Young Sunrisers Hyderabad bowler Kartik Tyagi has lauded former India batter Suresh Raina and thanked him for ensuring he got opportunities to move forward in cricket. Tyagi rose to prominence due to his performance for India U19 in the Youth World Cup in 2020.
Tyagi was India's highest wicket-taker with 11 dismissals. In the same year, he was picked by Rajasthan Royals in the IPL auction for INR 20 lakhs and was named in India's squad for the Test series against Australia down under in 2020-21.
This rise, however, would not have been possible without Raina's help, as Tyagi points out.
"Like I always say one thing, that after Under-16, Suresh Raina entered my life like a god because people started to recognize me when I was selected for Ranji Trophy. When I was 13, I participated in the Under-14 trials and this is where my cricketing journey began. I started playing for the Under-14 team and then Under-16.
In the U-16, there was a season where I got 50 wickets in 7 matches. That is where the selectors started noticing that there is a player who has been taking a lot of wickets at the State level. Despite taking plenty of wickets, we reached the finals but lost. It was there that Gyanendra Pandey sir spotted me and he said that he was impressed by my performances and he will promote me going forward," Tyagi said in a video shared by SRH on their social media.
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"From there I reached the State Ranji Trophy camp. When I arrived, I was just a 16-year-old youngster while the others were established, players. Then there was an incident where Suresh Raina had also come. I used to be very silent and was observing everything. He was about to leave after his practice, but I don't know why he came back to the ground.
He then approached me and asked me what was my role. I told him that I was a bowler and then he gave me a chance to bowl in the nets. He saw my performance and told me 'I liked your bowling and I will ensure you get chances in the future.' Personally, for me, it was a good thing that someone like Suresh Raina noticed my performance," he added.
"I was a little shocked that such a big player has complimented me and for a moment, I thought that he was joking. When he said that I was doing well, I still couldn't believe that I will get a chance to play in the coming days. After that, it was quite shocking for me that my name was shortlisted in the UP Ranji team. My Ranji career started from there and later I progressed to the Under-19 team and eventually played the Under-19 World Cup," Tyagi concluded.
Tyagi is yet to feature in a match for SRH in IPL 2022 as he deals with some fitness issues.
(With hindustantimes inputs)
