Mukul Choudhary (Photo: IPL) Lucknow Super Giants have unveiled a new hero in debutant Mukul Choudhary, who single-handedly scripted a stunning last-ball win over Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2026. Earlier, Choudhary revealed that Indian great MS Dhoni remains his biggest inspiration.Chasing a challenging target of 182, LSG looked out of contention at one stage. However, Choudhary’s fearless approach and composure under pressure turned the match around. The young batsman smashed an unbeaten 54 off just 27 balls to seal the win in dramatic fashion and announce his arrival on the big stage.Earlier, in an interaction with JioHotstar, Choudhary revealed his admiration for MS Dhoni and termed the former Indian captain as his biggest inspiration.“I always looked up to MS Dhoni sir because I was a wicket keeper myself. I like his helicopter shot a lot, especially the one he played in the 2011 World Cup. Everyone remembers him. He was my role model. I also want to be a finisher like him, I want to finish the match.”(Translation: “I always looked up to MS Dhoni sir because I was a wicketkeeper too. I love his helicopter shot, especially from the 2011 World Cup. Those moments will stay with me. He was my role model. I want to become a finisher like him and be close to matches.”)Reflecting on his journey after being named man of the match, Choudhary spoke about the struggles he had to overcome to reach this stage.“Actually, my journey started before I was born. My father had a dream that one day his son would play cricket. But our financial situation was not strong then, so I couldn’t start earlier.”He added, “I started playing when I was about 12-13. There weren’t many academies at that time. One academy, the SBC Cricket Academy, just opened and I trained there for about 5-6 years.”Summing up his fearless style, he said, “Since childhood, I have always played attacking cricket. I have always been someone who hits.”
