MUMBAI: Will India’s next young batting prodigy come from Chambal, which was infamous once for being an area infested with dacoits?
Yashwardhan Chouhan, who hails from Chambal, a small town in Madhya Pradesh, has piled up a series of sensational scores while playing for Chambal Division in the under-13 Inter Divisional tournament for AW Kanmadikar Trophy in Indore, organized by the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association.
Turning into an unstoppable run-machine, the 13-year-old right-hander has slammed scores of 47 (vs Ujjain), 425 (248 balls, 87×4, vs Shahdol), 235 (166b, 41×4 vs Bhopal) and 391 vs Indore in the semifinal of the tournament. Overall, he has scored 1091 runs in just 705 balls. Interestingly, he has stroked as many as 197 fours, while not hitting a single six – a proof that the boys prefers hitting the ball along the ground, a rarity in today’s times.
The wonder kid’s unbelievable string of scores forced former India wicketkeeper Chandrakant Pandit, currently the Madhya Pradesh head coach, to g o to watch him play on Sunday morning. Unfortunately, resuming on 367 overnight, Chouhan was dismissed for 391.
“Last night, MPCA secretary Sanjeev Rao called me and asked me to watch this boy play. Since I look after all age group cricket here in MP, it was my duty to have a look at him. He was out to a ball which kept really low. However, he was batting really well. Technically, he looks good, particularly for a 13-year-old. He was playing in the ‘V’ in front of the wicket. If someone is making double hundred, triple hundred and four hundred at the age of 13, it should inspire budding cricketers from around the country. His consistency notching up big scores is amazing. It shows his ability to play a long innings, a good appetite, even at that young an age. It reminds me of a young Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli, and how their partnership inspired so many cricketers,” Pandit told TOI from Indore.
What left Pandit, one of the most successful coaches in domestic cricket, impressed with Chouhan was his approach to the game. “The MPCA CEO Rohit Pandit got me to meet him. I spent 30 minutes with him. I asked him a couple of questions. I asked him: ‘do you feel happy after scoring a hundred? He replied by saying: ‘I like to score as many runs as possible. I don’t like getting out. ‘ I then asked him: ‘I’ve heard that you have hit so many fours, but no sixes. ‘He replied: ‘Why should I try the aerial route when I’m getting runs by hitting along the ground. ‘ Coming from a 13year-old, I was really impressed his answers,” praised Pandit.
“I don’t know how far he’ll go, but he’s shown his hunger to play a big innings. Even I scored a triple hundred in inter-school cricket, but only once, but I n ever scored 200, 300 and then a 400! Today, he was out for 391, thus missing out on his second 400-run knock in the tournament. The attack too wasn’t bad, “he said.
After his triple hundred, Chouhan took 6 for 46, including a hat-trick, in 17 overs, with his off-spin. The matches in the tournament are being played on a two-day basis in the league stage, and in three-day format from the semifinals onwards.
Yashwardhan Chouhan, who hails from Chambal, a small town in Madhya Pradesh, has piled up a series of sensational scores while playing for Chambal Division in the under-13 Inter Divisional tournament for AW Kanmadikar Trophy in Indore, organized by the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association.
Turning into an unstoppable run-machine, the 13-year-old right-hander has slammed scores of 47 (vs Ujjain), 425 (248 balls, 87×4, vs Shahdol), 235 (166b, 41×4 vs Bhopal) and 391 vs Indore in the semifinal of the tournament. Overall, he has scored 1091 runs in just 705 balls. Interestingly, he has stroked as many as 197 fours, while not hitting a single six – a proof that the boys prefers hitting the ball along the ground, a rarity in today’s times.
The wonder kid’s unbelievable string of scores forced former India wicketkeeper Chandrakant Pandit, currently the Madhya Pradesh head coach, to g o to watch him play on Sunday morning. Unfortunately, resuming on 367 overnight, Chouhan was dismissed for 391.
“Last night, MPCA secretary Sanjeev Rao called me and asked me to watch this boy play. Since I look after all age group cricket here in MP, it was my duty to have a look at him. He was out to a ball which kept really low. However, he was batting really well. Technically, he looks good, particularly for a 13-year-old. He was playing in the ‘V’ in front of the wicket. If someone is making double hundred, triple hundred and four hundred at the age of 13, it should inspire budding cricketers from around the country. His consistency notching up big scores is amazing. It shows his ability to play a long innings, a good appetite, even at that young an age. It reminds me of a young Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli, and how their partnership inspired so many cricketers,” Pandit told TOI from Indore.
What left Pandit, one of the most successful coaches in domestic cricket, impressed with Chouhan was his approach to the game. “The MPCA CEO Rohit Pandit got me to meet him. I spent 30 minutes with him. I asked him a couple of questions. I asked him: ‘do you feel happy after scoring a hundred? He replied by saying: ‘I like to score as many runs as possible. I don’t like getting out. ‘ I then asked him: ‘I’ve heard that you have hit so many fours, but no sixes. ‘He replied: ‘Why should I try the aerial route when I’m getting runs by hitting along the ground. ‘ Coming from a 13year-old, I was really impressed his answers,” praised Pandit.
“I don’t know how far he’ll go, but he’s shown his hunger to play a big innings. Even I scored a triple hundred in inter-school cricket, but only once, but I n ever scored 200, 300 and then a 400! Today, he was out for 391, thus missing out on his second 400-run knock in the tournament. The attack too wasn’t bad, “he said.
After his triple hundred, Chouhan took 6 for 46, including a hat-trick, in 17 overs, with his off-spin. The matches in the tournament are being played on a two-day basis in the league stage, and in three-day format from the semifinals onwards.
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