Kumar Kushagra’s father, Shashikant, says former India captain Sourav Ganguly was so impressed with his son at the trials held by the Delhi Capitals franchise that he promised that the team would get him at any cost.
“After the trials at Eden (Gardens), Ganguly told Kushagra that he would play for the Delhi Capitals and the franchise would bid for him till Rs 10 crore,” Shashikant tells The Indian Express from Jamshedpur. “At the trials, Ganguly was impressed with his six-hitting ability and ability to play the field. His keeping skills also impressed Ganguly and even told him that there is a bit of MS Dhoni in him when he whips the bails.”
The 19-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman from Jharkhand was picked by Delhi Capitals for Rs 7.20 crore, following a bidding war between Gujarat Titans and Capitals.
“I thought he will get picked by Capitals at base price. For a few minutes, I was so numb. One can only think about miracles, and today was that kind of day. He was confident because Ganguly had promised him, but I thought he must have said this to encourage him,” says Shashikant.
Kushagra was a part of the Indian team in the 2020 U-19 World Cup in South Africa, where he only featured in one game. In the 2021-22 Ranji Trophy pre-quarterfinal clash against Nagaland, Kushagra (then 17) scored 266 runs. In that innings, he broke the 46-year-old record set by Pakistan legend Javed Miandad to become the youngest batsman to score 250-plus score.
Kushagra’s coaching started at home under the watchful eyes of his father, who works with the Income Tax department.
“I had never played cricket at any level. I was just a keen follower. When he was five and started showing interest in cricket, I decided that I would coach him. A colleague suggested a book named Art and Science of Cricket by Bob Woolmer. I must have read that book at least four or five times. That book became my coach and I started training Kushagra,” recalls Shasikant.
Kushagra’s T20 strike rate is 117.64 and it doesn’t match the amount the Capitals have paid to sign him. In BCCI’s white-ball tournament, the one good knock he played was against Maharashtra, when Jharkhand chased down 355 and Kushagra scored 67 off 37 balls.
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