IPL 2025: Abhishek Sharma marked a sensational comeback to form with a knock of 141 runs from only 55 deliveries in the match against Punjab Kings on Saturday, April 12. Following a tough start to the season, where he amassed just 51 runs in five matches, the left-hander looked in fine touch as he helped the SunRisers Hyderabad successfully chase down 246, which is the second-highest successful run chase in the tournament’s history.
Abhishek, who had fought against a fever prior to Saturday’s game, found it difficult to get his timing right at the beginning of the innings. Nevertheless, he discovered his groove as the innings went on.
Although beginning slowly, he showed no reluctance – rather than poking around, he faced the bowling with grit. He hit 10 sixes and 14 fours in his explosive 141 – the third-highest personal score in IPL history, only behind Chris Gayle’s 175 not out in 2013 and Brendon McCullum’s 158 not out in 2008.
Abhishek celebrated the occasion alongside his parents, who were present in the crowd at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. The young Punjab batsman smiled for a touching photo holding the Player of the Match award, surrounded by his proud mother and father.
Abhishek disclosed that his father, Raj Kumar Sharma, had motivated him during his difficult phase earlier in the season. In a joyful moment, he mentioned that his father remained somewhat unsatisfied with his performance against PBKS – he wished for Abhishek to finish the game completely. Abhishek was out in the 17th over, with SRH requiring 24 runs still. However, by then he had got the job done.
“It was quite special. Since my U-14 days, my father has been coming to watch my matches. If you closely monitored him during my innings, you’d see him signaling to me, telling me which shots to play – ‘play this shot, play that shot’. He was my first coach. It’s very special to have done this in front of my mother and father,” Abhishek said.
“I think this is my highest score in IPL. My father keeps telling me to finish games, so he’s still not satisfied. There’s always room for improvement. I’ll keep working hard,” he added.
Abhishek’s father recalled their conversation before the match. “Can’t express how happy I am.
“I motivated him. I told him not to worry about the poor form- it happens to every cricketer. He was a bit unlucky too. In the second match, he was run out. He played a few shots that didn’t quite clear the boundary. But now, he’s regained his confidence, and he won it for the team. In the coming days, he’ll do well, and so will SRH. He was quite confident. He told me in the morning that he would score and help SRH in winning,” he said.
