he didn’t get much of a chance to show off his skills. He was one of three players who moved from Delhi to Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2019 to make room for Shikhar Dhawan to make the switch. His Sunrisers Hyderabad debut came against Delhi, where he took Colin Munro for a major wicket.
Background
Raj Kumar Sharma, Abhishek’s dad, is a former cricketer who works for Bank of India in Amritsar on the sports quota. He was also a Punjab junior selector in the past. Abhishek made history by becoming the first cricketer to win two coveted BCCI awards: the Raj Singh Dungarpur award for top scorer in the Vijay Merchant Trophy (2015-2016) and the Raj Singh Dungarpur award for highest wicket-taker in the same tournament with 57 wickets.