"They gave me money to buy shoes" - Mayank Yadav recalls struggles after earning maiden India call-up for T20Is against Bangladesh
Delhi pacer Mayank Yadav has shared that there was a time when he could not even afford to buy shoes, but his Sonnet Club coaches Devender Sharma and late Tarak Sinha gave him money. He also credited the coaches for giving him confidence and backing him even when he did not believe that there was something special about him.
Mayank (22) earned his maiden call-up to the national side when he was picked in the Indian team for the upcoming T20Is against Bangladesh. The right-arm fast bowler made a sensational debut for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2024 before an injury brought a premature end to his campaign.
Although the young fast bowler has not played any competitive game since April 30, the selectors picked him in the T20I squad after he proved his fitness at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). In an interview with The Times of India, Mayank credited his Sonnet Club coaches for making him the bowler he is today. The speedster said:
"I could never afford bowling shoes. Tarak sir and Devender sir once noticed it. They gave me the money to buy my shoes as per my wish."
On how the former instilled confidence in him at a time when he did not have much belief in himself, Mayank recalled an incident and said:
"I never thought I was any special bowler. Once during a camp in Jaipur just before Covid lockdown, I was hiding in a group of players. Tarak sir told everyone at the ground: 'There is a bowler here who is really special. He will be in Delhi’s Ranji probables in no time and will be playing for India in four years and that is Mayank Yadav.' From then I never had issues with my confidence."
The Lucknow Super Giants bowler also revealed that he went for a trial for a summer camp at Sonnet Club as a 14-year-old and was picked. However, his father could not afford the fees of ₹35,000, so the coaches Devender and Tarak waived the fee for him.
Mayank Yadav's impressive IPL debut
Mayank made his IPL debut earlier this year while representing LSG against Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Lucknow. He made an instant impact with his pace and was Player of the Match for his figures of 3-27.
The right-arm pacer followed it up with another impressive effort of 3-14 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Bengaluru and again walked away with the Player of the Match. However, a side strain prevented him from making much of an impact in the next two games that he played.