On Saturday, most eyes were glued to the net where Abhishek Sharma was batting during India’s training session on the eve of the T20 World Cup final against New Zealand. Facing a mix of throwdown specialists and net bowlers, Abhishek batted for nearly 30 minutes and was watched closely by batting coach Sitanshu Kotak and head coach Gautam Gambhir. Off-spin was the flavour and there were plenty of inside-out hits, which grew cleaner as he settled into the crease.
Abhishek’s father and childhood coach, Rajkumar Sharma, was stationed far from the action but had the best possible vantage point to watch his son go through the paces one last time before the big night. The father wasn’t worried and kept craning his neck in the direction where the ball was hit. Every sweet connection was met with an assuring nod. Unbeknownst to his son, the father, his biggest cheerleader, supporter and critic, was quietly in attendance to offer support during the toughest phase of his career.
“(I am seeing his net after a very long time. Everything will be good tomorrow and the team will win the World Cup),” he quipped.
“I am sitting there,” he said, pointing towards a hospitality box above, “but the real fun is to watch the match from here. I watched all his early days of cricket from near the boundary ropes, it was fun,” added the father.
Without his spectacles, he couldn’t observe the proceedings as closely as he would have liked but the sound of the shots was assuring enough to bring a smile to his face. When Abhishek finished his hit, coach Gambhir summoned him and the two had an extended chat lasting nearly twenty minutes. It was an animated pep talk, highlighted by fingers pointing towards different parts of the ground and plenty of reassurance.
Father Rajkumar watched the conversation and, the moment it ended, net bowlers and onlookers mobbed Abhishek with requests for selfies and autographs. He obliged them all and the father allowed his son the required space before walking towards him.
“(laughs) [Let me tell him that I am here],” he said.
The father and son met and had a brief chat, mostly about cricket and batting, before more “Abhishek sir, Abhishek sir” requests interrupted the moment.
Abhishek requested a support staff member to take his gear to the dressing room and the freed-up left-hander ensured he signed every piece of paper that came his way through the security fence.
It has been a difficult tournament for the World No. 1, as he is yet to fire on all cylinders and has struggled against off-spin. Teams have cracked his code and he scored his first World Cup runs in his fourth innings after three ducks. The stomach infection that forced him into hospital did not help and returning to fluent ways has been a struggle since then. The batter who demolished the opposition in the fixtures preceding the tournament has become a walking wicket for opponents. All they need to do is deploy an off-spinner. Even a part-timer would do.
After tallying 89 runs in eight games, the youngster will need to take a fresh guard and forget everything that has happened so far. For some batters, it is about getting two sweet hits out of the way before normalcy returns. Abhishek belongs to that school of batsmanship and he does not need to look too far back for inspiration. In the game against Zimbabwe, the opener attempted to spend time in the middle and, while the lack of spin in the powerplay was helpful, his patience also paid off.
“(prayer),” was the word the father repeatedly used when he met several greeters near the sightscreen. He also had a brief interaction with ICC Chairman Jay Shah, who was inspecting preparations for the big final at the Narendra Modi Stadium with other officials of the global cricket body.
When the team returned to the dressing room and the ground was vacated for Sunday’s musical performances, father Rajkumar left the premises with a prayer that his son would return to dominating ways when he watches from the third-tier hospitality box.
