Who is Nosthush Kenjige? 5 interesting facts about USA spinner who took 3-30 vs Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2024
Nosthush Kenjige has grabbed headlines with a fantastic spell of 3-30 in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024 match between USA and Pakistan. The left-arm spinner opened his account by dismissing Usman Khan caught out in the third over of the match.
Next, Kenjige executed a double strike by sending the well-set duo of Shadab Khan and Babar Azam back to the dressing room off successive deliveries. He dismissed Shadab caught out before trapping Babar in front of his stumps.
In this listicle, we look at the five interesting things about USA's newest star, Nosthush Kenjige.
#1 Nosthush Kenjige was born in Alabama
Quite a few cricketers in the USA squad in the T20 World Cup 2024 were born outside the country.
However, Nosthush Kenjige is an American by birth. He was born in Auburn city of Alabama state. Kenjige was born on March 2, 1991.
#2 Nosthush Kenjige plays for Mumbai Indians-owned franchises in two different leagues
IPL franchise Mumbai Indians have extended their impact in new leagues, including USA's Major League Cricket and UAE's International League T20. MI owners, the Ambani family, owns the MI New York and MI Emirates teams in the two leagues.
Kenjige is a common name in both teams. He was a part of the MINY team that won the inaugural MLC last year, where he scalped six wickets in as many matches. In ILT20, he lifted the trophy with MI Emirates but didn't play a game.
#3 Nosthush Kenjige only had 4 T20I wickets before the Pakistan match
While Kenjige has the experience of playing in T20 leagues, he only played six T20Is for USA before the T20 World Cup game against Pakistan, picking up four wickets at a strike rate of 19.5.
Kenjige didn't feature for the USA against Canada in the T20 World Cup. He got an opportunity against Pakistan and grabbed it with both hands.
#4 Nosthush Kenjige's relatives stay in India
While Kenjige was born in Alabama, his roots seem to be Indian. On his Instagram profile, he shared a picture with his relatives in December 2017. In the final part of the caption, Kenjige wrote:
"Will see you back in India soon!"
His family came to Oman to cheer for him during his initial days as a USA cricketer. The USA player expressed his gratitude to them in that post.
#5 Nosthush's biggest cheerleader
Nosthush is in a relationship with a travel enthusiast named Nivica Naveen. She regularly comes to watch the MLC matches of MI New York and cheer for the player from the stands. MI New York even created a special reel for her.
It's not clear whether Noshthush and Nivica are married. Nivica has a private profile on Instagram, where she calls herself a dreamer and travel enthusiast.