‘Most Dangerous T20 Batter’: Kane Williamson Lauds Abhishek Sharma-OxBig News Network

According to Abhishek Sharma’s former Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Kane Williamson, he can alter his shots at the last moment while still generating immense power and finding gaps all over the field, as per ESPNcricinfo. “He has got a great bat swing and is a natural timer of the ball,” Williamson said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.

“He has got that gift of power, but it’s not through brute force. It is through timing the ball and playing all around the ground, which is a superpower in a lot of ways. It’s a little bit like Heinrich Klaasen. I mean different with the brute strength but the ability to change your options and score pretty much all around the ground. Changing your shot at the last minute – because you’re not overhitting – is a skill that not many have,” he added.

Abhishek had a standout Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season, amassing 484 runs in 16 innings at a blistering strike rate of 204.21. His explosive opening partnership with Travis Head was one of the tournament’s biggest highlights. After making his India debut later that year, he seamlessly carried his form into international cricket, already notching up two centuries in 17 T20Is with an average of 33.43 and a strike rate of 193.84.

Williamson recalls that Abhishek’s potential was evident early on, even when SRH acquired him from Delhi Capitals (then Delhi Daredevils) ahead of IPL 2019. At that point, he had played only three IPL matches, but his talent was undeniable. “I think there were a few guys who were kind of under Yuvraj Singh’s wings,” Williamson said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.

“Abhi was one of them, and Shubman [Gill] was another. So clearly there was an identification of talent,” he added. “Sometimes in the IPL, it’s quite difficult to have a long pathway for a young player. But yeah, a real masterstroke, obviously now bearing fruit with Abhi being one of the most dangerous T20 batters in the world,” he said.

“He was a jovial character, sort of happy-go-lucky, who took the game on. A lot of confidence as well that you do see in some of these young kind of superstar-type mould players,” he noted. “A keen trainer, he would come in and whack and lose as many balls by hitting them as far as he could. At that younger age, there’s a real keenness to get involved as much as you can, and that was Abhi as well in those early stages at SRH,” he said.

While Abhishek is currently recognized as a T20 specialist, Williamson believes he has the ability to adapt his game for Test cricket in the future, showcasing his versatility across formats. “Clearly a strength of his is striking the ball which lends itself to white-ball cricket but I still think he has a very good technique as well,” Williamson said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.

“So I don’t know if he will just take that one route. I’m sure he has aspirations to play Test cricket for India, which you know is often the ultimate achievement. I think he can adjust his game. It’s clean, it’s not brute. It’s picking the ball and playing it on merit,” he added. “He has just got so many dimensions to his game, which comes with that little bit of maturity. He has always had the natural bat swing and the ball-striking [ability], that youthful exuberance. But to channel that and hit the ball to all areas, taking on the best bowlers in the world, so that takes courage as well,” he noted.

“Often when you come in as a young player, you might have the skillset, but there’s that curiosity, you know, are you good enough? Some of the questions that you have in the back of your mind when you’re exposed to a standard of cricket you haven’t necessarily played before. But now he has such clarity on the game plan and how he wants to approach his cricket,” he said.

“The high side is so high and he’s continuing to push the boundaries of his game, and I think for any player in the world, that’s what it’s about. It’s about trying to get better, and as you get a little bit older and you have a role that you’re happy with, then the experience comes into play, the decision-making comes into play, which we’re seeing now,” Williamson said.