New Delhi: Former India cricketer Hemang Badani hailed Sai Sudharsan’s commitment and dedication towards the game after the latter made his international debut against South Africa in the ODI series recently. The Tami Nadu batter scored a maiden fifty on his debut before repeating the same in his second game too against a strong Proteas bowling line-up.
The southpaw, who plays for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League, had a stellar run in the past year. He was a part of the title-winning sides in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, Deodhar Trophy, Irani Cup and County Championship while playing for Surrey. His brilliant run with the bat in the Vijay Hazare Trophy turned the selector’s attraction towards him for a national call-up.
“This meteoric rise has not come easy for Sai Sudharsan. It is his commitment, dedication, and sincerity towards the sport. He is always at the ground every single day for training and practice, looking to learn and improve,” Badani was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
Sudharsan’s name started doing the rounds since 2021 TNPL. In that season, the top-order batter finished as the second-highest run-scorer with 358 runs from eight games including five half-centuries while representing Lyca Kovai Kings.
Badani, who was the coach of Lyca Kovai Kings in the 2023 TNPL, also shared an interesting incident revolving around Sudharsan. “Lyca Kovai Kings played the opening match of the tournament in Coimbatore and Sai Sudharsan made 80 the previous night.
“As the coach I always go around the ground in the morning to check the pitch. At around 11 a.m., when I entered, I saw Sai Sudharsan running around the ground. I quietly saw the pitch and sat down to see what he was up to.
After he finished, I asked him why he was running after playing a long innings, to which Sai Sudharsan replied ‘I want to prepare for the next match and for that I have to be mentally ready and this is like a recovery run’. Now that is commitment, which shows the boy’s hunger and desire and that is why he is very special,” added Badani.
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