The young pacer from streets of Karnal in Haryana, Navdeep Saini made history when he got his maiden national call-up for the limited-overs series against West Indies last year. Since then, he has had a meteoric rise in international cricket. Fast bowler Navdeep Saini has credited Gautam Gambhir for his remarkable rise in the gentlemen’s game.
Meanwhile, Navdeep Saini has been in the reckoning for good five-six years now. However, till 2013, Saini has not played any leather ball cricket and was a regular tennis-ball player. But he got the break when Delhi cricketer Sumit Narwal’s saw him bowl in a local tournament. Narwal brought Saini to the Delhi nets who soon impressed Gautam Gambhir beating him for pace in the nets and since then, never had to look back.
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He helped Delhi reach the final of the 2017-18 Ranji season where he finished as the team’s leading wicket-taker with 34 in eight games. It was the semifinal against Bengal that saw Saini come up with his best performance. Navdeep Saini took 3 for 55 in the first innings, and then followed with 4 for 35 in the second essay to hand Delhi an innings victory. Reports also say that Gautam Gambhir fought with the selectors who didn’t even make a passing glance at Saini’s bowling.
I owe my career to Gautam Gambhir: Navdeep Saini
Meanwhile, during a recent interview with Timesnownews.com, Navdeep Saini highlights the role of Gautam Gambhir in his career. Saini also heaped praise on skipper Virat Kohli saying that he gives the bowlers the freedom to express.
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“Gautam Gambhir is a huge reason behind my success, he supported my career from the beginning,” Saini said as he highlights the role of Gautam Gambhir.
“I had the talent but he helped me polish it. Playing under Virat Kohli’s captaincy I have learnt many things. He doesn’t create pressure and motivates us to play to our full intensity and potential. He supports us and understands that every player is different,” he added.
Speaking further, Navdeep Saini admitted that he aims to represent his country as long as he can. The tall and lanky’s aim now will be to seal a berth for the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia if it happens.
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