India opener Abhishek Sharma added a light-hearted moment to the build-up for the third and final T20I against Afghanistan, as players from both teams came together for an event in New Delhi ahead of Thursday’s match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. With the series heading into its final game, India T20I captain Shreyas Iyer, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan shared the stage with Afghanistan stars Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib and Mohammad Nabi. The event provided an opportunity for the players to interact away from the intensity of the cricket field.

Abhishek was asked a fun question about which player from the Indian and Afghanistan squads spends the most time in front of the mirror while getting ready for a match. The young left-hander had an unexpected answer for the Indian team, naming all-rounder Shivam Dube. For Afghanistan, Abhishek picked left-arm pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi, suggesting that the fast bowler is particularly conscious of his appearance before taking the field.

Abhishek Sharma was quoted as saying by Cric-Mate Voice: “In the Afghanistan team, Fazalhaq Farooqi is the one who spends a lot of time. He keeps looking at himself. In the Indian team, I think Shivam Dube is the one.”

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While the mirror question brought some fun to the occasion, Abhishek has been one of the standout performers for India in the ongoing T20I series. The explosive opener has accumulated 121 runs across the first two matches and played a key role in India’s dominant batting displays.

In the opening T20I, Abhishek produced one of his most destructive innings, smashing 82 runs from just 32 deliveries. His innings included seven fours and seven sixes, with an extraordinary strike rate of 256.25. He maintained his aggressive approach in the second T20I as well, scoring 39 from only 19 balls. The knock featured two fours and four sixes and came at a strike rate of 205.26.

Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan also spoke about his relationship with Afghanistan veteran Mohammad Nabi. The pair were teammates at Mumbai Indians during IPL 2024, where Nabi regularly helped Kishan during batting practice by discussing his bowling plans.

Ishan Kishan said: “I have played with Nabi Bhai in the Mumbai Indians. He used to help me a lot during batting sessions by telling me how he was planning to bowl, and I have always had good learnings.”

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Nabi, who has spent several seasons playing in India, also reflected on the challenges faced by bowlers on Indian pitches. The Afghanistan all-rounder made his IPL debut for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2017 and has gained considerable experience in Indian conditions.

According to Nabi, the relatively small boundaries and aggressive approach of Indian batters make bowling in the country particularly demanding.

Mohammad Nabi said: “Since 2017 we started playing in the IPL. In 2016 we played the World Cup here. It is always a pleasure to play here, and we have gained a lot of experience playing in the IPL. Always really happy to play in India. In India, the grounds are small, and you have to think. Indian batters can hit the good balls as well. It is always tough to bowl here.”