Anil Kumble and AB de Villiers Urge Abhishek Sharma to Find Balance and Consistency Ahead of IPL Season
Anil Kumble and AB de Villiers Urge Abhishek Sharma to Find Balance and Consistency Ahead of IPL Season
As the Indian Premier League (IPL) season approaches, cricket legends Anil Kumble and AB de Villiers have offered crucial advice to young Indian batter Abhishek Sharma, urging him to find the right balance between aggressive play and extended stays at the crease to maximize his impact.
Kumble Draws Sehwag Comparison, Emphasizes Innings Pacing
Former India captain and coach Anil Kumble believes Abhishek Sharma needs to learn how to pace his innings more effectively while maintaining his aggressive approach. Drawing a comparison with the legendary Virender Sehwag, Kumble highlighted the evolution needed in Abhishek's game.
"I would relate him to someone like Virender Sehwag, because he would look to smash every ball," Kumble said on JioStar. "When he moved from Test cricket to one-day cricket and then to T20 cricket, he realised that he had to pace his innings slightly differently. But Sehwag would still go at a 140–150 strike-rate. So, that's something Abhishek Sharma needs to start thinking about."
Kumble emphasized that Abhishek doesn't need to chase even higher strike rates but rather focus on facing more deliveries: "Saying, 'I’ve been scoring at 200 strike-rate, expectations are on me, should I now go at a strike rate of 300?' No, you just have to be normal. You have to play a number of balls."
The Importance of Building Innings
The former coach pointed out that Abhishek has demonstrated the ability to score quickly but needs to translate his starts into more substantial contributions. "If Abhishek Sharma bats 20 balls in an innings, we know he will be close to that 50 mark," Kumble noted. "We saw that with Sanju Samson, not getting out in the 40s or 50s, but making it count by going deeper, getting to that 85-90 mark. That's what you need in the T20 format."
Kumble expressed hope that this season would showcase a more mature approach from the 25-year-old left-hander: "Maybe that's the kind of maturity you will see in Abhishek this season, which SRH will be hoping for."
De Villiers Highlights Mental Challenges and Expectations
Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers echoed similar sentiments, emphasizing that Abhishek is at a critical juncture in his career where he must start taking more responsibility.
"He's 25, not 20 anymore," de Villiers stated. "So, this is definitely the phase where he has to start taking more responsibility. There will be media pressure and people asking him to become more consistent."
De Villiers pointed to Abhishek's inconsistent T20 World Cup campaign as an area for improvement: "We know he was a little inconsistent during the T20 World Cup, which was disappointing. He had a good finish in the final, but otherwise, it was a quiet tournament for him. He was erratic at times."
Building on IPL Success
Despite the World Cup struggles, de Villiers acknowledged Abhishek's impressive IPL 2025 performance: "He had an unbelievable IPL 2025, scoring close to a 200 strike-rate and averaging in the 30s, which is good for an opening batter scoring over 400 runs in the tournament, but it could have been better."
The South African legend identified consistency as the key challenge: "Once again, that word consistency comes to mind. It’s a personal challenge he will have to overcome mentally."
Managing Growing Expectations
Both legends emphasized that dealing with increased expectations will be crucial for Abhishek's development. De Villiers particularly highlighted this aspect: "Being the number one international T20I batter in the world comes with expectation, and that is the most dangerous word in cricket, when you feel like the whole world is closing in on you, and it’s up to him to fight those mental battles throughout this coming season."
As Abhishek Sharma prepares for the upcoming IPL season with Sunrisers Hyderabad, the advice from two of cricket's most respected figures provides a clear roadmap for his development: blend explosive power with sustained presence at the crease, embrace the mental challenges of consistency, and evolve from a promising young talent to a reliable match-winner.