Promoted Jitesh Remains Aggressive From the Outset

Jofra Archer’s delivery to Liam Livingstone in the 13th over of the innings was a waist-high full-toss, which was called a no-ball by the umpire.

Livingstone would have been on strike for the Free Hit, but instead, Jitesh Sharma came out to bat.

The crowd was disappointed, but Sharma surprised everyone by hitting Archer for three boundaries in the over, scoring 21 runs.

In recent times, teams have been adopting an attacking approach from the outset, especially on batting-friendly pitches like the one in Mohali, where 200+ scores have become the norm.

Punjab Kings also followed this strategy last IPL, and Jitesh Sharma displayed similar intent during his knock.

At the time when Punjab were struggling at 99/3 after 12 overs, Sharma took on Archer instead of passing the strike to Livingstone, who was already well-set.

Despite a couple of close calls early on, Sharma continued to attack Mumbai’s bowling, eventually making his IPL career-best score of 49* and justifying his team’s decision to promote him up the order.

Jitesh Sharma’s partnership with Liam Livingstone was a crucial turning point in the match.

Despite batting with one of the best ball-strikers in the game, Sharma continued to play aggressively, scoring at a strike rate of 230 in the first 10 balls he faced.

His early counterattack against Jofra Archer injected much-needed impetus into Punjab’s innings and allowed Livingstone to join in on the assault.

Together, the duo added 119 runs, with Livingstone scoring 59 and Sharma contributing 49.

Though it was not enough to secure the win, it was enough to justify the management’s decision to promote Sharma up the order.

PBKS assistant coach Brad Haddin praised Sharma’s enterprising knock, saying that he had gained a lot of confidence as the tournament progressed.

Despite being a base price buy at INR 20 lakh in the 2022 mega auction, Sharma went on to make a significant impact for Punjab.

Although he wasn’t the team’s first-choice wicket-keeper or designated finisher, his performance on debut – a 17-ball cameo of 26 featuring three sixes – earned him both those positions by the end of the campaign.

And, he has continued to perform well ever since.

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इंडिया नॅशनल क्रिकेट टीम

Jitesh Sharma has been one of the most consistent performers for the Punjab Kings in the 2023 edition of the IPL.

In 10 innings so far, he has scored 239 runs at an average of 26.56 and a strike rate just under 166. He also leads the Kings in the number of sixes hit this season, with 16.

Throughout his young IPL career, Sharma has maintained a strike rate of 150+ on 12 occasions in 20 innings.

His strike rate in death overs this year has been a highly impressive 220.

This attacking approach did not change when he was promoted up the order against Mumbai Indians, despite having more than eight overs to play with.

Sharma’s fearless striking has been noticed by the Indian team management as well, earning him a maiden T20I call-up earlier this year.

Though he’s yet to make his debut for India, Sharma’s clean striking and consistency make him a valuable asset to the team.

He could potentially be a like-for-like replacement for Rishabh Pant lower down the order, even if Pant returns from injury in the long run.

With his potential and ability to hit the ball hard and from the word go, Sharma could replicate Dinesh Karthik’s success and earn a national recall in the future.