New Delhi, March 19 (IANS) Ashutosh Sharma does not think there’s been any major transition in his playing career, but the right-handed batter firmly believes that visualisation and constant practice will fetch him more success when the pressure is high on him as a finisher for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2026.
“There is no such transition. I am enjoying playing cricket and enjoying playing with DC. I am having loads of fun while playing. The only difference is that in the first year, I was new. In the second year, the expectations of the team and everyone increase. So, there is a bit of pressure, but I am enjoying playing under pressure,” Ashutosh, who hails from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, told IANS in an exclusive conversation ahead of IPL 2026 starting on March 29.
After bursting onto the IPL scene with sizzling cameos for Punjab Kings in 2024, Sharma spent the 2025 season building his reputation as a finisher at DC — scoring 204 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 161. All of that began with an unbeaten 66 against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), the side DC will face in Lucknow on April 1, as Ashutosh announced himself as a finisher of genuine quality.
That innings, he says, was the product of a problem he identified and then quietly fixed. “When I was playing for Punjab in the first year, I couldn’t finish a lot of matches. I could finish only in very few games. After that year, I did an analysis and found that I am lacking in certain areas in this department. I then started applying those changes in domestic cricket games, like I have to finish the match and then come back to the dugout. Then, when I came to Delhi, I applied it there too,” he said.
The statistics bring out the value Ashutosh adds in the closing stages of IPL. He has batted predominantly in the final four overs of IPL innings, striking at 188 in that phase — hitting a boundary on an average of every four balls and smashing 15 sixes.
His numbers in chases are particularly striking: an average of 37.3 and a strike rate of 171, compared to 18.9 and 152 when batting first. DC’s ongoing pre-season camps, which include simulated match scenarios, along with turning out for Railways in domestic cricket, have also honed Ashutosh’s finishing skills.
“We play domestic cricket, so we get to learn a lot from it. I have just worked there, and when I was playing there, it was in my mind that I had to stay there till the end. I was applying there also, and this is it. We do the same planning in our pre-season camps – like we practice how to finish games.
“So, we still play matches in the camp, and that’s the practice for me in how I have to finish. I am given that situation there — like which situation will come in the actual match. So, by doing all that, you apply it in the match, and many times it is very much possible that it will happen that way,” he said.
The mental side of finishing, he adds, comes down to visualisation, something which many players do consistently. “My mental preparation is that I visualise what situation is coming. So, I visualise this situation in front of me, and how do I get out of this situation? So, the key point is visualisation.”
Aside from the success he gets as a finisher, Ashutosh has issues to sort out against slow left-arm orthodox bowlers, who have dismissed him four times in six innings with a strike rate of just 75 in that matchup. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025/26, Ashutosh scored 117 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 170 – thus showing that his attacking instincts remain sharp, despite having three single-digit scores.
Among the various influences Ashutosh encountered at DC, Kevin Pietersen – the franchise’s mentor in 2025 – left a lasting impression on him. “From KP, I just got to learn about hard work. Like I had asked, you have made so many runs in such big matches – so, what did you do? How did you get consistency? So, he just said that you believe in your ability, believe in your hard work. So, I got to learn all these things.”
Pietersen will not be in the dugout for IPL 2026, but Ashutosh didn’t seem much bothered. “No, it’s a professional game – like today someone is there or in the future, they are not present. So it’s normal in cricket.”
Outside of DC, Ashutosh is constantly guided by former Indian batter and long-time mentor Amay Khurasiya. “We do talk. Like, whenever I doubt anything, apart from cricket also, I ask him, ‘Sir, what can I do now? What has to be done?’ So, yes, we talk to each other.”
DC finished outside the playoffs in 2025 despite a promising start, and Ashutosh promised the Axar Patel-led side would do everything to dish out dominating performances.
“The preparation is going well. We are well planned and well prepared, and we are not thinking about last year. It’s a fresh start, and we are thinking that we have to dominate and enjoy cricket. All the young players will express themselves in the game. That’s what we are thinking.”
After IPL 2025, Ashutosh took an unusual detour, which showcased his love for playing cricket. A stint at Wigan CC for the 2025 Liverpool and District Cricket Competition began with him hitting a 70-ball century after arriving in England on the morning of the game, following a visa mix-up.
“I love playing cricket a lot. So, I took a rest, and then I went there. I had an issue related to a flight (to reach Manchester). So, I went there and played the match directly. I enjoyed that moment also.”
Ashutosh comes on the back of being with India ‘A’ team for the Rising Asia Cup and T20 World Cup warm-up games, and receiving a call-up for it is still etched in his memory. “Since childhood, every player’s dream is to wear the India jersey. It was one of the best moments of my life.
“I got to learn a lot in terms of how the pressure of playing for the country is. The differences between playing for the country and the IPL are that the pressure of representing the country is a little different. So I got to learn all of this there.”
Life in IPL is very hectic for players – ad shoots, social media commitments, and media appearances – have become a routine part of the calendar. Ashutosh acknowledged that the DC think-tank have managed things well for him.
“Of course, it is a little tough because practice and shoots are around. But our team management is such that they balance out everything. They know that we don’t have to focus on these things for a long time.”
On what success in IPL 2026 looks like – runs, strike rate, milestones – and Ashutosh replies with happiness in finishing games and having the DC dugout erupt in joy. “In my opinion, success is happiness. I think that the happiness that you have worked so hard for, and it’s paying off, is huge.
“So, it’s just happiness for me. Then, seeing everyone happy after making them win the match and those joyful scenes happening there – that is my happiness, and yes, that’s my goal for IPL 2026,” he concluded.
–IANS
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