Aryan Sharma’s Childhood Wish to Virat Kohli Comes True on the Big Stage for Australia U-19

Despite mediocre debut in the first youth ODI, Aryan Sharma is expected to keep his place in the Australian U-19 XI for the second match.

Aryan Sharma’s Childhood Wish to Virat Kohli Comes True on the Big Stage for Australia U-19

Aryan Sharma on Virat Kohli (Image via Instagram)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

A young 17-year-old Australian cricketer of Indian origin, Aryan Sharma, finds a source of inspiration in watching Virat Kohli play. Now living his dream of representing his country, the Australia U-19 star, who is currently playing in a youth series against India, named Kohli as his cricketing inspiration.

The Indian U-19 side won the first out of the three youth ODIs in Brisbane by seven wickets. Australia U-19 put up a below-par first innings score of 225/9 on the board, with India’s Henil Patel scalping a three-wicket haul, while Kishan Kumar and Kanishk Chouhan got two each. India U-19 raced to the total in just 30.3 overs, thanks to a brilliant 152-run stand between Vedant Trivedi and Abhigyan Kundu. 

While Australia U-19 might have lost the series opener, two young India-origin players made headlines. New South Wales talents Aryan Sharma and Yash Deshmukh were a part of Australia’s playing XI for the match in Brisbane.

They were selected in the 15-member squad by Cricket Australia’s youth selection panel. The aim is to prepare them for the upcoming ICC Under-19 Men’s World Cup in 2026, which will be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Aryan Sharma has played 185 matches across all formats domestically, scoring 2,659 runs at an average of 22.34. An all-rounder, Sharma also has 17 wickets under his belt. The 17-year-old rising star credited former Indian captain Virat Kohli as his idol, and called him the inspiration behind his decision to pursue a career in cricket.

In 2018, at just 11 years old, I went to the Boxing Day Test with a poster that said, ‘Virat [Kohli], you are my inspiration. Watch me play for Australia in 2025.’

Aryan Sharma was quoted in post by Cricket Australia (H/T Crictracker)

Sharma recalled a memory from 2018 when he first saw Kohli play during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. At just 11 years old, Aryan Sharma narrated that he attended the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and watched as Kohli scored a crucial 82 in the first innings.

The 17-year-old further exclaimed that he had carried a poster to the match expressing his wish that Kohli would see him play for Australia in 2025. It is a dream that, to his own surprise, came true this year.

I don’t know why I chose that year, but it was my dream. Now in 2025, through God’s grace, the support of family and my coaches, and years of hard work, I’ve been selected for the Australian Under-19 team.

Aryan Sharma continued

In fact, the first youth ODI between India U-19 and Australia U-19 marked Aryan Sharma’s debut for the national side. However, his debut outing was challenging, as he scored only 10 runs from 14 balls and went wicket-less, giving away 34 runs in his four-over spell.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma likely to make ODI return for Australia series

Once the ongoing Asia Cup gets over, the Indian team will be preparing for its next white-ball assignment against Australia. The Men in Blue are scheduled to play three ODIs, which will likely mark the return of two of their most prominent players, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma Australia tour
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are likely to return to India’s ODI squad for the tour to Australia (via India Today)

Both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli had announced their retirement from Test cricket, earlier this year. The duo now only remain active in ODI cricket, having also retired from T20Is in 2024. The series against Australia would be Sharma and Kohli’s first outing with the Men in Blue after six long months, having last played in the 2025 Champions Trophy final against New Zealand.

Rohit Sharma is expected to lead the side in Australia, while Shubman Gill is expected to continue in his role as vice-captain. Apart from Sharma and Kohli, several other players are expected to return to the India team fold, including ace pacer Mohammed Siraj. Shreyas Iyer, who was controversially left out of the Asia Cup squad as well, is also expected to return, alongside keepers KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant. 

The three-match series will begin with the first ODI on October 19 at the Perth Cricket Stadium. The team will then travel to Adelaide for the second ODI. The series is set to conclude at the Sydney Cricket Ground in the third ODI on October 25.

Also Read: