IND vs ZIM: 'Should Go Out Of The Boundaries' - Abhishek Sharma Reveals Dad's Advice For Six-Hitting Prowess

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Abhishek Sharma credited his dad and teammate Shubman Gill following his maiden international century during India's 100-run win over Zimbabwe in the 2nd T20I at the Harare Sports Club in Harare on Sunday (July 7).

Playing just his second T20 international, the young all-rounder slammed a stunning 46-ball hundred, which came after he registered a duck on his international debut in the first T20I on Saturday (July 6).

The youngster, who earned his call up to the national side after a brilliant showing in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), was in superb touch and opened his account with a six off the first legal delivery he face.

Sharma also raced to his half-century with a six and then topped it off by smashing his hundred with a hat-trick of sixes in the 14th over. Six-hitting has become something very common in his game.

The 23-year-old finished as the top six-hitter in IPL 2024, hitting 42 maximums in 16 innings for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He amassed 484 runs in the season, striking at a rate of over 200, which earned him a place in India's T20I squad for this series against Zimbabwe.

Following the match, Sharma revealed his approach will be similar to how he has operated in IPL, taking the attack to the bowlers right from the set go and piling on runs inside powerplay, which he did well alongside Travis Head at SRH in IPL 2024.

"My approach is always very much similar to this because if I feel it, even if it's the first ball, I'm going to go for it and I usually go for it," Abhishek said in the post-match press conference.

"And when it's my day, it usually goes like this. And if it's not, I don't mind because I practice a lot on this, mindset and this game I'm having right now."

The youngster went on to credit his dad for his six-hitting ability, saying his father's advice during his young days of "always look to clear the boundary if you want to play lofted shots" has helped him.

"Special mention to my dad, who in my childhood didn't allow too much interference from coaches. He asked me to hit the big aerial shots. But he always told me this thing that if you want to play a lofted shot, it should go out of the boundaries," Abhishek added.

Abhishek's 46-ball ton takes him level with KL Rahul for the joint-third quickest by an Indian in men's T20Is. Rohit Sharma holds the record with a 35-ball ton against Sri Lanka in 2017.

Sharma, who raced to a century from his fifty in just 13 balls, also revealed a secret from his under-12 days which played a role in his century as the opener went on to credit opening partner Gill's bat for his century.

"Today I played with Shubman Gill's bat. So a special thanks to the bat as well. And this happens, I think, from the under-12 days." Abhishek revealed.

" Whenever I think like, this is a pressure game or this is, you know, a match where I should perform, I usually take his bat. Even in the IPL also, I usually ask for one bat. And today he gave me his bat. So I think it went really well."

Gill and Abhishek, who are childhood friends and under-19 teammates, played together in the 2018 ICC Men's Under-19 Cricket World Cup, where India took home the title.

After early end to their stand in the first two games, the duo will be looking for a bigger partnership when India face Zimbabwe in the third T20I at the same venue in Harare on Wednesday (July 10).