IND vs SA: 'He's scared of Yuvraj' - The tough-love mentorship behind Abhishek Sharma's rise

NEW DELHI: As Abhishek Sharma gears up to play his archetypal planetary lucifer astatine location erstwhile India look South Africa successful the 2nd T20I successful Mullanpur connected Thursday, those who shaped his travel importune that his accelerated emergence is thing but a surprise.

Behind the six-hitting powerfulness and effortless elegance sits a enactment ethic sculpted from puerility — and a strict mentor helium is inactive “scared” of.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Abhishek's begetter and puerility coach, Rajkumar Sharma, recalls a teen who already lived similar a seasoned pro. “His days started astatine 4am,” Rajkumar told The Indian Express. “From gym and workout to moving and swimming — helium did everything helium could to perpetually amended arsenic a player.”

Once the fittingness grind was done, Abhishek wanted lone 1 happening — to bat. Punjab inferior manager Arun Bedi inactive marvels astatine the show of an 11- oregon 12-year-old effortlessly lifting bowlers implicit the ropes.“Abhishek would deed sixes with lofted shots astatine an property erstwhile boys are inactive learning to mediate the ball. It spoke volumes astir his skill,” Bedi said.

Cricketing legends person shaped him on the mode — VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid with India, Ricky Ponting and Brian Lara successful the IPL. But nary power has been stronger, oregon sterner, than

Yuvraj Singh

, who began grooming with Abhishek during the lockdown.

Rajkumar laughs arsenic helium describes the pugnacious emotion that drives the youngster adjacent today. “Even now, erstwhile helium thinks Abhishek has made a mistake, helium volition prime up the telephone and telephone and scold him,” helium said. “And Abhishek is frightened of him too.”The 25-year-old has besides embraced play acknowledgment to Lara and Yuvraj — not arsenic a pastime but arsenic a instrumentality to refine his batting rhythm. “It has improved his bat swing, made it cleaner,” Rajkumar explained.