Abhishek Sharma has arrived and how. The 23-year-old, rich on the high of IPL 2024, which saw him plunder 484 runs in 16 matches including three half-centuries, was out for a duck in the first T20I but roared back to smoke a century just the day after. Abhishek's assault of 100 off 47 balls, captured the imagination of the entire nation. He bludgeoned a hat-trick of sixes to reach his century – becoming the first Indian to do so in T20Is – and lived up to the 'Sharma' tag, batting at a position vacated since Rohit Sharma's retirement. With 7 fours and 8 sixes, Abhishek became the fourth youngest Indian to slam a T20I century and India's joint third-fastest.

But the bigger picture Sharma's arrival has painted is him potentially being on the path to greatness. For starters, Sharma can possibly be India's next long-term opener in T20Is. With a two-year cycle for the 2026 T20 World Cup underway, Abhishek, along with Yashasvi Jaiswal could be India's two dynamic openers for the next World Cup in India. But the connection with Rohit and Virat Kohli, which Sharma's whirlwind knock has unearthed, promises to elevate Abhishek to superstardom. Why, you ask?

Rewind to July 12, 2010, and it was against Zimbabwe at this very venue – the Harare Sports Club – that Kohli made his T20I debut. And that's not it. Coincidentally enough, just a little over a month before Kohli first represented India in T20 internationals, Rohit had scored his maiden century for India, scoring 114 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo before hitting another one against Sri Lanka just two days later.

India vs Zimbabwe may not make for the same rivalry as it used to in the 1990s or early 2000s, but Indian cricket has always enjoyed something special in the nation. Besides Kohli, Abhishek joins a long list of players who made their T20I debuts in Zimbabwe. KL Rahul, Ravichandran Ashwin, Naman Ojha, Amit Mishra, Stuart Binny, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey. Axar Patel, Sandeep Sharma, Sanju Samson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rishi Dhawan, Mandeep Singh, Jaydev Unadkat, Dhawal Kulkarni, Barinder Sran. Of course, only a handful of these names have gone on to achieve great things for India, but for Abhishek Sharma, it's a start and a pretty promising one.

Abhishek Sharma - The next big thing

Sharma has been touted as the next big thing in Indian cricket. Along with Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag, he was one of the three debutants to play in the first T20I on Saturday, but it was Sharma who went big. With Rohit retiring and Shubman Gill expected to bat at No. 3, young Sharma has thrown the gauntlet. Between him, Jaiswal and Ishan Kishan, the opening pair can make for a very exciting viewing. Abhishek's ultra-aggressive batting, though, makes him a sure-shot favourite and a definite starter.

Groomed by the one and only Yuvraj Singh, it's no surprise to see shades of India's six-king in the young left-hander. Besides hammering 42 sixes in the IPL, Abhishek also played a key role for Punjab in their title-winning Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign, scoring 485 runs at a strike-rate of 196.46 as an opener.

A lot of needless chatter ensued after India's 13-run defeat in the first T20I. Memes were created about Kohli and Rohit potentially returning and what not. That, of course, was for those who don't know cricket. The ones who do, understood that this is how youngsters and young teams are shaped and given exposure. Abhishek is a special talent – one that falls into the never-before-seen category. Hopefully, he can continue on this trajectory, and replace the places vacated by Rohit.