The Indian national cricket team’s incredible title win at the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 was the result of bold decisions and powerful moments behind the scenes. Captain Suryakumar Yadav has now revealed how the team management kept Abhishek Sharma confident even when things were going really bad for him during the tournament.
Abhishek Sharma entered the tournament as the world’s top-ranked T20I batsman but endured a dreadful campaign in the group and knockout stages before the final. The young opener could score only 141 runs in the tournament at an average of around 18 and a strike rate of 174.07.
Suryakumar Yadav reveals the message he gave to Abhishek Sharma during the World Cup
However, Suryakumar Yadav gave Abhishek a strong message inside the dressing room despite his struggles, and it stood him in good stead in the biggest game in Ahmedabad.
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Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav made it clear that the team still has full faith in the Punjab player and has promised him that he will play the final. This trust worked wonders for Abhishek and he contributed significantly to India’s title win.
The Indian Express quoted Suryakumar Yadav as saying: “I told him, ‘There are nine games in this World Cup; even if you fail in eight of them – score zero in all eight – I’m guaranteeing you will face the first ball in the final.'”
Abhishek Sharma’s performance in T20 World Cup 2026
Abhishek had a very poor start to his maiden T20 World Cup, getting out for three consecutive ducks before scoring 15 runs in the Super 8 clash against South Africa. He missed a game due to illness but struggled badly for most of the tournament.
The left-handed opening batsman’s only notable performance before the final was against Zimbabwe when he scored 55 runs off 30 balls and then managed only 10 and 9 runs in the crucial matches against West Indies and the semi-finals against England respectively.
However, Abhishek gave the best performance of his life in the T20 World Cup 2026 final against New Zealand when it mattered most. Under the greatest pressure of the tournament, the opener scored a breathtaking half-century in just 18 balls, becoming the fastest half-century ever in a T20 World Cup final or knockout match.
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He played a blistering knock of 52 runs in 21 balls and helped India post over 250 runs on the board, which the Men in Blue successfully defended and won the title for a record third time, and that too on home soil.
Suryakumar Yadav explains why Sanju Samson did not chase centuries in T20 World Cup 2026
Sanju Samson played a big role in India’s title defence. Interestingly, the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman did not even play the first four matches of the tournament, but when he returned, he transformed the team’s batting strength in the T20 World Cup 2026.
The Kerala star scored an inning of 97 runs against West Indies, followed by two powerful innings of 89 runs against England in the semi-finals and New Zealand in the final. His aggressive batting helped India score huge scores and dominate in big matches.
Despite coming into the tournament late, Samson still finished as the third-highest run-scorer with 321 runs at a strike rate of almost 200 in just five innings. Interestingly, Suryakumar revealed that Samson never slowed down in chasing individual centuries as the team wanted to keep the scoring rate high and give the next batsmen enough balls to attack.
Suryakumar said, “He scored 97, 89 and 89 in big matches. If he wanted, he could have easily scored centuries in all three; he was playing so fast, but if it takes you 10 balls to go from 89 to 100 when you could have done it in three or four, then you are stealing six balls from the other batsman. Dubey scored 28 from six balls and 26 from eight. It was only because It was possible because Sanju did not chase his century.”
