Back to his roots,Tanmay stays grounded

Mishra,the son of a Nairobi-based businessman,was born in Mumbai,but moved to Kenya when he was five. Though he was an enthusiastic cricketer from the start,his first love was football. I would have picked football over cricket. But when I suffered a knee injury,my dad took the call and asked me to focus on cricket, he adds.

Having missed the bus for the previous edition of World Cup held in the West Indies,Mishra knew what it takes to be a part of an associate nation. With international games coming once in three or four years,he realised the importance of acquiring an academic qualification. And hence his plan to study in Mumbai received the green signal from his father.

The times have changed since Kenya cricket was on the upswing with talk of getting Test-status. But since things turned blue,a player cannot just survive on his cricket finances. And since my family is into business,a degree always helps in getting acquainted to the needs.

Despite lacking big scores in the two matches he has played so far,there isnt any notion of his confidence being shattered. In fact,the next encounter against fellow associate nation Canada is a contest of equals. A win against Canada will be a motivating factor. Most importantly,it can be small addition into our rebuilding process. The more we win,there are chances that strong nations again start coming to Kenya and things start to work out.