Speaking exclusively to Sports Yaari, Jitesh Sharma opened up about his IPL journey, his bond with Virat Kohli, and how his dedication cannot be matched.

“You can’t really compare anyone with Virat bhai, he’s one of a kind, a person born once in millions, with that kind of dedication,” Jitesh said. He also reflected on his own role in ending Virat’s long wait for an IPL trophy, a moment that stirred something deeply human within him.

“As a person, I could understand what he must have been going through,” Jitesh said. “When you change something in your batting technique and it doesn’t click for weeks, you become impatient. Now imagine this man played for 18 years for one team. How many times must he have felt frustration, impatience, even emotional imbalance?”

Though Jitesh didn’t interact much with Virat personally, he admired him from afar. That night, while talking to his wife, he reflected on his own struggles, the years when he couldn’t even make his state team for three consecutive seasons. “I was frustrated then, too,” he said. “So when I think of Virat bhai,18 years of ups and downs, knockouts, finals, heartbreaks, I realise what a storm must have been inside him.”

He paused and added softly, “I told her, if in any small way I’ve been able to make a difference in his life, if something I did helped him or made him smile, that would be my biggest blessing. I always think if someone remembers me later and says, ‘Because of Jitesh, this happened,’ that’s what truly matters to me.”

For Jitesh, Virat’s tears weren’t just about winning a trophy. “Those were pure emotions,” he said. “After 18 years, reaching the final again, that’s destiny. I feel like it was written by the one above. Rajat becoming captain, me playing that knock, everyone hitting form at the right time, it was all written for Virat bhai.”

And when the victory finally came, Virat didn’t need many words. “He was very happy,” Jitesh recalled with a smile. “He even offered me his bat, but it didn’t suit my size, so Rajat took it instead. I told him, ‘It’s okay, Bhaiya.'

Jitesh Sharma recalled the IPL 2025 final moments and what it meant to the team and him.