IPL Auction: A payday to write off all debts - Chennai Super Kings snap up Bharatpur boy Kartik Sharma for Rs 14.2 crore

JAIPUR: Almost 15 years ago, Manoj Sharma had resolved to put everything at his disposal into making his son a cricketer. The father was channeling his own unfulfilled dream that had stalled at district-level cricket.

On Tuesday, that dedication paid off. Son Kartik Sharma’s unbridled, free-flowing batting attracted a lot of franchises ahead of the mini-auction, but ultimately it was Chennai Super Kings who splurged a mind-boggling Rs 14.20 crore to secure the services of the 19-year-old in Abu Dhabi.

Kartik was obviously very happy, but the one thought constantly on his mind was that he could now help his father pay off his debts. According to a local cricket administrator in the know, the family is under a debt of around Rs 27-28 lakh, incurred while shaping Kartik.

On Tuesday, he was snapped up by CSK for an amount more than 47 times his base price of Rs 30 lakh. “To play for CSK is a dream come true. I am both excited and nervous. I want to thank my father, for he gave up his job and trained me day in and day out to make me the player I am today,” Kartik told TOI, “My father would be by my side while I practiced. Every day he and I would go to the academy for training, where he bowled to me for hours,” the wicketkeeper-batter added.

Manoj Sharma said, “We are thankful to Bharatpur DCA secretary and Lokandersingh Chahar (father of India seamer Deepak) for their support. Yes, we are under debt, but hopefully we will soon be in a position to pay it off.” EARLY START: A young Kartik during his academy days Bharatpur District Cricket Association secretary Shatrudhan Tiwari, who has backed Kartik since the day he arrived at his academy 12 years ago, shared that the youngster’s father was a school teacher who also gave tuitions. “But he gave up his work to train his son, which also led to a rise in debts. The family is under considerable debt. Almost four years ago, Kartik’s mother started working at an Anganwadi, but her earnings were not sufficient,” he added.Kartik’s first visit to an academy was as a five-year-old, when his father took him to India seamer Deepak Chahar’s father’s academy in Agra, 56 km away from Bharatpur. “I remember the father-son duo coming to my academy after they learned about Deepak being trained by me.

Manoj told me that he wanted his son to hit big sixes. The father was not being unreasonable — Kartik had this talent from the start,” said Chahar’s father, Lokandersingh.Kartik came into notice with his performances in the under-19 circuit in 2024-25, where he stood out in the Vinoo Mankad and Cooch Behar Trophy. As captain of the U-19 Rajasthan side, he top-scored with 492 runs in the one dayers, including a double-century. He made the cut into the senior side after Kunal Rathore failed to perform and was dropped.