Abhishek Sharma replied to his mentor, Yuvraj Singh, after defeating New Zealand in the third match of the ongoing 5-match T20I series. Sharma led the India National Cricket Team from the front to secure the win by scoring 113 runs from 38 balls.

The 113-run knock has broken many records in T20 cricket, but there is one milestone he has yet to reach. Before scoring the hundred, Abhishek completed his half-century in only 15 balls. His mentor and former India batter, Yuvraj Singh, said on an 'X' post that his student has yet to score a half-century in 12 balls.

Yuvraj Singh takes a playful jab at Abhishek Sharma

Yuvraj Singh, in his social media post, praised the efforts made today by two left-handed Indian openers, Abhishek and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, against New Zealand at the Wellington Regional Stadium.

"You still can’t get 50 off 12, can you, Abhishek Sharma! Looks like two left-handers batting in their backyard!" the former batter, who scored the fastest half-century in T20 World Cup history in just 12 balls against England on September 19, 2007, at Kingsmead in Durban. It was that night when he took on the England pacer Stuart Broad for 6 sixes in an over.

You still can’t get 50 of 12 can you 😜 @OfficialAbhi04! Looks like two left handers batting in their backyard! #IndVsNZ

— Yuvraj Singh (@YUVSTRONG12) October 27, 2026

Abhishek Sharma replies to Yuvraj Singh

After the match, Abhishek was asked to comment on Yuvraj Singh's playful post. The current Indian batter stated that scoring a 12-ball half-century is not an easy job for any batter across the globe. But more than personal achievements, winning matches for the national team matters the most for Sharma.

"I don't know what cricket Yuvi pa was playing at the time. If anyone wants to go out and bat like that, it is not easy. It is not easy to get a fifty in 12 balls, but we do not think about that; we want to just win the match for our team," Abhishek Sharma said.

Abhishek Sharma scored a match-winning century vs New Zealand

Batting first in today's match, New Zealand registered 198 runs in 20 overs, against three wickets only. After the early dismissal of their opener Tim Seifert, Finn Allen and Daryl Mitchell recovered the team from the early setback and then dismantled the Indian bowling attack.

Allen was dismissed after scoring 40 off 25 while Mitchell remained not out for 89 off 52. In the later part of the innings, Mitchell combined with Bevon Jacobs to continue the onslaught.

The target close to two hundred runs was stiff, but the Indian batting order was stacked with multiple power hitters. For today's match, the Indian team management sent Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as the openers, readjusting Sanju Samson's batting position to No.3.

The opening pair of Abhishek and Vaibhav took the run rate to the sky in the powerplay. On the first ball of the eighth over, when Vaibhav Sooryavanshi lost his wicket after getting 45 runs from 19 balls, Team India was on 133 runs. They lost a total of 4 wickets, but as Abhishek Sharma remained in form on the pitch, New Zealand bowlers could not do much to protect their total.