Sagar Virk keeps the faith, learns from Abhishek Sharma

The 17-year-old, who recently shared a dressing room with Abhishek Sharma in the Sher-e-Punjab T20 tournament, has already impressed in red-ball cricket and will look to do so again against Australia U-19.

Updated : Sep 26, 2026 14:18 IST , RAJKOT - 3 MINS READ

Sagar Virk returns to the India under-19 setup after scoring 134 in the first Youth Test in Sri Lanka a couple of months ago.  | Photo Credit: SHAYAN ACHARYA

Sagar Virk has already had a taste of what it takes to make the jump.

The batter returns to the India under-19 setup after scoring 134 in the first Youth Test in Sri Lanka a couple of months ago. It was an important step in a journey that has moved quickly over the last year, but one that has also had its share of setbacks.

His journey began in Patiala, where his elder brother Manveer Singh first gave him a reason to pick up a bat. “I started playing cricket after watching my brother,” he told Sportstar.

Manveer had already played State-level cricket, and Sagar followed him into the game. At the Cricket Academy of Patiala, he trained under Himanshu Chawla, a former first-class cricketer, and gradually made his way through the ranks.

For the 17-year-old, the journey was not always smooth. Sagar was not selected for Punjab in his first year of under-16 cricket. The disappointment lingered, particularly when he missed out again the following year.

His coaches, though, continued to believe in him. “My coach showed a lot of belief in me. He told me, ‘You can do it. U-19 is the main level. Once you start playing there, you can even go on to play for India’,” he said.

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Sagar listened. He did not stop working.

“I kept scoring runs and continued going to practice every day,” he said.

The hard work eventually earned him an India U-19 call-up. And, on India’s tour of Sri Lanka, he made his presence felt with a gritty ton.

After returning home, Sagar shared the dressing room with Abhishek Sharma in the Sher-e-Punjab T20 tournament, where they both played for Amritsar Soormas, the eventual title winner.

Sagar describes Abhishek as “very chilled out” and remembers the advice he would give the younger players. Though he did not feature in all the matches, sharing the dressing room with Abhishek was a ‘huge learning’ for the youngster. “He told us to play your own game. During difficult moments, Abhishek bhaiya’s message was simple -- “nothing will happen. Just bat properly. We will get there.” And those words gave all of us a lot of confidence,” Sagar said.

At home, too, there was never any shortage of support. His parents -- his father is a supervisor in a sabzi mandi -- would take him to the ground at 5 a.m. and bring him back after a full day of cricket. Growing up in a joint family, Sagar always was encouraged. “My mother and father have supported me a lot, and my relatives also were always encouraging,” he said.

Now another challenge awaits in Rajkot. Sagar, though, is already looking beyond it. “The Asia Cup is coming up, so that is my main focus. First, I want to do well in the Australia series and win it 2-0. After that, I want to do well in the Asia Cup. I want to do well in the World Cup for India,” the youngster said with a smile.

Published on Sep 26, 2026

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