‘Worry for the people who are worried about Abhishek’s form’: Suryakumar backs opener ahead of Ind v SA clash

India captain Suryakumar Yadav has thrown his weight behind opener Abhishek Sharma, who is yet to get off the mark in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026, as the team prepares for its first Super 8s encounter against South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

Addressing the media on the eve of the high-profile clash against the 2024 T20 World Cup runners-up, Suryakumar made it clear that the team management remains unfazed by Abhishek’s string of low scores. The Indian skipper reiterated his confidence in the left-hander’s ability and expressed belief that the top-ranked T20I batter will soon rediscover his touch as the tournament intensifies.

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“I worry for the people who are worried about Abhishek’s form; I worry about them. Why are they so worried about Abhishek’s form? But I think about those teams who are going to play against him, now that he has not yet scored a run, you know the rest of the answers,” Surya said.

“It’s a team sport, it keeps going on. Now the team has a requirement that the boy should play with his identity. So he is trying to play. If it happens, then it’s fine; if it doesn’t, then we are there to cover. Last year, he covered for us fully; now we will cover for him as well,” he added.

Abhishek’s campaign began with a golden duck against the United States and continued with identical fashion against Pakistan and the Netherlands. In all three outings, he was back in the pavilion within the first two overs without troubling the scorers.

India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel had also dismissed any speculation around the opener’s place in the playing XI, stating that there has been complete backing from within the dressing room.

“Absolutely no discussion in our team group about that. Abhishek is a world-class player. So far in the tournament, fortunately, there have been guys stepping up while Abhishek hasn’t been able to score the runs he would like,” Morkel said on Friday.

“But we are entering a very important phase of the World Cup now, and I’m pretty sure he’s going to deliver, not just for the team, but also for the viewers watching the game, because he’s entertaining and we love to see that. He’s hitting the ball well in the nets; it’s just about getting started and building his innings,” he added.

Despite the current slump, Abhishek has enjoyed reasonable success against South Africa in the past, scoring 200 runs in eight appearances against the Proteas, including a half-century against the 2024 World Cup finalists.