Anushka Sharma on Saturday afternoon made her WPL 2026 debut for Gujarat Giants and left quite an impression with the bat, scoring 44 off 30, an innings featuring seven fours. It was her 103-run partnership
with GG captain Ashleigh Gardner that propelled them to a match-winning total of 207/4 against UP Warriorz at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.
Anushka landed a WPL contract after GG signed her for Rs 45 lakh at the mega auction held last November in New Delhi. The 22-year-old represents Madhya Pradesh in domestic cricket.
Anushka, who hails from an academically oriented family, though had self-doubts at one stage of her professional career after failing to succeed at the senior level and wondered if cricket was the right career for her.
“Suddenly at a higher level, when the runs weren’t coming, it made me wonder if I can make it as a cricketer. I was not able to score runs. I was more worried about the outcome at that time – that I want to win the trophy. That built a lot of pressure. That evening I broke down,” Anushka told Cricbuzz.
However, family’s support helped her develop a better perspective and ever since, she hasn’t looked back.
“My family told me that it was just the start, and that I have to play a lot more going ahead. After that conversation, I understood the sport a bit better. If I have to captain, what kind of mindset I needed to carry. I tried to simplify everything. Making myself realise that winning and losing is not in my hands. My attempt was to do my best at what I’m doing. Since then, that thought has neither crossed my mind again, and nor will it come again,” she said.
Growing up, Anushka was a fan of India men’s cricket team superstar Virat Kohli.
The first match she remembers watching on television is the iconic 2016 T20 World Cup match between India and Australia in Mohali when Kohli produced a masterclass of an innings to singlehandedly push his team to a memorable win.
“Woh aise bhaag bhi rahe the, aur akele team ko jeeta bhi rahe the (He was singlehandedly leading the team to victory). I don’t know how he thinks but his performance blew me away that day. He set the benchmark for aspiring cricketers like us, because he ticked all the boxes,” Anushka said.
