Sandeep Sharma

– Sandeep Sharma first played in the IPL in 2013, when the erstwhile Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) picked him for INR 10 lakhs. The swing bowler had made a name for himself by being India’s joint-highest wicket-taker at the Under-19 World Cup in 2012, including taking 4 for 54 in India’s win in the final.

– Sandeep had a fruitful first three seasons with Punjab, for whom he took 39 wickets in 29 games. That propelled him to an India cap, as he played two T20Is on the tour of Zimbabwe in mid-2015.

– Overall, Sandeep spent five IPL seasons with Punjab. He was their highest wicket-taker in IPL 2014, 2016 and 2017. But Punjab let him go ahead of 2018, when Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) bagged him for INR 3 crore. Sandeep played four seasons for SRH, from 2018-21, bagging at least 12 wickets for them every year bar 2021.

– Just three wickets in seven games for SRH in 2021 meant Sandeep returned to Punjab in 2022, when he was paid INR 50 lakh. But another quiet season followed, and he found himself unsold at the auction for IPL 2023.

– But as it turned out, Rajasthan Royals (RR) lost Prasidh Krishna to injury in 2023, and they signed Sandeep as a replacement. He got ten wickets for them, and shut MS Dhoni down in the final over of a thrilling win in Chennai.

– Sandeep picked up another 13 wickets for RR in 2024, as they made their way to Qualifier 2. RR retained him ahead of the mega auction in 2025 by paying him INR 4 crore.

A right-arm medium pacer in the Praveen Kumar mould, Sandeep Sharma is an accurate bowler, capable of swinging the ball and sending down economical spells. Sandeep, who began as a batsman for his school in Patiala before his coach persuaded him to take up bowling seriously, was part of India’s Under-19 squad for the 2010 World Cup in New Zealand. He came into his own in the same event two years later, in Australia, where he took four wickets in the final, against the hosts, and finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker for India (12). As a result, Sandeep was signed by Kings XI Punjab ahead of the 2013 season. In three seasons for his franchise, Sandeep not only took 39 wickets, but was regularly employed by his captain George Bailey to bowl the death overs. Sandeep was soon drafted into India’s T20 side for the two-match series against Zimbabwe in 2015, where he failed to deliver. In 2014, however, Sandeep suffered a stress fracture of the back that kept him out of competitive cricket for five months. He returned strongly to claim 28 scalps in the 2014-15 Ranji Trophy, the most for his side.