Lucknow: In a nation where cricket is religion, every kid wants to be a Virat Kohli. Shaurya Singh, a local lad who has been playing cricket for the past decade or more is no exception. Having cut his teeth in the domestic circuit, Shaurya starting life early has managed to carve a niche for himself with his cricket talent.
He is widely regarded as a spritely young all rounder in the Gentleman’s game. As a young kid, he had this habit of taking to the console to play video games. Little did he realize that this knack could very well take a toll on his eyesight and mental health if not checked.
In order to drive him away from the sedentary video gaming lifestyle, his parents decided to make him more agile through sports. Shaurya, son to a government employee Anupam Singh, who works as Assistant Commissioner Stamp and his mother Saroj Singh, a housewife found his calling in cricket and it has definitely taken him places.
His parents wanted to add value to his resume through sports activities. The memory of making his presence felt at the LDA stadium at a summer camp is still very fresh in the memory of Shaurya.
He is grateful to mentors like Alok Verma and Lalitendra Singh who he feels gave him just the right kind of guidance and know how which helped him excel in the game. He credits the Colvin Cricket Academy where he was moulded into a disciplined cricketer.
Looking back the young lad is happy that he has proved his mettle in varied tournaments, being part of the Under 14, Under 16, Under 19 squad. He has also played in the Under 23 states senior squad before making the mark in the UP T20 league. He has also weaved magic in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy with good experience in the season 1 of UP T20 league.
The trials and good performance landed Shaurya an important spot at the Lucknow Falcons franchise. He acknowledges such initiatives are a major boost for local talent.
The latest bidding of 16.75 lakh and his entry into Kanpur superstars is testimony that his stars are positioned in the right direction.
Much like any other dreamy eyed cricketer who aspires big, even Shaurya is looking at the bigger competitions and leagues which includes IPL, playing for team India and even playing abroad he feels would be a double whammy.
Even he agrees that local talent scouting can eventually give youngsters like him a major push in terms of career graph. For him one of the major challenges had been a 2 year lull in the pandemic years, when he started thinking that his career was over.
But hard work, perseverance and patience helped him sail through. He says will power has truly worked wonders.
Talking of idols who drive him everyday to the cricket pitch are veterans of the game like Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja. He says had it not been for district associations, he may not have been able to find a place for himself in the ever evolving cricket scene in the state.
He gets emotional, referring to the struggles of his mother, who actually drove him down to his training ground, while his father was busy trying to eke out a living to make both ends meet.
He is also thankful to his mentor Vishwajeet Sinha, because of whose guidance, he has now been able to become a very technically sound cricketer. Learning the nuts and bolts at a very young age. He also adds that mental toughness has also been the training of Vishwajeet Sinha.
The others he thanks are personal trainer Anshul Kapoor and Lalitendra Singh who he has been training with for the past 3 years.
Driven by sheer passion, Shaurya is happy that he found the balance between academics and his unique training regimen. He would head to train shortly after he returned from school. While cricket plays on his mind, he has a larger goal of serving the nation through cricket.
Even he believes that there is no discounting the importance of academics in the country. As somebody looking at playing a Eklavya to a hard task master, he looks forward to gurumantra from Abhishek Nair of KKR fame. Taking tips and tricks to better his forte in cricket.
In his mantra to youngsters, Shaurya says – success cannot be achieved overnight and one will have to give one self time to evolve as a classy player. The time frame can range from anything between 2 to 3 years or even more, based on ones grasping power.
In what he calls a turning point, he recalls his big break playing for Lucknow Falcons in the UP T20 league. He feels this cemented his place among some of the most promising newcomers. He says the experience is etched very deep in the memory.
He said it was indeed memorable that in 8 overs his team needed a 13.25 something run rate. It was his solid work that in 22 balls he achieved a clear 49 not out. He said he was playing against Gorakhpur Lions.
He also recalls fondly, good comments from cricket ace Dhruv Jurel who has been an important part of the IPL circuit and says that such people egg him to do better in the long run.
