IPL 2025: How railways batter Ashutosh becomes the toast of Delhi Capitals

When Delhi Capitals slumped to 65 for five by the seventh over in their chase of a daunting target of 210 against Lucknow Super Giants, not the most diehard of their supporters would have given them a chance of pulling it off on Monday. However, Ashutosh Sharma, the Player of the Match who came in at number seven and turned it around with a breathtaking 66 off 31 balls – did not harbour any negative thoughts.

Brought on as an impact player, the 26-year-old from Morena in Madhya Pradesh showed the nerves and matching skillsets of a seasoned finisher – with excellent support from debutant Vipraj Nigam in between – to eventually seal the match by one wicket and just three balls to go. With six runs to get in the last over and last man Mohit Sharma in, LSG skipper Rishabh Pant fluffed a stumping chance off the first delivery from Shahbaz Ahmed. Once Mohit crossed over for a single, Ashutosh found a delivery in his arc to seal the match with a six and send the Delhi supporters in a tizzy.

‘’This innings will be remembered for a long, long time – not just because of the quality of strokeplay, but because of the high pressure situation,’’ the legendary Sunil Gavaskar told the broadcasters. As Ashutosh became the toast of IPL the morning after, he was chuffed to receive a call from Shikhar Dhawan – someone the batter considers to be a mentor in his debut IPL season with Punjab Kings last year.

‘’He (Dhawan) was really happy. Love you paaji,’’ the uncapped batter said in a video released by the Capitals as he dedicated his Player of the Match award to the former India opener who retired from all forms of cricket. There is no doubt that the LSG pace attack was an inexperienced one with all their first three picks – tearaway Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan and Avesh Khan all recovering from injuries – but Ashutosh looked a man in form in the way he tonked them as well as the spinners during his five sixes and as many fours.  

‘’I have played in Vizag earlier in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, so I know how the wicket behaves in both the innings. Vizag is a good venue for me,’’ revealed Ashutosh, a Railways player in domestic cricket, in the post-match press conference.

When asked about his mindset during what looked an improbable chase, Ashutosh said: ‘’Just follow the basics and believe in my ability. I was just following the process and wanted to take the game as deep as possible. My plan was to accelerate in the slog overs and ensure I batted till the 20th over.’’

What had been his takeaways from a short IPL career so far? ‘’I have taken good things and positives from last season and made sure to apply myself better this year. I ensure I don’t repeat the mistakes and I’m applying what I did in domestic cricket,’’ he said.

The KP factor

Asked about the experience of working with new mentor Kevin Pietersen, Ashutosh gushed: '’It’s good to have a legend like KP in the dressing room. I always make it a point to talk to him about batting and learn from his experiences. He was telling me it was too easy (after the win).’’

While the Delhi Capitals management will be relieved to have garnered full points in their opening game, their overall performance looks very much a work in progress – be it leaking runs or the top order batting. They will have to put their best foot forward against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their second match at the coastal city of Visakhapatnam on Sunday (30 March).