Sixy Ashutosh Sharma is making up for lost time

Ashutosh Sharma is a master at hitting sixes. Throughout his 18 T20 innings, he has smashed an incredible 43 sixes. This means he averages 2.38 sixes per game. In a recent match against Mumbai Indians, he hit an impressive seven sixes to revive Punjab Kings' struggling chase of 193. Thanks to his remarkable performance, Punjab Kings were able to achieve a near-impossible victory.

However, it was the singular six scored off the second-to-last ball of the 13th over against Jasprit Bumrah that will most likely captivate his - as well as the public's - attention for a period of time, despite the fact that his rapid scoring spree ultimately did not make a significant impact.

While it may have been a free shot, it was still a feat to hit against Bumrah, who currently holds the title of top wicket-taker with an impressive economy rate of under six for the IPL 2024 season. Prior to this, Bumrah had only allowed two sixes in the entire tournament. Nevertheless, Ashutosh seized the chance and predicted Bumrah's yorker, dropping low and crossing his off stump, then proceeding to sweep the ball over deep backward square-leg while on one knee.

It's no surprise that Ashutosh couldn't stop grinning as he approached his teammate and exchanged fist bumps with a little hop of excitement, reminiscent of a child. "It was my goal to hit Bumrah for a six and today, it became a reality. I've been practicing this shot and successfully played it against one of the top bowlers in the world," Ashutosh shared with joy after the match.

Ashutosh has played in four games for IPL 2024, with each time entering the match when the Kings were in a difficult position. During his debut game against the Gujarat Titans, the Kings were in trouble with a required run rate of 11.11 (50 off 27), yet Ashutosh managed to lead the Kings to an unexpected win with an impressive 15-ball 33 not-out. However, his second game saw the Kings facing an even more difficult situation with a required run rate of 15.33 (69 off 27) when Ashutosh came in to bat. Despite his best efforts, the Kings lost the game by just two runs.

When facing Mumbai, Ashutosh was put in the position of rebuilding the chase after the Kings team had fallen to 77 for 6 in the tenth over. This was the first instance where he was batting within the first 15 overs of the IPL. The task at hand demanded a high asking rate of 10.88 (116 off 64), but Ashutosh was quick to take action and began his pursuit right away.

In an interview, the 25-year-old expressed his admiration for Suryakumar Yadav and Glenn Maxwell. With his impressive wristy hits to the leg side and beyond, he would have made both of them proud. His first six was a casual whip off Akash Madhwal over fine leg, which earned approval from Suryakumar who had been substituted after the first innings and was watching from the Mumbai dugout. A few overs later, his reverse-scoop shot off the same bowler was similar to the style of Glenn Maxwell.

The sports predictor from ESPNcricinfo predicted that the Kings would have a very low chance of winning, only 1.88%. However, as the game progressed and the Kings' player Ashutosh scored 61 runs in 28 balls, their chance of winning increased to as much as 76.13% by the time he fell. Even though the Kings struggled towards the end of the match, Ashutosh's outstanding performance helped to narrow the gap and bring them within just nine runs of Mumbai's total score.

Ashutosh has shown his ability to hit sixes on multiple occasions. Just six months ago, he broke a record by scoring a fifty in only 11 balls during a T20 match for Railways against Arunachal Pradesh. He hit eight sixes and one four during that match, surpassing the previous record set by Yuvraj Singh for the fastest T20 fifty by an Indian. Throughout the tournament, he had a strike rate of 277.27 in six innings, which was the highest among all batters who faced more than five balls. During this IPL season, Ashutosh has maintained a strike rate of 205.26.

Despite all of the recent successes, there is a tale of many years of hard work and disappointments behind it. Ashutosh was born in Ratlam, a town located in Madhya Pradesh, and when he was just eight years old, he moved to Indore to refine his cricketing abilities because his hometown lacked the necessary facilities. Living far from his parents, he resided in a small lodging and often found himself without enough money to eat. To make sure he had at least one meal per day, he even became an umpire. However, Ashutosh claims that joining the MPCA academy in Indore and learning under former India batter Amay Khurasiya were the turning points in his life.

He shared during a recent media conversation that Amay Sir has been a significant figure in his life. He has imparted not only discipline but also lessons on mental wellness. The speaker has worked extensively with Amay Sir concerning his batting skills.

Ashutosh climbed the ladder of success by starting his cricket career in MP's age-group cricket teams. He quickly advanced to the senior level and participated in the 2018 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The following season, he was named the second-highest run-scorer for MP with 233 runs, three of which were half-centuries. Unfortunately, Ashutosh fell out of favor with the MP team the following year. This experience was devastating for the young athlete, who was not given any explanation for his sudden removal from the team.

Ashutosh shared that in 2019 he was able to achieve a remarkable feat of scoring 84 runs in his final game with MP, playing against Puducherry. However, the following year, a professional coach was brought in who seemed to have certain preferences and biases. Unfortunately, Ashutosh appeared to be one of the players who didn't receive favor from the coach so he was benched. It was evident that the coach didn't like him at all. Despite not overtly mentioning the coach's name, Ashutosh couldn't conceal his disappointment in the way he was treated. His situation turned for the worse when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and the cricket teams were only allowed to travel with a maximum of 20 people. Ashutosh used to be among those who weren't selected for the trips, so he stayed back in the hotel. This period of time plunged him into depression.

I resided at the hotel for approximately one to two months. I did not have the opportunity to observe the outdoors as I was solely focused on going to the gym and returning to my quarters. I became increasingly irritated and eventually succumbed to a state of sadness. It was challenging to recover from it. I continuously pondered where I made a mistake and was unable to rest for several nights. No one provided any insight or justification for my departure from the arrangement. That duration of two to three years was exceedingly difficult.

Ashutosh eventually got a new home with Railways where he secured a job and had his debut with them during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2023. Although he had been away from top-level cricket for four years, he believed that his career turned around after joining Railways. It only took two months after his debut for Kings to recognize his potential and pick him up for his base price of INR 20 lakh during the accelerated round of the auction.

Ashutosh gave recognition to the efforts made during the training period prior to the season, which was led by the Kings' head of cricket development Sanjay Bangar and the team captain Shikhar Dhawan, for contributing to his victorious performance in the IPL.

Ashutosh shared that during the pre-season, Sanjay sir had given him a valuable insight. He had mentioned that Ashutosh was more than just a power hitter and possessed remarkable cricketing skills. This statement had a profound impact on him and gave Ashutosh the confidence to focus on hitting the ball with precision and playing beautiful cricket shots.

During the IPL 2024, Ashutosh hit 13 sixes in the 76 balls he faced. As he has not had many opportunities to play at a high level, Ashutosh is not only catching up on the time he missed, but he is also doing it in a remarkable way on the grandest stage of T20 cricket.