Armed with fresh confidence, Luvnith Sisodia eager to deliver and repay faith invested in his talent
The challenges that come with being a dasher in T20 cricket are multifold. One, the constant need to meet fans' demands of sending the ball deep into the stands and two, to create a moment of excitement with every passing ball.
One man who delivered consistently and played as per the narrative was Hubli Tigers star Luvnith Sisodia, who not only kept fans entertained with his boundary hitting, but his range of strokes laced with reverse sweeps, scoops and laps elicited more than just the occasional 'oohs' and 'aahs' from the crowd.
A youngster gifted with the skill of clearing boundaries at will and threading gaps to perfection, Sisodia was at his dynamic best in the newly-branded Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 competition, where he plundered runs for fun and scored the most boundaries for a batsman in the league.
The dashing southpaw accounted for 389 runs from 11 matches at a terrific strike rate of 153.75, with three half-centuries to his name - including a 55-ball 96* against the Gulbarga Mystics.
While that knock really broke the shackles for Sisodia, a 40-ball 80 against Mangalore United at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium made everyone stand up and take notice of the abundant talent housed in the young left-hander.
One thing was clear as day - Luvnith was there to make a statement - and if anything, there wasn't a shadow of doubt about why the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) think-tank had invested in his talent for the IPL 2022 season.
"Scoring well in the tournament meant a lot to me personally because I was a part of RCB, and then I got injured. I had to make a statement that I was at RCB because of my ability to deliver. Fortunately, I did well, but it was unfortunate that the team could not make it all the way," Luvnith told Sportskeeda in an exclusive chat.
While Sisodia's talent has received praise from pundits and fans alike, the youngster was quick to acknowledge the contributions of some of his coaches back home and the work put in by RCB's support staff to help elevate his game to the next level.
"I've been working with RX (Muralidhar) sir at RXCA and he’s had a major role in shaping my career so far. His methods are like magic, and his inputs have worked wonders in helping me to improve each day. Even Mike (Hesson) had a very big role in addressing a few issues, Sanjay Bangar also did help me in the RCB camp. Back home as well, Deepak Chougule has always been a constant help, so credit to all of them."
Luvnith was roped in by RCB ahead of IPL 2022, but an unfortunate injury quashed the talented batsman's hopes of making his debut for the Faf du Plessis-led side. Despite the injury, RCB took care of Luvnith's recovery during the season and made him a part of the traveling squad - a decision that the youngster is forever grateful for.
"I'm genuinely grateful to the RCB management for helping me with recovery, during which I stayed there with the team and practiced. I didn't get to bat with Virat (Kohli) but I kept wickets when he was batting and I learnt a lot. In terms of what I learnt, I picked up the skill of reverse sweeping from Maxi (Glenn Maxwell) - I walked up to him and asked him about the key elements that come with the shot and he was happy to help. Everyone is very welcome and happy to speak about the game at RCB."
"I love to deliver under pressure" - Luvnith Sisodia on challenges of captaincy and featuring in Karnataka’s XI
Sisodia’s purple patch stems from the Division-1 level matches that were held prior to the Maharaja Trophy, with the southpaw having smashed 512 runs in seven matches, comprising of four half-centuries and two centuries.
As one of Karnataka's most promising cricket stars, Luvnith was handed the responsibility of captaining the Hubli Tigers in the Maharaja Trophy 2022, with regular captain Abhimanyu Mithun happy to polish the youngster's outlook towards captaincy.
Sisodia, then the vice-captain of the Tigers for the tournament, was made skipper for the Tigers' 7th match only days after plundering 96 runs off 50 balls against Gulbarga. He shed some light on how the added responsibility brought out the best in him for the remainder of the Maharaja Trophy 2022.
"It didn't come as a surprise (the role of Hubli captain). Mithun passed on the baton, asking me to take charge, and he was always around to help me out. I'd say it certainly made an impact at how I looked at the tournament. It was not baggage, it was a new responsibility and I usually deliver when there is pressure, so it was a great opportunity for me."
While there's no question surrounding Luvnith's jaw-dropping talent with the bat, he's seldom got chances at the state level, having had to watch a lot of the action from the sidelines with Karnataka's batting unit boasting of stars who have represented India at various levels.
Despite having to wait for his chances, Luvnith is keen to make the most of any chance he gets to perform, wherever he's asked to bat and in any situation. Moreover, the youngster is eager to prove that he’s not a one-trick pony and can easily be one of the country’s best all-format players.
"Karnataka is a powerhouse, there are so many cricketers who are legends in their own right. Personally, I'm flexible to bat anywhere as long as I can contribute to the team, be it as an opener or even lower down the order. At the end of the day, it's about how hungry you are to perform and take the right decisions. I've never been result oriented, I look to improve upon myself every single day."
After what was a terrific Maharaja Trophy campaign for Sisodia, one thing's for sure. When RCB invested in Luvnith's talent ahead of IPL 2022, it was because they saw a potential superstar in the making. Over the past few months, Sisodia's stocks have witnessed a meteoric rise in status, and that IPL debut could well come in 2023.