Sunrisers Hyderabad youngster Aniket Verma has quickly established himself as one to watch out for in the IPL 2025 with a couple of brilliant performances. After a fiery knock against Lucknow Super Giants, the 23-year-old followed it up with an impressive 41-ball-74 against Delhi Capitals. Aniket was inspired by Indian cricket team all-rounder Hardik Pandya as a kid and he even studied the star cricketer’s strokeplay. However, a specific story about Hardik inspired Aniket as a kid. Hardik revealed in past interviews that there was a point in his life where he had no money and he spent 4 years just eating Maggi noodles.
Amit, Aniket’s uncle, revealed that he read it in a newspaper one year after Hardik made his IPL debut and the story left Aniket inspired as a budding cricketer.
“Aniket must have been 14 back then. I read it in a newspaper and told him the story while we were on our way to his academy,” Amit told Times of India. “That day, I saw the spirit, the passion, and the hunger in him. He wanted to make it big. Once we reached the stadium, he touched my feet and said, ‘I complain about trivial things.’ I laughed, but he was serious.”
Meanwhile, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ian Bishop showered praise on young Aniket Verma for his impressive blitzkrieg against Delhi Capitals, even though it came in a losing cause for the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
After deciding to bat, the Sunrisers’ decision backfired courtesy of a spirited spell from Delhi’s pace spearhead, Mitchell Starc. With the visitors tottering at 37/4, Aniket arrived on the crease and expressed himself freely, mesmerising the spectators.
He raised a 77-run partnership with Heinrich Klaasen and continued to wage a lone battle after the South African’s dismissal. His impressive exploits in Vizag were brought to an end by spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
As he returned to the dressing room with a hard-fought 74 from 41 deliveries, the fans ensured his efforts were recognised and showed their appreciation with a round of applause.
Pujara was impressed by Aniket’s approach against DC’s bowling unit, which features overseas and national talent.
“I thought Aniket batted brilliantly. There was no pressure on him. He just kept playing his shots. But it was good to see the way he took on the bowlers. There was some good bowling there, but the way he kept on playing his shots, he looked really good today,” Pujara said in a video posted by ESPNcricinfo.
(With IANS inputs)
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