IND Vs ENG, T20 World Cup: Morne Morkel Backs Abhishek Sharma To Recall Last Year's Wankhede Heroics Ahead Of Semi-Final

Abhishek Sharma was flying high as the second-highest run-getter in 2025 among the top playing nations and was expected to set the stage on fire in his first World Cup.

However, it went downhill when he started his tournament with three consecutive ducks. What was more worrying for the management and the fans was his dismissals against off-spinners, which looked like a major chink in his armour.

Also, the upset tummy at the start didn't help his cause, making him miss the Group stage match against Namibia. After all this, his brisk half-century against Zimbabwe boosted the morale of the fans that the rough patch is over, but his failure against the West Indies indicated that the World No.1 T20I batter is yet to find his mojo back.

Abhishek Sharma wreaked havoc in international cricket with a fearless attitude and by taking down premier bowlers from the get-go but since the string of ducks and low scores at the World stage, he has toned down his approach, which has surprised Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar as well.

Suryakumar Yadav was going through a similar phase during his woeful run in 2025, after which the Indian skipper decided to give himself some more time in the middle before unleashing on the bowlers - a strategy which helped him regain his form in 2026.

Abhishek Sharma has taken a leaf from the same book, but it won't be an exaggeration to say that the best T20I batter in the recent past has caught up in the place where other batters have been before, and it's a severe test for the young star batter to come out of that, too, in an ICC tournament semi-final.

Morne Morkel Backs Abhishek To Regain His Touch

When asked about Abhishek's dented confidence due to poor form resulting in his dropping some easy catches on the ground, Morkel backed the dynamic southpaw batter.

“No, I think just sometimes this game can be hard on you, cruel on you. (It is a) similar situation that Sanju (Samson) found himself in, that, in your career, you're going to find moments like this,” India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel, who addressed the media on the eve of the semifinal, replied to a PTI query.

“This is good growth (opportunity); it's good learning for him. For a young guy finding his feet in international cricket, this will only help him down the line in Indian cricket.” The South African was confident that in case of Abhishek, it is always going to be the matter of one ball or two for finding his rhythm.

“Coming back to his form, Abhishek, (with) his way of playing, it's (about) one or two shots that can find him that rhythm, that can give him that confidence back, and that for me is a pleasing sign,” Morkel said.

“He's not a guy that worries too much about technique. Normally those sort of players take a lot more time to get into confidence,” he added.

India and England have faced each other twice in the T20 World Cup semi-finals, and both teams have won one each and then went on to win the finals.

However, the last time both teams were up against each other at Wankhede, Abhishek Sharma took apart the English bowling line-up with a scintillating 54-ball 135. Coming back to the same venue may give the out-of-form batter some confidence as he takes on the field in the all-important semi-final on March 4.

“It's a fresh page for him tomorrow (on Thursday), (an) opportunity to go and do well. (He had) scored a hundred here against England not too long ago,” Morkel recalled.

“So for him, it's just (about) tapping into those little videos and looking at his feel-good moments and building a blueprint and knowing (that) he's starting on zero tomorrow. It's a new opportunity for him,” he added.

From PTI Inputs