Ponting pleaded to keep Abhishek at Delhi Capitals in 2018

Ricky Ponting has thrown his weight behind Abhishek Sharma, predicting that the India opener will be the leading run-scorer and, potentially, Player of the Tournament at the upcoming T20 World Cup. The former Australia captain also said that, back in 2018 when they were together in the IPL at Delhi Capitals, he had tried to convince the franchise owners to hold onto Abhishek and not let him go.

"I was his first IPL coach," Ponting said on the ICC review. "He debuted with me, I think as a 17-year-old at Delhi and made an immediate impact. I think he hit his first ball for four or six straight back over the bowler's head with that classical sort of straight bat and held the pose. And you could just see then as a 17-year-old that there was something extra special.

"We ended up trading him away from Delhi, but I pleaded and pleaded and pleaded and said, please don't do this. We've got to [keep him], there's an absolute superstar in the making here. And that's what it's turned out to be. I've got really high hopes for him this time."

Abhishek made a swashbuckling 19-ball 46* for Capitals on IPL debut, but played just two more innings before being one of three players traded to Sunrisers Hyderabad for Shikhar Dhawan. Since Abhishek began playing for Sunrisers in the 2019 season, he has made good on his promise with 1753 runs in 71 innings for them, at a strike rate of 162.16.

He has discovered even better form at the international level and is about to play his first ICC event, which Ponting believes won't faze him: "[It's] a real positive to be honest. He can be the leading run-scorer and potentially the Player of the Tournament. That's how good I think he is. And if he does, that makes India even harder to beat. If he doesn't, then they're as vulnerable as anybody else. So that's how important I think he is to this World Cup for India."

Abhishek's numbers since his T20I debut in July 2024 make for impressive reading: in 37 innings, he has scored 1297 runs at an average of 37.05 and an astonishing strike rate of 194.74. He has hit two rapid centuries and eight fifties. This includes the 14-ball fifty he scored against New Zealand just over a week ago. That is India's second-fastest half-century in the format.

Abhishek, and India who are the defending champions, begin their World Cup campaign on February 7 in Mumbai, where they take on USA.