Abhishek Sharma: ‘I want my preparation in practice to make me uncomfortable’

“Preparation is really important. If I want to continue playing like this and utilise the powerplay, as the team wants me to, preparation really matters. I always believe it depends on which team I’m going to play against and which bowlers I’m going to face. Whenever I have time, whether it’s a week, a few days or two or three days, the preparation is very specific: which bowler is going to plan for me, and how I’m going to execute my plan and dominate. That’s always there,” he said in the post-match press conference.

For Abhishek, that also meant preparing for situations in which bowlers tried to take away his usual scoring options. He wanted to face those challenges in practice rather than encounter them for the first time in a match.

“It’s very personal for me because, as an attacking batter, if you have to face world-class bowlers, you have to be ready for all the plans. That comes down to my preparation. I always want my preparation in practice to make me a bit uncomfortable so that I wouldn’t be surprised in a match. I always allow myself to be in that position during practice and training, so that I won’t be surprised when bowlers and teams actually have that plan in a match,” he added.

That preparation also came into play when he looked at the field on Sunday. Fifty of his 69 runs in Indore came on the off side. He was able to find gaps outside off stump rather than relying only on his power through the leg side.

“It depends more on the field placement. I don’t play those shots deliberately. It happens when I see the field placement. Whenever the field allows me to give myself room and play those shots, that’s it,” he said.

Roston Chase, who had dismissed him in each of the previous two matches, was among the first to feel the impact in Indore. Abhishek found scoring options on both sides of the wicket, making it harder for the off-spinner to settle into a length. He did not need to force every shot; he looked for deliveries he could attack and gaps he could exploit.

There was a similar thought behind his approach to scoring big. Abhishek was not concerned only with how many sixes he hit. He wanted to target one over in which he can put the opposition under pressure.

“It’s not about hitting sixes. It’s about getting that big over whenever you can. If you get that start, I feel it doesn’t matter if you hit a four or a six. What matters is whether you can convert that into a big over. That’s always our plan. Whether it’s in the powerplay, the first or second over, or any other over, we try to get that big over in between,” he said.