Abhishek Sharma arrives in stadium - (Source: X.com)
In a significant development, India fans have received a massive boost as their star opener Abhishek Sharma has arrived at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Notably, the Men in Blue are all set to take on Namibia in their second T20 World Cup 2026 match at the iconic venue in Delhi.
Abhishek Sharma's inclusion was doubted because he was recently hospitalised in Delhi following a stomach infection. Notably, the southpaw has been struggling with gut problem for the last five days and there were rumours that he might not even travel to the stadium with the Indian team as he also skipped training.
However, in the latest events, the No.1 ranked T20I batter has arrived in the stadium and was clicked inspecting the pitch, hinting at his possible inclusion in the playing XI.
Ishan Kishan too hit the nets ahead of Namibia clash
Notably, Abhishek Sharma is not the only Indian opener, who is struggling with fitness issues as his partner in crime Ishan Kishan also suffered a nasty blow to the toe in training that left him in immense pain.
For the unversed, Kishan was hit by a toe-crushing Jasprit Bumrah yorker, following which he was kept out of the batting session in the nets. There were doubts over his participation, but the fans can breathe a sigh of relief as Kishan was also captured practicing before the match.
The cameras captured Ishan knocking the ball in the nets ahead of the toss. Therefore, his selection is confirmed in the playing XI for the Namibia match.
Abhishek Sharma looking for form ahead of Pakistan clash
The past week has not been good for Abhishek Sharma as he started his tournament with a golden duck against USA on February 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Prior to that Sharma also struggled to get going in the warm-up match.
During the USA match, Sharma didn't take the field because of upset stomach and it led to his hospitalisation in Delhi. Now, India want their star batter to return to form ahead of Pakistan clash which is scheduled on February 15 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Sanju Samson prepares for a call-up
Amid the injury scare for Abhishek Sharma, eyes are on Sanju Samson, who has intensified his training session, because his chances to play in the Namibia match has increased significantly. Notably, the right-arm opener was part of the scheme of things, but fell out of the playing XI after a horror show against New Zealand in the recently concluded five-match T20I series.
Notably, Samson scored just 49 runs in five innings. Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan did brilliantly in that series, which prompted the Men in Blue to go ahead with the southpaw to open the innings with Abhishek.
The cherry on top was that Ishan Kishan slammed a century at Sanju Samson's home in the fifth T20I against New Zealand in Trivandum, Kerala.
