Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma were jointly awarded the Impact Player of the Match following India’s commanding performance against Zimbabwe in the second Super 8 fixture of the T20 World Cup 2026.
The duo played pivotal roles in India’s 72-run triumph at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Thursday. After enduring a quiet start to the tournament, Abhishek responded with his maiden half-century of the campaign, producing a fluent 55 off 30 deliveries. Tilak, who had also found runs hard to come by earlier in the competition, delivered an explosive 44 from just 16 balls.
Team India’s doctor, Rizwan Khan, revealed the winners and clarified why the award was shared between two players.
“So, big day, big game. I think it all started when Hardik addressed everyone in the huddle, and it was a very passionate speech, and it was great to see everyone come out punching. Punch after punch, punch after punch, I thought that was a great performance by everyone. Everyone did so well that we are actually spoiled for choice, and we have not one but two impact players for today,” he said in a video released by Board of Control for Cricket in India.
“Our first impact player started the tournament with a gut issue, and when things were not going great, I felt everyone in this room always had that gut feeling, ‘ki sab theek ho jayega’ and today what you did takes a lot of guts. Our second impact player also had an issue before the tournament. The innings which I saw today, I can only describe as all guns blazing. It was literally the knockout punch of the day,” he added.
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After collecting the medal, Abhishek expressed gratitude towards the support staff and leadership group for their faith in him.
“I know I’ve spent a lot of time with the doctor in the first few days, but finally coming back and doing something and contributing for the team, it’s really special, and I think one thing I want to mention is that all these days I was feeling that the team has more belief than me when I wasn’t doing so well, but getting all that from the players, captain, coach, everyone, it was really special, and it actually made me think that I’m going to do really well in one of the matches, and finally it happened,” Abhishek said.
Tilak shared similar thoughts after the match.
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“For me, I also want to say the same thing. I was really struggling before the tournament. The way the doctor and the team have been supporting me was really nice, and the thing is, I was struggling in this tournament, but special thanks to the support staff. They kept backing me and supporting me, that’s just a matter of one innings. So, it came at the right moment, and I’m really happy,” Tilak said.
India now turn their attention to a decisive clash against the West Indies at the Eden Gardens on Sunday.
