Anuj Rawat hogged the limelight for his match-winning knock for Royal Challengers Bangalore against five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians on April 9 (Saturday). The southpaw scored 66 runs off 47 balls, which included two boundaries and six towering sixes.
Coming from the same academy as Virat Kohli, Rawat failed to get going in the first couple of games. He played a couple of 20+ knocks but failed to capitalize on those. He finally came good against Mumbai and forged a 80-run stand with the former RCB captain to set the run chase.
The pants are red, the shirt is blue. The golden lion shining through. We're RrrrrrrrCccccccBbbbb 🎤🎶@RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/C1dDpJdJdR
— Anuj Rawat (@AnujRawat_1755) April 9, 2022
Anuj Rawat was a happy man to stand tall on the expectations of the management. Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, he said:
“Feels great. Scoring runs and winning. Very happy to be doing this. Was just following my process. I was starting well, wasn’t able to finish well, did it today.”
Incidentally, Royal Challengers Bangalore had shelled INR 3.4 crore to acquire his services at the IPL 2022 mega auction earlier this year. As Rawat continues to earn praise form all quarters, let’s breakdown into his career so far.
3 unknown facts about RCB’s young opener Anuj Rawat
1. He was part of Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2020 and 2021
Brilliant bunch of people, learnt so much from each one of them. Thank You @rajasthanroyals #hallabol. https://t.co/UH6eKoOcAu
— Anuj Rawat (@AnujRawat_1755) October 9, 2021
While the 22-year-old cricketer from Delhi has hogged the limelight now, Anuj Rawat is not new to IPL. He was part of Rajasthan Royals in the last couple of seasons. Rajasthan spent INR 80 lakh to acquire the hard-hitting batter.
However, he hard to warm the benches in his debut season. He got to bat only once and bagged a first-ball duck against Kolkata Knight Riders in Royals’ last league game. It is only now that Rawat is getting a proper chance to make a mark at the biggest T20 league in the world.
2. Comes from a farmer background
Anuj Rawat comes from a humble background and his father is a farmer while his mother is a housemaker. He was born in Ramnagar, a town in Nainital district, famous for the Jim Corbett National Park.
However, he moved to Delhi soon after he turned 10. Rawat’s father decided to move to the capital after the former told his parents that he wanted to take cricket seriously. After a few years, in 2016-17, Rawat got a break in Delhi’s Under-19 squad before he made his Ranji debut the following season. He also represented India in the U19 Asia Cup.
3. Impressive record in domestic cricket
#VijayHazareTrophy2021 🏏👍 pic.twitter.com/UgxEFPDHLG
— Anuj Rawat (@AnujRawat_1755) December 16, 2021
Anuj Rawat joined Royal Challengers Bangalore on the back of an impressive campaign in the domestic circuit. In the 2021-22 Vijay Hazare Trophy, the southpaw boasts an average of 58.33 and a strike rate of 108.69.
He also had a superlative campaign in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He smacked 15 boundaries and 10 towering sixes in just five matches to prove his batting prowess.
Rawat will hope to continue the momentum in the upcoming games and make the most of the opportunity in IPL 2022.
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