Royal Challengers Bengaluru spent INR 11 crore to sign Jitesh Sharma in the IPL 2025 mega-auction. After Dinesh Karthik announced his retirement, RCB were looking for cricketers with a similar profile – that is a keeper who can finish games. Jitesh fit the bill, as he played a similar role for Punjab Kings in the past. Meanwhile, RCB named Karthik as their batting coach and currently, he is working closely to ‘create a player’ in Jitesh, as the player himself stated.
The 31-year-old revealed that Karthik believes that he can be a 360-degree player and the duo is currently working on developing his game. He mentioned that during the off-season, the former cricketer worked closely with him and added that he is happy with the progress and the backing he has received so far from the management.
“It’s been a great journey till now because in the off-season, I really worked hard with him. I think the whichever shot which I am playing right now is the replica of what he used to play. He is trying to create a new player in me, because he believes that I can play 360 degrees. I am really enjoying myself in this new role,” Jitesh said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
“While I am playing those shots, I am very happy [with the execution] because I have never tried those shots. And I am going to execute thanks to all the backing they give me. It’s been a wonderful journey which I am still excited about,” he added.
Notably, Jitesh played a brilliant knock of unbeaten 40 runs off 19 deliveries in the previous match against Mumbai Indians. Courtesy of his innings, RCB posted 221 runs in the first innings and won the match by 12 runs. The knock will give him plenty of conscience for the rest of the tournament.
