“Everyone trusted me, it was for them”: Ashutosh Sharma’s Extraordinary Rejoicing Following His First IPL Fifty

Since making his debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 earlier this month, Ashutosh Sharma of the Punjab Kings has been on a roll. On Thursday night at Mullanpur, as his side was chasing 194 against the Mumbai Indians, the young hitter left his imprint. After an early collapse, PBKS was on the verge of defeat until he struck seven sixes and two fours in only 28 balls to score 61.

Punjab was 17/4 during the Powerplay, but they were able to get within nine runs of MI’s 193-run mark thanks to a magnificent comeback from Ashutosh and Shashank Singh (41). Throughout his innings, the 25-year-old displayed a variety of strokes, but the six over backward square leg stuck out the most.

When Jasprit Bumrah tried a yorker, Sharma went low on his front to turn it into a full toss, hitting it for a maximum in the 13th over of Punjab’s chase.

When Sharma struck the stroke off Bumrah’s bowling, he described it as a “dream come true” moment in a post-match news conference.

“Beating Bumrah with a sweep shot was my dream.” After the game, Ashutosh told the reporters, “I was practicing for that shot, but it came against the best bowler in the world—it’s just part of the game.”

“I was confident in my ability to win the game for the team,” he said.

50 percent is devoted to the captain and coaches

Sharma linked his hands and bent down to his teammates and coaches, who were supporting him from the dressing room after hitting his first IPL fifty. According to the right-handed hitter, the festivities were intended for his team management.

Ashutosh said, “That celebration was for our Sanjay (Bangar), sir. I have been working with him a lot and I keep asking him questions.”

He and the Punjab squad as a whole believed in me and gave me an opportunity. It was for all of them, he said, including our head coach Trevor Bayliss, Ashish (Tuli) Paaji, and Shikhar (Dhawan) Paaji, who all had faith in me.

Ashutosh gave credit for his growth this season to Sanjay Bangar, director of cricket development at PBKS and a former player for India.

“Sanjay sir assured me that I could play accurate cricket shots and that I am not a slogger. Although it was a brief sentence, to me it meant a great deal. Ashutosh said, “I am just following it; I am not a hard-hitter; instead, I am playing good cricketing strokes, and that has altered my game.

He said, “I was working with my coach, Amay Khurasiya, back home, and he had told me that your team has a better chance of winning the longer you stay on the field.”