IPL rising star Ashutosh Sharma shined in Punjab Kings’ (PBKS) loss against Mumbai Indians on 18th April. The 25-year-old scored 61 off 28, with two boundaries and seven maximums. This included one against one of the best bowlers in the world.
During the last ball of the 13th over, Jasprit Bumrah was bowling to Sharma. The MI pacer had already picked up the wicket of Shashank Singh, who was looking in good touch.
Bumrah decided to go for the wide yorker, but Sharma had already read the delivery. He shuffled to the off-side and swept Bumrah for a six. The 25-year-old was proud of the shot, revealing in the post-match press conference he was happy to do it against the best bowler in the world.
I had a dream to hit a six against a fast bowler by sweeping, it came against the world's best bowler Bumrah, so I'm overjoyed. Ashutosh Sharma in the post-match press conference
Sharma has been impressive in all of his outings for PBKS so far. Although he has played only four matches, the batter from Madhya Pradesh has smashed 156 runs with an incredible strike rate of 205.26. He brought up his maiden IPL fifty against MI.
Hardik Pandya lauds “unbelievable” Ashutosh Sharma
Despite losing 7 wickets, Ashutosh Sharma looked like he could win PBKS the match. The finisher had gotten the equation to a 28 of the last four overs, but was ultimately dismissed by Gerald Coetzee in the 18th over. MI captain Hardik Pandya was full of praise for the 25-year-old, claiming he was excited for the youngster’s future.
Unbelievable - coming in and playing like that (Ashutosh's knock). Almost every ball hitting the middle. Happy for him and chuffed for his future. Hardik Pandya in the post-match presentation
PBKS will next play on 21st April against Gujarat Titans at the Maharaja Yadavindra Stadium. Sharma had played an important role in their previous encounter, scoring 31 off 17 in a winning cause.
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