Abhishek Sharma Reflects on Debuting with Riyan Parag in Senior India Team

Abhishek Sharma and Riyan Parag, who have been teammates since their U19 days and won the 2018 U19 World Cup together, recently experienced a special moment as they made their senior India men’s T20I debuts on the tour of Zimbabwe. After India secured a 42-run victory in the fifth and final T20I to win the series 4-1, Abhishek shared his thoughts on the unexpected debut alongside Riyan.

“Last few games it was pretty good for bowling and as Riyan said after the first game, we all woke up. The positive was the next match was the next day, so we did not have time to think too much. We were talking about this in the IPL, saying if we get our caps, it will be a dream come true. We never thought we would debut together. We spoke about it long back, and it happened,” Abhishek said.

Riyan expressed similar of sharing this milestone with Abhishek. “Feels great. After the first game, everyone woke up and we were clinical after that. Really proud of the boys and enjoyed it to the max. We (him and Abhishek) opened our jerseys together. I went to his room, he opened it first and then I did. We played the 2018 World Cup together and for the next six years, we did not play together. Now, doing it with him was pretty special.

“In the series, Abhishek impressed with a 47-ball century and contributed with his left-arm spin bowling. “Special mention to Shubman (Gill) and coaches for trusting in my bowling after the first two games, where I did not bowl well. I’m working hard on my bowling, and it’s good to have the backing from the management. We all saw the World Championship of Legends final, and it is always special when you play Pakistan, even more so when it’s a final. Congrats to my mentor, Yuvraj Singh.

“Riyan, who had a crucial 65-run partnership with vice-captain Sanju Samson, added, “I had a chat with Sanju bhaiya and discussed that now we had to build an RR (Rajasthan Royals) partnership. Once we had wickets in hand at the end, we could go hard. It was a tricky wicket, and I’m glad we did well.

“He concluded by praising Shubman Gill’s leadership. “Playing under Shubman Gill’s leadership has been fun. We’ve played age group cricket together, under-16. He has been like a captain even when he was not the official captain. In the field, he has been exceptional.”