Kuldeep Sen was the talk of the town after the debutant pacer successfully defended 15 runs to help Rajasthan Royals win their match against Lucknow Super Giants by three runs at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
Even though 34 runs were needed off 12 balls, LSG were still in the game with Marcus Stoinis (17-ball 38 not out) in the middle. Kuldeep Sen (4-0-35-1) was marvelous, conceding only one run off his first four balls. Stoinis got a boundary off the penultimate ball, but by then, the target of 166 was already out of reach for LSG.
‘It certainly feels good’
Kuldeep’s hometown, Rewa, in Madhya Pradesh, was also buzzing following the pacer’s heroics. “It certainly feels good,” Kuldeep’s first coach Aril Anthony tells mid-day.
“He came to us when he was 12 or 13. He would pursue cricket without his family being aware of it. No one would have dreamt that cricketers from small towns could play in the IPL or India until a few years ago. But Ishwar Pandey [who played for India ‘A’ and also received a Test call-up for the New Zealand tour in 2014] became an instant role model.
“When Kuldeep’s father [a hair cutter] came to know about his cricketing ambitions over academics, his family was very upset,” says the coach, who provided coaching for free and also helped him with cricket equipment.
Just the start
Former Madhya Pradesh captain Devendra Bundela, who was the coach when Kuldeep made his first-class debut in 2018, feels this is just a trailer as it were. “He was playing in the U-23 category, but never got any opportunity there.
He directly made his state debut in the Ranji Trophy. He is a very hard-working and disciplined guy. With the kind of outswingers he bowls, I am confident he has the calibre to play at the top level. This is just the start, he will do well in coming years,” Bundela says.
Current MP coach Chandrakant Pandit was impressed with Kuldeep’s temperament. “He is a calm bowler. He never shows any desperation. Whatever you tell him, he will execute it. He never gives the impression that he is under pressure,” Pandit observes.
