Mumbai Indians all-rounder Raghu Sharma has revealed that watching MS Dhoni hit a World Cup-winning six against Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium in 2011 inspired him to take up cricket seriously despite being obese and having doubts about his future in the sport.
Speaking about his journey after the match, Raghu, who picked up his first IPL wicket against Lucknow Super Giants, said that India’s World Cup triumph in 2011 played a major role in changing the direction of his life.
Hailing from a family of doctors and engineers in Jalandhar, Raghu was expected to follow a conventional career path and eventually become an electrical engineer. However, winning the World Cup in 2011 motivated him to take up cricket despite being a late starter.
Raghu Sharma said, “I am talking about 2011. Everyone in my family were doctors and engineers, so I became an engineer too – an electrical engineer. But due to my background, I was not fit. I weighed around 102 kilograms.”
He said that after watching Dhoni complete the World Cup final with a six, he decided to work towards becoming a cricketer. Raghu then began to focus heavily on fitness and bowling while trying to break into professional cricket despite starting at the age of 21.
Recalling the challenges he faced at the beginning of his journey, Raghu said, “Even my father told me that you won’t make it because of your obesity. You will have to run a lot and work very hard. Cricket is not for you. I started at the age of 21, so all opportunities for age group cricket were over for me. But I was still determined and focused on my goal.”
Raghu added that faith and repetitive bowling practice helped him carry on despite setbacks.
“I had complete faith in God and believed that if God exists, then I could definitely do it. I only practiced leg spin bowling six days a week. Even now I bowl 10 overs every day. If you are a bowler, you have to keep the bowling going. Eventually your wrist will start working naturally,” said Raghu.
The leg-spinner brought about an important moment for Mumbai Indians when he dismissed Akshat Raghuwanshi for his first IPL wicket. On the first ball of the 13th over, the batsman stepped up looking for an attacking shot but was beaten in flight as the ball flew in. The delivery took an inside edge and lobbed back to Raghu who completed the catch himself.
After taking over the goal, Raghu took out the note from his pocket with the words “Radhe-Radhe, Jai Shri Ram” along with a thank you note to Mumbai Indians for giving him the opportunity.
Mumbai Indians initially bought Raghu for Rs 30 lakh last year and have retained him for the current season as well. He worked as a netminder for the franchise in 2025 before being signed mid-season as an injury replacement for Vignes Puthur. Although he did not play a game that year, the franchise kept faith in him and he eventually made his IPL debut earlier this season against Chennai Super Kings.
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Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
05 May 2026 14:00 IST
