'MS Dhoni inspiration, Gautam Gambhir favorite cricketer' - Sheldon Jackson answers fan queries in a chat session

Puducherry wicketkeeper-batter Sheldon Jackson is known for his exploits in Ranji cricket. Seasons after seasons, the southpaw has scored over 500 runs and has been knocking the doors of the selectors. His run-scoring in the domestic circuit also earned him an IPL contract as he was snapped by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Although Jackson has not featured much for the franchise, he has got to learn a lot from the likes of Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell, and Pat Cummins.

Before the second half of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) gets underway from September 19 in the UAE, Jackson got some much-needed free time, which he utilized by interacting with the fans on social media. He was asked to name his inspiration and favorite player by one of the fans.

While Jackson chose MS Dhoni as his inspiration and posted a picture for the same, he went with Gautam Gambhir as his favorite player and wrote, “Too many to choose a favorite but if I had to choose one, then @gautamgambhir55.”

During the interaction, one of the fans also asked him about the story of him naming his son Noah and what was his age when he took up the bat. “We named him after NC Gohil sir and Niranjan Shah sir, two people with the biggest impacts on my life. One made me a cricketer and the other established me as a cricketer. So, luckily both the sirs; names started with N and, that’s how we named him,” Jackson, who first played cricket at the age of seven, told.

Kolkata Knight Riders hope for better performance in the UAE leg of IPL

Speaking of Jackson’s team KKR, they got a big boost as their skipper Eoin Morgan has confirmed his availability for the UAE leg of IPL. Pat Cummins has not yet confirmed his availability and it remains to be seen if he plays the remainder of the games owing to Cricket Australia (CA) allowing its players to participate.

During the first of the IPL 2021, KKR failed to perform well and stood at the bottom of the points table, winning just one games out of seven. With seven league games still left, KKR will be hoping to do well in the UAE leg of IPL.