Hailed as the next big thing in Indian cricket, Ishant Sharma shot into the limelight by bowling a dream spell to Ricky Ponting in the Perth Test when India toured Australia in 2008. Ishant, who hails from Delhi, is nicknamed Lambu (meaning Tall Guy), which is in reference to his lean and tall build, measuring 193cm. Ishant started playing serious cricket at the age of 14 and soon made his Ranji Trophy debut for Delhi at the age of 18. He was first selected for India in May 2007 when India toured Bangladesh and made his Test debut in that same series. His big break came when he prised out the Pakistani side on a flat Chinnaswamy deck en route to taking 5/140 in December 2007. That bowling effort won him a place on India's tour to Australia and from then on there was no looking back for the lanky lad.
