For Sarul Kanwar,leaving his hometown Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) and shifting to Chandigarh in 2001 for better cricket opportunities was the turning point in his life. In these eight years,Sarul has not only improved his game,he now stands on the verge of breaking into the Punjab Ranji Trophy team. With a record 746 runs in the recently-concluded Katoch Shield -including three centuries- Sarul made it to the ongoing Ranji camp. What will keep the Punjab selectors interested other than the runs he scored this year in the Katoch Shield is the 610 runs that he scored in the national C K Nayudu U-22 championship last year. His batting ensured Punjab won the title. "Cricket has always been a way of life for me. After playing cricket at the school level in Saharanpur,I wanted to graduate to a serious level and came to Chandigarh with cricket in my dreams," said Sarul who joined Sector 16 Stadium in 2001 and started to train under coach Harish Sharma. He was unlucky to miss out on Ranji selection last year but this year,things are very promising. A clear message has been conveyed to the Punjab Ranji contenders that form and fitness will form basis for selection and keeping in mind this dictum,Sarul is leaving no stone unturned in his quest to be one of the fittest players when the season begins. The combined Punjab camp for the U-22 and Ranji Trophy,under Daljit Singh's supervision is an opportunity for Sarul to show the think tank what he is capable of. "Being in the camp has been very good till now. Fitness work-outs,fielding sessions and net sessions have been co-ordinated so well. I am enjoying and learning a lot during the camp. Daljit Sir has been instrumental as a coach," Sarul said. "Scoring three hundreds in the Katoch Shield gave me a high. I was feeling so fit and hitting the ball quite well throughout the tournament. Match after match I became confident and continued to play my strokes. Going into the Punjab camp with so many runs under my belt doesn't make me relaxed. In fact,it has made me hungry for more runs." He played a match-winning knock of 183 against Jalandhar in the Katoch final,thus giving Chandigarh the title. Sharing his thoughts on Sarul's cricketing abilities,coach Harish said: "Sarul is an amazing stroke maker. He has every shot available in the book. What sets him apart from others is his fitness. He is the fittest cricketer around. After scoring so heavily in U-22 last year and this year in Katoch,I guess he deserves a Ranji cap this season." For someone who idolises Sachin Tendulkar,securing a Ranji berth is on his immediate agenda: "I know that I have been in good touch since last season,and also the fact that it is my fifth Ranji camp. But these things will not matter if I don't make the Ranji cut soon. So,I am keeping my fingers crossed this time."
