So far, Team India has played three matches in the tournament, and Sharma has featured in two matches and is yet to make a run in the T20 World Cup 2026. Ahead of India’s next assignment, which is against Netherlands on February 18, batting coach Sitanshu Kotak placed a waiver on the batsman.
Abhishek Sharma was in good form before the 2026 T20 World Cup
Before the tournament, when Team India were engaged to take on New Zealand for a five-match T20I series, the left-hander scored a truckload of runs, which has naturally escalated the hopes around him on the ongoing title race, with Team India playing as co-hosts and as defending champions.
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The first Team India and the Indian cricket fans held their ground as Abhishek Sharma departed for a golden duck against the United States cricket team. The USA placed a fielder in the square, where the left-handed batter prefers to hit.
The result did not change against Pakistan. Sharma had to return home again without scoring a single run. On February 15, when India played Pakistan in Colombo, Salman Ali Agha dismissed the dangerous Indian batsman.
Sitanshu Kotak explains the scenario
But why did Abhishek suddenly lose his form while performing smoothly? During the press conference on Tuesday, Team India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak stated that the batsman lost momentum due to the illness. But he doesn’t want to put too much emphasis on Sharma’s form, taking a long-term view.
“He was scoring runs before he fell ill. It is a high-risk match. If we put too much emphasis on a few failures, the pressure will be on the batters too,” Kotak said ahead of the India-Netherlands match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The Indian team management had to change their opening pair for their match against Namibia due to Abhishek Sharma’s illness. The 25-year-old suffered stomach upset before India’s opening match of the tournament. He may have eaten something wrong in Mumbai, which affected his stomach.
Abhishek Sharma admitted to hospital
As per the reports, the opener’s health condition deteriorated during the match between India and USA. After the quick dismissal, he did not even come into the field in the second innings. Later, for the second match, he traveled to Delhi for the next match but could not do so due to stomach problems.
Tilak Varma further informed that Sharma had been admitted to the hospital for medical attention. The Punjab-born player returned to action during the India-Pakistan match but was again dismissed for a duck.
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