Jitesh Sharma Batting. (Photo Source : Twitter)
Punjab Kings (PBKS) failed to add to their two playoff appearances in all seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as they finished eighth on the points table in the 2023 edition of the cash-rich tournament. However, wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma’s performance was a silver lining for the Shikhar Dhawan-led side.
One of the most destructive batters for PBKS, Sharma, opened up about his batting strengths in a recent interview. He explained how much importance he gives to hitting straight down the ground and watching the ball and not the bowler. In the 46th match of this year’s IPL, Jitesh played a mind-blowing cameo of 49 runs off 27 balls, taking the Mumbai Indians’ bowlers to the cleaners, including the mighty Jofra Archer.
“Since childhood, we have been focusing on playing in the ‘V’ as the coaches have said. I think that has been in my subconscious mind and that’s why while I attack I tend to hit straight. Basically, I don’t look at the bowler who is bowling. I look at the delivery because in T20 you don’t have that much time to play out a particular bowler. You have to back your strength and I feel mine is to hit straight, be it against Archer or anyone else,” Sharma told Sportskeeda in an interview.
The 29-year-old also played well against the spinners, not looking to slog blindly but playing with the turn and keeping his balance intact. Sharma mentioned the importance of staying calm while attempting to hit big shots.
“Whenever we attack too hard, naturally we lose shape and our head is not still. So when you’re calmer, you are in a better position to hit the ball. When you’re in a rush, sometimes you don’t understand that you’re losing shape while hitting. When you remain calm, you get to hit sixes with lesser risk percentage than when you try and slog and there are chances of the ball going straight up in the air.”
Jitesh Sharma talks about adapting to the role of a floater
PBKS used Jitesh Sharma at different positions in the batting order during IPL 2023. Sometimes, he would go in at No. 3 or No. 4 while in some matches, he was given the role of a finisher. The right-handed batter is one of the rare players who is adept at playing both roles.
Jitesh stated that due to the presence of finishers like Shahrukh Khan, Sam Curran, Rishi Dhawan, and Harpreet Brar, the PBKS management felt he could be sent up the order to make a bigger impact.
“I had initially opened for my state so I was used to the role. It was an opportunity for me to face more balls and create a bigger impact at a high strike rate. This is because we had Shahrukh, Sam, Brar, Rishi Bhai to follow. So they thought that if they give me 30-40 balls to face instead of 10-20, I could make a bigger impact on the game because they felt I was capable of playing a big innings.”