Ajay Sharma guides Jammu and Kasmir to first ever Ranji Trophy title

The moment you hear the name of former Indian cricketer Ajay Sharma the sordid matchfixing episode that hit Indian cricket in the 1990s comes to mind Despite his best efforts that stigma has stuck to him just like many other cricketers who played in the 90s be it former India captain Mohammed Azharuddin or Ajay JadejaHowever currently his achievement as the head coach of the Jammu and Kashmir team will hopefully override that dark phase of his careerSharma has played a massive role in guiding JampK to their maiden Ranji Trophy triumph which they will achieve in Hubbali on Saturday This achievement has been against the odds considering they have beaten reputed teams including Bengal in Bengal semifinal and Karnataka in Karnataka finalDelhiborn Sharma 61 was a prolific runscorer in domestic cricket before his career was interrupted by matchfixing allegations in the year 2000 Cricket administrators castigated him and he was a virtual outcast until cleared of all charges by a Delhi court in 2014 Thatrsquos when he returned to the sport in a coaching capacityAjay SharmaDespite having a brilliant run in domestic cricket Sharma did not make much headway in international cricket He made his Test debut in the same match as Narendra Hirwani against the West Indies in Chennai in 1988 Hirwani went on to claim a record 16wicket haul on debut while Sharma had two good stints as a batter making 30 and 23 on a notsoeasy pitch Sadly that remained his only Test appearance despite being a consistent scorer in domestic cricket having garnered 10120 runs in 129 matches at an amazing average of 6746 with 38 centuries and bagging 87 wickets Being a handy allrounder he did go on to play 31 ODIs and it was during this phase that his name repeatedly cropped up during the matchfixing allegations which ultimately led to a ban on his cricket career until he was cleared in 2014After getting the allclear from the court Sharma began rebuilding his reputation in cricket He formally announced his retirement from active cricket in 2017 and got involved in coaching including roles at the National Cricket Academy NCA in Bengaluru Before his senior team appointment he was involved in coaching at various levels including time spent in Delhi where he was credited with transforming the batting of young talent Yash DhullSharma also mentored his son Manan a lefthanded allrounder Manan represented the Delhi cricket team in domestic cricket from 2008 to 2019 and played for the India U19 in the 2010 U19 Cricket World Cup alongside KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal However just like the career of his father Mananrsquos career was also going nowhere despite being signed by the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2016 He eventually retired from cricket in August 2021 and moved to pursue opportunities in the United StatesAs for Sharma his biggest opportunity came when in September 2022 the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association JKCA appointed him as head coach of their senior team replacing Sanjeev Sharma It was no bed of roses for him as upon joining he faced challenges in adapting to the teamrsquos culture He initially faced resistance with players reportedly calling him a lsquodictatorrsquo for his strict approach He focused on ending the lsquostar culturersquo improving work ethic and building a lsquoredball mindsetrsquo This led to a dramatic turnaround with players eventually affectionately referring to him as Ajju Bhai With so much focus on whiteball cricket initially it was difficult for him to set the agenda for the Ranji Trophy He had to request JKCA to allow the team to play preseason tournaments like the Buchi Babu and MoinudDowlah Gold Cup to prepare for the Ranji Trophy Luckily for him his former Delhi colleague Mithun Manhas was the then BCCIappointed head of the crisisridden JKCA and he gave Sharma a free hand Manhas served as administrator for JKCA starting in 2021 successfully guiding them out of a crisis involving mismanagement and corruption He was credited with improving infrastructure laying fresh pitches nurturing talent and appointing Sharma as coach and supporting him wholeheartedly ultimately leading to this Ranji successThere is no doubt that Sharmarsquos tenure as JKCA coach has brought about a remarkable personal turnaround He has successfully moved on from a controversial past to become a highly respected mentor And currently his guidance in leading JampK to historic heights by helping them claim the Ranji Trophy for the first time since coming into existence in 1970 is the ultimate achievement233 No of runs added by Delhirsquos Ajay Sharma and Maninder Singh vs Bombay in the 199192 season mdash still the highest Ranji Trophy stand for the 10th wicket1033No of runs scored by Delhirsquos Ajay Sharma in eight games in the 199697 Ranji season including five centuries In doing so he became only the third player to score over 1000 runs in a single Ranji season at that time after WV Raman 1018 runs in 198889 and Rusi Modi 1008 in 1944456746Ajay Sharmarsquos firstclass batting average mdash the fourthbest in history minimum 2000 runs behind Sir Donald Bradman 9514 Vijay Merchant 7164 and George Headley 6986