"Not just female attention, I've also received a lot of attention from males" - Abhishek Sharma on his growing popularity
Indian all-rounder Abhishek Sharma grabbed eyeballs with his blistering knocks during the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) while playing for the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH). The southpaw recently spoke about how getting attention from the fans proved to be a motivational factor for him.
Abhishek said he received attention from female as well as male fans for his performances. Speaking on the YouTube channel 'Second innings with Manjot Kalra,' here's what the talented youngster said about getting messages from fans:
"It's not just female attention, I've also received a lot of attention from males. It felt really good. These moments are those which give motivation to any cricketer or celebrity. I also got such attention from them and received good luck and congratulatory messages."
Abhishek Sharma played under the captaincy of Australian pacer Pat Cummins in IPL 2024. The Hyderabad-based side finished as the runners-up, suffering an eight-wicket defeat to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final.
Sharing his experience of playing alongside Cummins, Abhishek said:
"He had come after winning the World Cup for Australia. The aura of Pat Cummins was very evident within the team. He would talk to everyone, asking the new players about their families and such things. He gave everyone complete freedom."
Abhishek Sharma was one of the standout performers with the bat for Hyderabad in IPL 2024. He was the team's second-highest run-getter of the season, chalking up 484 runs across 16 innings at a fantastic strike rate of 204.21.
"I had followed him for a long time" - Abhishek Sharma on Travis Head
Abhishek Sharma teamed up with Australia's Travis Head to form an explosive opening pair for SRH in IPL 2024. The 23-year-old revealed that he had been following Head's career for a while and knew that he plays with a fearless approach.
Speaking about opening the batting alongside Head, Abhishek said:
"My plan was clear, I would my bowlers freely. I knew that Travis Head also plays with a similar approach as I had followed him for a long time. But I did not know that if I was hitting, he would also hit. We adapted very quickly and there was never a moment where we thought that a particular bowling was troubling us."
Abhishek also highlighted that Head isn't bothered about outside noise and only cares about his family and teammates, adding:
"Travis Head is the first guy who just isn't bothered by anything. He doesn't care about the attention and fame that he's been getting. He only cares about teammates, family, and cricket."
The SRH all-rounder disclosed that he also asked Head about Australia's approach in their victorious 2023 World Cup campaign.
"When I asked him about his mindset in the World Cup, I was absolutely shocked to find out that a team can even think like this, that too in India. He told me that Australia just had a batters' meeting, where they would just talk about how they can score 400 runs today," Abhishek said.
Abhishek Sharma made his T20I debut for Team India in the recently concluded five-match series against Zimbabwe. The left-handed batter announced himself onto the big stage with a scintillating 100-run knock in the second fixture.