"I Never Chased Milestones": Abhishek Sharma Reveals The Secret Behind His Success

Abhishek Sharma has credited the freedom provided by his teammates and coaches for allowing him to embrace an aggressive, impact-driven approach, saying his ambition has never been centred on personal milestones but on helping India and his teams win trophies. The 26-year-old, who was part of India's ICC Men's T20 World Cup-winning side, discussed his playing philosophy ahead of the new home season against the West Indies. Abhishek traced the development of his mindset to his domestic cricket days, when he began placing greater emphasis on impacting matches rather than chasing individual numbers.

“When I started, I thought that I have to play in a way that I can play impactful innings for my team. That started with my Punjab team in domestic cricket, and we won the domestic T20 competition in 2024. From there, I feel, a mindset developed that I don't have to chase milestones, because that's not in your hands. What's in your hands is how much impact you can make.

“That is how I want to play, no matter what opposition we are playing. As an individual, I never had this urge that I should achieve this, achieve that. I had only one goal: I have to win trophies. I feel that you need a lot of support from the team, the management, the coaches and the captain because they know how you play.

“I feel they have helped me quite a lot, the entire team, not just the support staff but the players as well, especially the senior players. So now, just as it happened for me when I was new, the new players should also get that freedom. They should feel that they belong here. I really enjoy that when I talk with Vaibhav or other young players,” Abhishek told JioStar.

That backing, according to Abhishek, has been crucial in allowing him to play without being constrained by the pressure of reaching specific statistical targets.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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