"Lost all those things back home in India, to having this one goal... not happening" - Unmukt Chand reflects on missing T20 World Cup spot
Former India under-19 World Cup winning captain and now USA international, Unmukt Chand said he felt "shock" and a feeling of being "sucked inside" when he couldn't make it to the American squad for the 2024 men's T20 World Cup.
Chand retired from Indian cricket in 2021 and shifted bases to the USA soon after. He played in minor and major leagues and spoke about representing the USA in the World Cup and playing against India. His arrival in the country was perfectly timed for him to be eligible to play for the USA just before the World Cup.
"That wasn't an ideal situation to be in," Chand told repoters on Saturday after smashing 68 from 45 against Texas Super Kings for Los Angeles Knight Riders in Major League Cricket (MLC) 2024.
"Because personally for me, this was what I had dreamed for the last three years. Obviously, it was a big shock. And it took me time to sort of come to terms with it. It's never easy as a player, having lost all those things back home in India, to having this one goal, which had kept me going for the last three years not happening. So it is difficult. I won't say which just happened. But it was difficult. I was not my best self for some time," he added, as quoted by Cricbuzz.
He spoke about his inner demons and how it took a lot of ups and downs to overcome them:
"That was a very internal battle and it's a sucker basically. It keeps sucking you inside and inside. That feeling would linger on for a day and then go away and then come back again. The reality would hit me in different phases. Once you keep going through that automatically you keep getting better. There comes a time when you're like it didn't happen, that's it. I'm not even thinking about it."
Chand's half-century allowed LAKR to put up 162-7 in the first innings, which they defended with a margin of 12 runs.
"Always good to go back to your roots" - Unmukt Chand
After struggling for runs in April, Chand went back to Madhya Pradesh to meet up with his childhood coach Sanjay Bhardwaj, where yoga, meditation and physical training apart from batting practice helped him earn back his mojo.
"Daba k practice kari maza aya," (I practiced fervently, it was fun) Chand added in the press conference. "Your child coach knows you more than anything else and he understands your game more than anyone else. So it's always good to go back to your roots and those small things which he picks up, no one else can pick up because people can talk about other things, but he will pick the real me, he knows the real me."
"He brought out the 16-year-old me who used to bat with a particular approach, the game I used to play back then so he understands me more from a very psychological and emotional standpoint. He understands how I behave and do things. He got me back to who I am."
Chand would again be in action on Monday against San Fransisco Unicorns.