From grit to glory: 7 Indian cricketers and their tales of struggle
From the outside, Indian cricketers' lives seem very luxurious. That is, of course, true. Indian cricketers enjoy superstar status in the country, and can avail most benefits the common man can only dream of.
Till the 70s and 80s, Indian cricketers were paid modestly, and used to travel via humble means like trains for cricket tournaments. All that changed as the sport's popularity grew in India in the 90s, leading to the commercialisation of cricket.
Modern-day Indian cricketers can earn handsome pay even by taking part in the IPL or playing any of the three formats of the sport for India. One thing that remains common, though, is the story of hardships many Indian cricketers have to endure before getting the big break.
The inspirational rise of Indian cricketers from humble backgrounds
Let' take a look at the stirring tales of Indian cricketers who beat tough times and ended up earning coveted India caps:
#1 MS Dhoni: Ticket to fame
Today, MS Dhoni may be known as a style iconic apart from being one of India’s most revered cricketers. But Dhoni had extremely humble beginnings.
Born in Ranchi, Bihar (now in Jharkhand), he needed to work to be able to pursue his cricketing dream. And so, Dhoni worked as a Train Ticket Examiner (TTE) at Kharagpur railway station in West Bengal for a few years in the early 2000s. That gave him a chance to represent the South Eastern Railways (SER) cricket team.
Dhoni juggled his life between checking train tickets and playing cricket. He is still remembered by his ex-colleagues as an honest and earnest employee. During his time there, Dhoni played a lot of tennis-ball cricket as well. According to the book ‘MSD, The Man, The leader’, Dhoni earned Rs 2,000 per match.
Who would have thought that a few years later he would go on to become one of Indian cricket’s brightest stars?
#2 Ravindra Jadeja: Keeping a watch
Team India’s star all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja was born into a middle-class Rajput family in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
His father was a watchman and, after Jadeja's mother had passed away when he was only 17, his sister took up the responsibility to support the family. The family used to live in a one-room flat that was allotted to the cricketer's late mother, as she was a nurse at a government hospital.
Battling the trauma of losing his mother, Jadeja got his much-needed break in cricket when he was selected for India U-19 in 2005. The young cricketer was the vice-captain of the 2008 U-19 side that won the World Cup.
Before the age of 24, Jadeja had three triple hundreds in First-Class cricket. It was only a matter of time before he made it big in international cricket too.