It is not very often that a cricketer gets to play in Test matches for India, and a certain breed of cricketers only end up playing white-ball cricket for the country. In short, it is the pinnacle, if compared with the other formats. So when pacer Akash Deep got to know that he was going to make his Test debut, he initially didn’t believe it.
Rahul Dravid Presents India Cap to Akash Deep
In fact, in a new interview on YouTube channel Sports Launchpad by Saurav Yaduvanshi, Akash Deep revealed, that when then coach Rahul Dravid messaged him about the same, he did not believe it.
“Getting your Test cap is a dream for every cricketer.. and like every other kid I wanted to play Test cricket for the country. I got a message from Rahul Dravid, but I didn’t have his number there. So, I thought, if someone was asking me if I was playing the Test match, so I ignored it,” the India bowler said.
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“Then I noticed it and realised it was Rahul sir’s message. Then I called him up and said sorry to him. And that is when he confirmed that I was playing.” Akash Deep further elaborated, Dravid also asked him to invite his family for the match. Mind you, he made his India debut in March against England, in Ranchi.
Bowler Ignored Coach’s Message
In that match, he had picked up three wickets — dismissing the likes of Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley. While in the second he did not get a chance to bowl only, where Kuldeep Yadav and R Ashwin wreak havoc. India had gone on to win the match by five wickets.
“There are a lot of people who ask you, if you’re playing or not, and I tend to overlook those messages. Rahul sir even asked me to inform my family and call them to watch the proceedings. And Ranchi is close to my place, just 4-5 hours.. That night, I remember, I did not have any butterflies and slept pretty well. That is maybe because, I was seeing that opportunity as a responsibility.”
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