Ashutosh Sharma and Vipraj Nigam emerged as the unlikely heroes in Delhi Capitals’ stunning one-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants. While Ashutosh played a fearless knock under pressure, Vipraj provided crucial support, keeping DC’s chase alive in a tense finish. But who are these rising stars, and how did they script one of the most thrilling victories of the season?
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Delhi Capitals (DC) looked down and out at 113/6, chasing 210 against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 opener at Visakhapatnam on Monday, but guess what,
they won by one wicket and with three balls to spare. The unexpected thrilling victory was scripted by the heroics of two Indian uncapped players – Vipraj Nigam and Ashutosh Sharma.
Debutant Vipraj Nigam and Ashutosh Sharma forged a 55-run partnership for the seventh wicket in just 22 balls. Nigam blasted 39 off 15 balls including two sixes but the real hero was Ashutosh who remained not out and completed the task with a swashbuckling knock of 66 from 31 balls.
Who is Vipraj Nigam?
The 20-year-old was playing his first IPL match. He was picked by DC for Rs 50 lakh in the IPL 2025 mega auction. Nigam is a leg-spin bowler from Uttar Pradesh who has only played three first-class matches for his state team.
He made his UP debut in the 2024-25 season, playing three first-class, five List-A and seven T20 matches after impressing in the UPT20 league.
While he is primarily a bowler, he can play some quick-fire cameos. In Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024, Nigam scored 27 in just eight balls to help UP beat Andhra.
Who is Ashutosh Sharma?
The 26-year-old Ashutosh is not new to IPL, having made his debut last year while playing for Punjab Kings (PBKS). He scored 189 runs for them from the lower order and at a strike rate of 167.26. Ashutosh proved himself as a quality finisher by playing quick-fire knocks for PBKS last season. His first four innings for Punjab were: 31 off 17, 33* off 15, 31 off 16 and 61 off 28.
While Ashutosh was not retained by PBKS, DC bought him at the auction for Rs 3.8 crore.
Ashutosh plays domestic cricket for Railways and Madhya Pradesh, having already played eight first-class, 14 List A and 32 T20s. He has a strike rate of 184.58 in T20s and holds the record for the fastest T20 fifty by an Indian batter.
Ashutosh took just 11 balls to make a fifty against Arunachal Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023.