Saurabh Netravalkar made headlines with a remarkable performance for the United States in their 2024 T20 World Cup match against Pakistan last week. He successfully defended 19 runs in the Super Over, securing a thrilling five-run victory for his team.
Before moving to the USA, Netravalkar played in the 2010 U-19 World Cup for India and represented Mumbai in domestic cricket. In an interview with India Today, he discussed balancing his engineering studies with cricket during that time. He mentioned that he turned down an engineering job in India to follow his cricketing passion, saying:
“I can take it to under-19, when I played in 2010 for the Indian team. Parallelly, I was also doing my engineering. My bachelor’s was from 2009 to 2013, so I was juggling between both. It is a good thing that I had a passion for both. In 2013, there came a point when I had to make a call. I was offered a job as a software engineer in India. But I decided not to take it up and then give two years to cricket.”
He explained that after struggling to secure a regular spot in Mumbai’s team and not being considered for an IPL contract, he decided to move to the USA to pursue his other passion, engineering. The left-arm seamer remarked:
“I trained hard with everybody’s support, made it to the Mumbai team. I played for two seasons, but then I realised at the end of the second year, that I was in and out of the side and was not making it to the next stage, like the senior Indian team or an IPL contract. So I thought if I’m not making it to the next stage, then I should pursue my other passion. It was definitely very emotional for me to leave cricket and come here, but then I thought that it was the more practical call.”
Notably, Saurabh Netravalkar played alongside KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Harshal Patel, and Jaydev Unadkat in the 2010 U-19 World Cup. He made his Ranji Trophy debut for Mumbai in 2013 against Karnataka.
“Some of the guys who are on that team used to be my childhood friends” – Saurabh Netravalkar discusses playing against India in the 2024 T20 World Cup
Before the IND vs USA 2024 T20 World Cup match, Saurabh Netravalkar expressed his anticipation for playing against the Men in Blue. He mentioned that some players in the Indian team were his childhood friends. Speaking to Fox KTVU, he further said:
“It’s an emotional moment for me because I think some of the guys who are on that team used to be my childhood friends as well.So I’m kind of happy for them as well that I could get to meet them.”
Encouraging fans to attend the match and support the USA team, Saurabh Netravalkar added:
“I just want to encourage the fans to come out there, to understand the game and try to support us and we’ll give our best to represent the country and do the best that we can.”
The USA is set to face India at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Wednesday, June 12.
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