Mukul Choudhary’s father always dreamed of seeing his son make it in cricket. That ambition has now turned into reality, and after a memorable night in IPL 2026, Choudhary is generating plenty of noise with a performance that left Eden Gardens buzzing.
On Thursday evening at Eden Gardens, Choudhary hammered 54 runs from 27 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to steer Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) to a surprising victory. The driving force behind his impact? MS Dhoni. The proof? His trademark helicopter-style hitting.
“I’ve been working on that shot since I was a kid,” Choudhary said during the post-match press interaction, referring to the over in which he sent Vaibhav Arora for a maximum in the 17th. “I’ve always liked it—especially the way Dhoni used to close out an innings. He could even pick up a six off a yorker. If you manage to hit deliveries like that for six, it completely changes what the bowler is willing to do next.”
Chasing a target where 54 runs were required from 24 balls, and with LSG already reduced to seven wickets down, Choudhary had little margin for error. After getting just a single run from his first five deliveries, he took control in the next stretch, smashing another 53 off 22 balls. His finishing included seven sixes, while his boundary tally with fours stood at two.
Speaking about how he generates his power at the crease, Choudhary added, “My body helps me a bit, and it has always come naturally. I also practise hitting between 100 and 150 sixes every day, so the bat speed improves the more you repeat it. Over the past five to six months, I’ve been putting in a lot of work, and that’s why it has started showing in my batting.”
Choudhary had already flashed his potential at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26. For Rajasthan, he struck 62 not out from only 26 balls, including seven maximums, to guide his side home while chasing 176. He also remembered finishing a match by taking down his LSG team-mate Ayush Badoni for a six to seal the contest with one big hit. In that tournament, Choudhary ended with 173 runs, posting an average of 57.66 and a strike rate of 198.85.
His performances were enough to see LSG spend INR 2.6 crore to bring him into the squad. Around the same time, LSG head coach Justin Langer expressed confidence that Choudhary could evolve into “the scariest No. 6 or No. 7 batter in India” within four months.
“When a coach of his stature says something like that about you, I’m sure he must have seen something special in you,” Choudhary said about what he took from Langer’s backing. “He trusted me, so it was my responsibility to repay that faith. During practice, he sets aside 10 to 15 minutes every day just for me. Whatever he taught me ended up being useful, so I simply did my part after he put his trust in my work.”
After Choudhary engineered LSG’s comeback win, Langer also spoke to the host broadcaster, saying he believes the youngster can reach even higher levels.
“He’s very young, and you can see it in the way he looks — there’s hunger in his eyes,” Langer said. “When someone comes into the team, you can tell they’re trying hard, and [this win] will be a massive moment for him, not just in the match, but for his entire career.”
