Tempo driver’s son Chetan Sakariya misses late brother on the day he baggage Rs 1.20 crore IPL contract

On the day he grew to become a crorepati inside a couple of minutes of intense bidding on the IPL 2021 public sale, Rajasthan Royals’ new signing, Chetan Sakariya, had one remorse. Just final month, he had misplaced his youthful brother, who he was very near. He says that the surprising windfall of Rs 1.20 crore will change his life however he nonetheless felt empty.
“My younger brother committed suicide in January. I wasn’t at home, I was playing Syed Mushtaq Ali at that time. I didn’t know he had passed away until I returned home. Even then, my family didn’t share the news with me. I used to ask them about Rahul’s whereabouts and they would tell me ‘he has gone out’. Sometimes , they would say he had ventured out to buy groceries. This absence is a big void for me. Had he been here today he would have been more happy than me,” says the 28-year-old left-arm pacer. .
Life hasn’t been simple for this late-bloomer. Until two years in the past, Sakariya’s father Kanjibhai was driving a tempo to make ends meet in Vartej, a small city 10 kilometers from Bhavnagar in Gujarat. Since the household didn’t personal a tv set till 5 years in the past, so watching cricket meant strolling throughout to some good friend’s homes or hanging outdoors digital showrooms.
This huge break didn’t come as a shock to him since his stint as a internet bowler with Royal Challengers Bangalore through the IPL held in UAE just a few months in the past had given him the arrogance. RCB did present curiosity in him on the public sale but it surely was Rajasthan Royals that signed Sakariya.
“I was hoping that this time I will be there because when I went as a net bowler for RCB during IPL in UAE, RCB coach Mike Hesson and Simon Katich had told me that I have ticked all boxes to be part of any IPL team. RCB did try for me but getting picked for any team makes me happy,” Sakariya stated.
His small home was flooded with neighbours and family. Sakariya says the cellphone has been buzzing because the time he acquired picked. His father by no means wished him to be a cricketer till his uncle stepped in. When Sakariya grew to become a daily bowler for the Saurashtra facet, he urged his father to retire.
“I never wanted him to work, I told him, I will take care of my family. People are asking me, what I will do with so much money, I said, let the money come first. I always wanted to shift to Rajkot, somehow I didn’t have decent money to buy a good house. Now, the first thing I will do is buy a house in a good locality,” he explains.
Sakariya performed an important function for Saurashtra of their maiden Ranji Trophy title win final yr after they beat Bengal. He has performed 15 first-class and 16 T20 video games.
The early days have been tough for Sakariya due to the household’s monetary strife. His mother and father wished him to concentrate on research with the goal to get a authorities job.
However, an uncle supported him. The deal was easy. Sakariya must assist round within the uncle’s stationery cease. The uncle would pay college charges and likewise inspired him to play cricket. Sakariya’s mother and father have been relaxed understanding that their son was enjoying in addition to finding out.
The huge break got here when he was chosen for the Saurashtra Under-19 facet. He scalped 18 wickets in six Cooch Behar Trophy video games and was on the way in which to the MRF Pace Foundation. Sakaria remembers that he first wore a correct pair of bowling spikes simply earlier than going to the MRF tempo basis. It was a present from a teammate who was impressed by his exhibiting within the Under-19 home event.
He went on to make his Ranji Trophy debut through the 2018-19 season. That yr quick bowler Jaydev Unadkat was injured and Sakariya was drafted in. On debut he bagged a five-wicket haul and completed the season with practically 30 wickets. Being a part of the title-winning Saurashtra crew the following season and beating Bengal within the remaining was a highpoint in his profession.
However, like all gamers, Sakariya too wished an IPL contract. The likelihood to share the dressing room with a number of the greatest and enjoying with and towards high cricketers has at all times been a dream, he says. Being in a position to afford a transfer to Rajkot for the household is a bonus.