Every time a cricketer picks up the bat, there is a buried dream at the back of his or her mind, a fantasy of kissing the peak, overcoming impossible odds, and claiming the mantle of greatness. In most situations, overcoming poverty is also a significant hurdle that must be addressed.
Even more crucial is the fact that this venture into cricket is a one-way ticket, and once there, there will either be no looking back or just no going back.
Rohit Sharma’s name doesn’t seem like it was forged in the crucible of poverty, and he wasn’t shaped by darkness, as Batman’s arch-nemesis Bane would put it. However, not all poverty stories are the same. Because of his financial difficulties and fervent enthusiasm for athletics, the supreme hitman in the Indian ranks was unable to enjoy his childhood with his parents. In reality, his financial circumstances were such that he was unable to pay his school fees. He had to live with his grandparents since his parents couldn’t afford a good upbringing. His whole family weighed in with an amount to have him attend a cricket academy, seeing his enthusiasm for the game. Sharma’s preceptor, Dinesh Lad, saw him as a quality batter trying frantically to make a livelihood and gained him a scholarship, which allowed him to avoid paying tuition for the following four years. After all, was said and done, these were Sharma’s formative years. The modern-day Hitman has come a long way to get to where he is now.
Bumrah’s father died while he was just seven years old. Bumrah was reared by his mother, who was a teacher and encouraged him to succeed academically. She wanted him to finish his studies and then go to Canada for further education. The elite Indian fast bowler persuaded his mother to let him pursue a cricket career when he was 13 years old. Bumrah confessed on a talk show that he only had one jersey to practise cricket in his early days since his family couldn’t afford more.
Unfortunately for Hardik Pandya, he has come under fire for his poor performances during the recent Sri Lankan tour. Despite the harsh criticism, his path to the ace has been anything from straightforward. To get to his current location, he had to overcome insurmountable hurdles. His rise from poverty to riches included living on Maggi, borrowing cricket equipment, and hiding his car from the bank since they couldn’t afford to pay the EMI. The rising pressure could have easily suffocated the dream if it hadn’t been for a timely intervention from fate, which provided him with an opportunity to redeem himself, which he achieved in style as Mumbai won the title in his first year.