New Delhi: It was a night to live. Mumbai Indians In IPL 2026 against Lucknow Supergiants at Wankhede Stadium. And with a vintage Rohit Sharma show, and MI’s outstanding batsman Ryan Rickelton this season, MI brushed aside LSG to keep their IPL playoff chances alive, even if they were hanging by a thread.But the highlight of the night wasn’t necessarily Rohit’s roaring comeback from injury, or even Nicholas Pooran’s blistering half-century after a long lean patch.It was Raghu SharmaThe emotional cue of A simple return catch. First wicket of IPL. And then – a piece of paper.Playing only his second IPL game, Sharma dismissed LSG debutant Akshit Raghunshi for 11 runs. But the celebration, as is often the case with wicket celebrations, was not inherently aggressive. Instead, it was deliberate and deeply personal.After the wicket, Sharma struck a note – bringing back memories of Dinesh Ramdin’s “talk no view” message, and closer to home, Abhishek Sharma’s celebration of a similar IPL hundred last season. Cameras zoomed in, even as stand-in captain Suryakumar Yadav tried almost quizzically to read the note.The moment instantly went viral. But there was nothing immediate about the note. It encapsulates Sharma’s journey to this moment – 15 years in the making.The note read: “Radhe Radhe. A very painful 15 years ended today by Guru Deva’s divine grace. Thank you, Mumbai Indians (Blue and Gold), for giving me this opportunity. Ever grateful. Jai Shri Ram.”The 15-year-old grinds behind a wicketSharma was included in the MI set-up last season as a replacement for youngster Vignesh Pathur and has been retained this season. After spending the first few games on the bench, MI debuted Sharma a few days ago against Chennai Super Kings, where he returned figures of 0/24.Looking back on Sharma’s path to his IPL moment, it was far from conventional. He did not grow up in an aristocratic system. In fact, he started serious cricket only after he turned 18.Starting out as a fast bowler, Raghu had to reinvent himself – largely self-taught – switching to legspin after a hamstring injury.“I started leg-spin after watching his videos… I would watch it over and over again, and try it in the net,” Raghav recalled in an interview with ESPNcricinfo before the start of the season, crediting Shane Warne as his virtual mentor.But for someone who started serious cricket so late, it was always going to be tough to break through.“At 25, I was told I was too old,” Raghav said in the same ESPNCricinfo interview. His career then took him into geography, and occupied other opportunities. He was dropped after a promising start for Punjab in the domestic circuit, and even his move to Puducherry did not provide consistent opportunities. He also spent a full season of grade cricket in Sri Lanka, followed by a club cricket tour in England, where he rubbed shoulders with the likes of Imran Tahir. The veteran helped Sharma reshape his bowling by adding variation and control.After failing the fitness test and being out of the fray, Raghav became emotionally drained. He stepped in briefly, mentally reset, and physically rebuilt. A strong home showing brought him back into the system. Mumbai Indians, the same franchise where he once failed the trials, gave him another shot.“I had to wait eight years but I came back to the same franchise… this time I came as a changed person,” he told ESPNcricinfo.And throughout the journey, Raghav found comfort in belief. “I think God sees everything. If you are doing your job with discipline, you will definitely get rewarded… I enjoyed my failures too,” he said in the same ESPNcricinfo interview.And that explains why his note started with ‘Radhe Radhe’ and ended with ‘Jaishree Ram’.On paper, Sharma’s figures read: 1 for 36 in four overs. Respectable at best.But in context, it was the end of a 15-year wait.For all the emotion surrounding that maiden IPL wicket, Raghu Sharma’s career numbers represent a steady progression. In first-class cricket, he took 57 wickets in 12 matches at an average of 22.03 and an economy of 3.27, including five five-wicket hauls and three 10-wicket match performances. In List A cricket, he took 18 wickets in 12 matches at an average of 27.50 and an economy of 5.22. In T20, he took 5 wickets in 6 matches with an average of 34.40 and an economy rate of 7.81.
