Chauhan sees SL tour as opportunity to pave his way in MP's Ranji Trophy team

[[{“value”:”

Newly-appointed U-19 captain Yashbardhan Chauhan, 17, is looking to perform well on the Sri Lanka tour, beginning on Saturday, with the hope of getting picked for the Madhya Pradesh (MP) Ranji Trophy team. India U-19 will play three one-day games and two multi-day encounters, beginning in Hambantota.

“I see this India U-19 selection as a huge opportunity. If I do well here, I can get a chance in the [MP] state team in first-class cricket,” Yashbardhan told mid-day over the phone from Gwalior recently. Chauhan represented the MP U-23 team in three matches, scoring two centuries last season. 

Interestingly, a few years ago, Chauhan amassed 1098 runs (47, 425, 235 and 391) as opener for Chambal Division in the AW Kanmadikar U-13 Trophy, an U-14 selection tournament organised by Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association (MPCA). The highlight of his performance was that he did not hit a single six in those four innings and had told mid-day then that since he was getting boundaries with ground shots, “there is no need to hit a six just for those extra two runs.” So, does he hit sixes now?

“[MP Ranji team head coach Chandrakant] Pandit sir always insists on shots being played along the ground and I follow his advice. He has played a big role in my journey. He says, ‘in red-ball cricket, you have to stand and bat all day. The more patience you have, the better you’ll perform’. My main aim is red-ball cricket, but now with the number of white-ball matches increasing, initially I look to build my innings and later, if there’s a need to hit big, I go for it,” replied Chauhan, adding that the India U-19 captaincy came as a pleasant surprise. “I never thought about leading the India U-19 team. But thanks to my hard work, God has given me this opportunity,” he signed off.

“}]]