Abhishek Sharma matches Sanju Samson’s unwanted duck record

India opener and world No. 1 T20I batter Abhishek Sharma has equalled an unwanted record on Wednesday matching Sanju Samson’s mark for the most ducks by an Indian batter in a single calendar year.

Sharma was dismissed for zero against the Netherlands in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, taking his tally of ducks in 2026 to five. The record was previously held by Samson, who registered five ducks in 2024. Given that it is only February and India still have a packed T20I calendar ahead, Sharma could soon go past Sanju Samson’s record unless he starts scoring like he has done before.

Most T20I ducks by an Indian in a calendar year

• Abhishek Sharma (2026): 5 ducks in 8 matches

• Sanju Samson (2024): 5 ducks in 13 matches

• Yusuf Pathan (2009): 3 ducks in 10 matches

• Rohit Sharma (2018): 3 ducks in 19 matches

• Rohit Sharma (2022): 3 ducks in 29 matches

• Virat Kohli (2024): 3 ducks in 10 matches

Tough start to 2026 for Sharma

Sharma’s rough spell has come despite entering the tournament as the top ranked T20I batter in the world. His five ducks this year came in these fixtures:

• vs New Zealand, Raipur (Jan 23): 0 off 1 ball

• vs New Zealand, Visakhapatnam (Jan 28): 0 off 1 ball

• vs United States, T20 World Cup (Feb 7): golden duck on debut

• vs Pakistan, T20 World Cup (Feb 15): 0 off 4 balls

• vs Netherlands, T20 World Cup (Feb 18): 0 off 3 balls

The left handed opener has also become the first Indian batter to register three consecutive ducks in a single T20 World Cup, underlining a rare slump during India’s strong campaign. Ashish Nehra has 3 consecutive ducks spread in two World Cup campaigns.

Superstition could not change the story

In an attempt to break the streak against the Netherlands, Sharma even wore teammate Mohammed Siraj’s jersey, but the superstition failed to change his fortunes.

Despite his struggles, India have already qualified for the Super 8s comfortably by winning all four games in the group stage, and Sharma is expected to keep his place for the clash against South Africa on February 22.

India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate backed the youngster, saying Sharma has been striking the ball well in the nets and remains confident ahead of the next phase of the tournament.

For now, Indian fans will hope the No. 1 ranked batter can rediscover his rhythm when it matters most, turning a tough run into a comeback story on the World Cup stage. The situation has also sparked debate on social media, with some fans asking how the reaction would have been if Sanju Samson had suffered three consecutive ducks in a World Cup campaign.