His 4 a.m. fitness

Patience (and hard work) is the key to success. And for Amritsar-born cricketer Abhishek Sharma, success depended on how well he was able to follow Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh's training instructions before the start of the then Asia Cup. Now, he is known for his explosive batting and handy left-arm orthodox spin.

Abhishek Sharma’s fitness routine has the Internet talking

The cricketer has the highest individual score by an Indian in IPL history, 141 runs off 55 balls. Early in his career, he was often the target of jokes for his performances, but he soon found a mentor in Yuvraj Singh.

Abhishek's father, Rajkumar, had asked him if he would be able to follow through with the timetable. He was hesitant but said that he would have to, since Yuvraj sir had made it for him, as per media reports.

His day typically starts off at 4 am, then he meditates for half an hour, swim for 45 minutes, goes to the gym and heads out to the fields. His father Rajkumar saw Abhishek at his Team India’s practice session at the ICC Cricket Academy ahead of their Super Four clash against Pakistan. By the time he faced the bowlers, his focus was so sharp that he could read and pick lengths with remarkable precision, according to reports.

Abhishek began his cricketing journey in the youth circuits. He scored his first century in his maiden U-16 match during the 2015–2016 Vijay Merchant Trophy. He then made his U-19 debut for Punjab in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy in 2016. Notably, he captained India U-19 to victory in the Youth Asia Cup in 2016, and even finished as the tournament’s second-highest wicket-taker.

He made his first-class debut for Punjab in the 2017–18 Ranji Trophy and led the team to their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy win in the 2023–24 season. He was the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament with 485 runs from ten innings at an average of 48.50 and a strike rate of 192.46, registering two hundreds and three fifties.

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