WHAT AN IMPACT!- IMPACT PLAYER ASHUTOSH SHARMA

Where every edge counts

March 25, 2025

Ashutosh Sharma was struggling. Stuck on 20 off 20 balls, with Delhi Capitals needing over 12 runs an over, the game was slipping away. Then, as if flipping a switch, he turned the night into his own. With 62 needed off 30 balls and only four wickets left, Ashutosh exploded. He smashed 46 off his next 11 deliveries, single-handedly pulling off a stunning one-wicket win for DC with three balls to spare. As his teammates swarmed him in celebration, Rishabh Pant—now leading Lucknow Super Giants—stood in disbelief.Sent in to bat first, LSG had looked set for an enormous total. 

Nicholas Pooran and Mitchell Marsh tore into DC’s bowlers, hammering 147 runs between them off just 66 balls. At one stage, a score of 250 seemed possible, but DC clawed back brilliantly. In the final seven overs, they picked up six wickets while conceding only 48 runs, restricting LSG to 209 for 8. Outside of Pooran and Marsh, LSG's other batters struggled, managing just 55 off 55 deliveries.

DC's chase began in disaster. They collapsed to 7 for 3, their hopes hanging by a thread. But debutant Vipraj Nigam, batting at No. 8, injected fresh life into the innings with a fearless 39 off 15 balls. He fell with 42 needed off 23, but Ashutosh wasn’t about to let another opportunity slip away. 

Having played breathtaking knocks for Punjab Kings in IPL 2024—ones that ended just short—this time, he saw the job through. With nerves of steel, he sealed the game with a towering six down the ground off Shahbaz Ahmed.For much of the night, it seemed like LSG had done enough. At 161 for 2 after 13 overs. Then came a dramatic collapse. Kuldeep Yadav and Mitchell Starc turned the game on its head. Kuldeep dismissed Pant for a six-ball duck, while Starc shattered Pooran’s stumps with a lethal inswinger. Badoni holed out trying to attack Kuldeep, Thakur was run out two balls later, and Starc struck twice more in the 19th over. LSG, once cruising, added only 33 runs from overs 14 to 19 while losing six wickets.

David Miller’s late sixes off Mohit Sharma dragged LSG past 200, but as Ashutosh Sharma proved, even that wasn’t enough.

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International games

  • New Zealand vs Pakistan

NZ 220/6 (20)

PAK 105 (16.2)

New Zealand won by 115 runs

SPEEDSTER MAYANK YADAV’S RETURN DELAYED FURTHER, TO BE AVAILABLE AT THE BACK END OF THE SEASON

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pacer Mayank Yadav's much-anticipated return to the IPL has been delayed once again—this time due to an unfortunate off-field injury. The young speedster, already set to miss the first half of IPL 2025 due to a lumbar stress injury, accidentally hurt his toe while kicking the bed, setting back his recovery.

LSG head coach Justin Langer shared the unexpected setback, saying, "Mayank, who everyone was very excited about last year, was recovering well, but then he kicked his toe on the bed. He got an infection, which has delayed his rehab by a week or two."

Despite the minor setback, Langer remains optimistic about Yadav's return in the later stages of the tournament. "He’s up and running. We regularly see videos of him bowling. I saw one just yesterday. Hopefully, by the back end of the tournament, Mayank will be ready to go for us," he added.

Injuries have been a recurring issue for LSG this season. Along with Yadav, fast bowlers Avesh Khan and Akash Deep are sidelined and will miss the season opener against Delhi Capitals. Meanwhile, Mohsin Khan has been ruled out of IPL 2025 entirely and has already been replaced by Shardul Thakur.

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"Cricket is a game that requires mental strength, skill, and determination."

Rahul Dravid

Domestic cricket + T20 leagues

  • IPL

LSG 209/8 (20)

DC 211/9 (19.3)

Delhi Capitals won by 1 wkt

On This Day

Pakistan's greatest triumph came under the Melbourne lights when Imran Khan's "cornered tigers" roared to victory against England in a historic World Cup final. Who could forget Graham Gooch spilling a crucial catch off Imran or Derek Pringle pinning Javed Miandad's plumb LBW early in his innings? But the defining moments of the match remain Wasim Akram’s back-to-back, lethal inswingers that sent Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis packing—deliveries that sealed Pakistan's place in cricketing history.

Coming tomorrow

  • Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings

  • New Zealand vs Pakistan

What else is happening