'Had feeling that there was wooden sound and I should go for appeal' - Jitesh Sharma on MS Dhoni's dismissal referral in IPL

Punjab Kings’ wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma showed great intent in his very first IPL game when he kept gloves for his side against Chennai Super Kings. The best highlight from that game was his glovework behind the stumps to dismiss MS Dhoni. He successfully persuaded PBKS captain Mayank Agarwal to take a review after taking a sharp catch of MS Dhoni, turning the originally given wide into Dhoni’s dismissal.

For Punjab Kings, Liam Livingstone played a key role in helping the team reach a score of 180/8 by hitting 60 runs off 32 balls. Because wickets were dropping regularly, CSK’s batting lineup collapsed. MS Dhoni tried to delve deeper into the game, but Jitesh Sharma, a newbie, sent him back to the dugout with some excellent decision-making.

In a conversation with sports presenter Dr. Yash Kashikar on his show ‘Say Yash to Sports’, Sharma opened up about the dismissal and the emotions that he went through while playing his debut IPL game.

“It was just an instinct. I give my 100% whenever I walk out into the field. One can even say I put out my 110%. That’s the kind of person I am. I love to win and I want to be on the ground be it fielding, batting, planning, strategizing, be it in any capacity – I want to be on the field. It was an instinctive appeal. I just had a feeling that there was a wooden sound and I should go for an appeal. I know that I was not able to control my emotions because I knew that MS Sir was out.”

Jitesh Sharma wishes to play for the blues

It looked like a moment where one could not believe what they had witnessed. What probably looked like a wide ball not just to the umpire but also to the other players and the viewers, changed into Dhoni’s dismissal and CSK’s hopes had come crashing down. Jitesh Sharma is still looking for an opportunity to play in the blues and represent his nation as he continues working harder.