As ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 approaches its decisive stage, India’s opening combination has come under scrutiny, particularly the form of young left-hander Abhishek Sharma. However, two of the game’s most respected voices — Ravi Shastri and Ricky Ponting — believe the team management should resist the temptation to make a late change ahead of India’s semi-final clash against the England team on March 5. Abhishek’s campaign in the tournament has been far from ideal.

The Indian opener has struggled to find rhythm at the top of the order, with his only significant contribution being a half-century against Zimbabwe national cricket team earlier in the competition. Apart from that knock, the left-hander has endured a difficult run that included three consecutive ducks against the United States national cricket team, Pakistan national cricket team and Netherlands national cricket team. 

His struggles continued in later matches as well. Abhishek Sharmamanaged 15 runs from 12 deliveries against the South Africa national cricket team and followed it up with a modest 10 off 11 balls in India’s final Super 8 match. In that game, India eventually secured victory thanks to a brilliant innings from Sanju Samson, but Abhishek’s overall numbers remained underwhelming.

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Across six innings in the tournament, the young opener has scored just 80 runs at an average of 13.33 with a strike rate slightly above 131. He also had a forgettable outing in the field during the previous match, dropping two chances that added to the scrutiny surrounding his form. Despite these setbacks, former India head coach Ravi Shastri believes the decision to persist with Abhishek Sharma should depend primarily on the player’s mental state rather than just the statistics.

“Unless the team management realises that, mentally he’s not there. If mentally his mindset has taken a beating, it’s for them to judge from the outside, in conversations with him, just seeing the way he’s batting in the nets,” Ravi Shastri said.

Ponting echoed similar sentiments, admitting he had expected much more from the young Indian opener before the tournament began.

“He’s obviously not made the runs that any of us expected,” Ricky Ponting said. “I had him down as the leading run scorer and possibly the player of the tournament going back about a month ago. That hasn’t happened yet, but I would agree with Ravi. I would stick with him.”

Ravi Shastri also suggested that a change should only be considered if Ishan Kishan is promoted up the order and Rinku Singh is drafted into the lower middle order.

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“If that’s the case, then and only then will I think of putting Ishan Kishan up the order and then probably Rinku Singh bringing him in at the bottom,” he added. The former India coach also pointed out that Abhishek has enjoyed success against England in the past, including a blistering 135 in Mumbai — a memory that could prove crucial as India prepare for the high-stakes semi-final at Wankhede Stadium.