T20 World Cup 2026: India’s young batting sensation Abhishek Sharma has climbed all the way to the top of the ICC T20I batting rankings. And the story behind his rise is one of the most inspiring journeys in modern cricket.
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What makes it even more special is that it began in the humblest surroundings of a four-year-old boy in a small home in Amritsar. Running around with a plastic bat, dreaming of someday playing for India. Today, that same boy has become the world’s No. 1 T20I batter.
Earning a historic 931 rating points, the highest ever achieved by a men’s T20I player. It is a moment that feels like the perfect fulfillment of a childhood dream. Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has shared several unheard stories about Abhishek’s early years.
Connecting these memories to the discipline and hunger that eventually pushed him through domestic cricket, the IPL, and now international cricket. According to Pathan, Abhishek’s rise in the past year, especially in the Asia Cup 2025.
And the series against Australia has made him India’s most important T20I player. Pathan’s story begins with a 13-year-old Abhishek returning home after earning his first bit of cricket income, just ₹2,000.
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T20 World Cup: The Young Boy Who Treated Cricket Like Worship
For most kids that age, the first instinct would be to buy something exciting: maybe a new pair of shoes, a better bat, or to simply spend it celebrating with friends. But Abhishek did something entirely different.
Pathan recalled on his YouTube channel that a 13-year-old boy from Amritsar came home after earning ₹2,000 from cricket. Imagine what a kid would normally do at that age: buy something fun or celebrate. But this boy took the money straight to his grandmother.
According to him, Abhishek didn’t even think about using it for himself. He simply handed it to his grandmother, who had always believed he was destined for something big. Pathan added that Abhishek’s grandmother constantly reassured his father that the boy would someday earn fame across the world.
The passion was always there. Abhishek was only four when he got his first bat, and from that moment onward, cricket was the only thing he cared about. He never let anyone in the house rest, Pathan joked. He would tell his mother, father, and sister to bowl to him all day. That’s all he wanted.
Their house had a small temple, and even as a child, Abhishek treated his bats with a kind of respect; he kept them all inside the temple. And remarkably, even after becoming the No. 1 T20I batter in the world, he still does the same.
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T20 World Cup Final: Fastest Indian Ever to 1,000 T20I Runs
Whenever he returns home, every bat goes straight into that temple. Some habits never change, Pathan said. From dominating age-group cricket to leading India at the Under-19 level, T20 World Cup 2026, Abhishek’s upward journey was steady.
But the turning point came during the IPL 2024 season. Representing Sunrisers Hyderabad, he smashed 484 runs at a strike rate of over 200, an outrageous number that instantly grabbed the attention of selectors across formats. His fearless approach, clean striking, and consistency meant his India debut was only a matter of time.
When he eventually debuted against Zimbabwe, it didn’t begin perfectly; he was dismissed for a duck. But Abhishek responded like a champion, scoring a century in his second match. Soon after, he produced a breathtaking 135 against England at the Wankhede Stadium, the highest T20I score by an Indian.
The momentum only grew. In the Asia Cup 2025, Abhishek finished as the tournament’s highest run-scorer and was deservedly named Player of the Tournament. During the Australia series, he once again topped the run charts and won Player of the Series.
Along the way, he shattered Tim David’s world record for the fastest player to reach 1,000 T20I runs in terms of balls faced, achieving it in just 528 balls. He also became the fastest Indian to 1,000 runs in terms of innings, completing it in only 28 matches.
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