In their Irani Cup 2024 match, which took place at the Ekana worldwide Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, a number of Indian Premier League and worldwide celebrities played for India and the Rest of India. The right-arm medium-fast player Mohammad Juned Khan, who was making his Mumbai debut, received the loudest applause, though.
His hometown was only about 120 kilometers from the stadium, therefore there was a very good reason why so many of his friends and extended family traveled to the stadium to see history take place. Juned was 14 years old when she had to move from Kannauj to Mumbai. But this was no typical story of a regular boy traveling to a major city to fulfill his goals. Actually, he was doing it to support his family.
Juned, cited by The Hindu, said, “There were problems at home and I had to start working to help the family make ends meet, so I followed in the footsteps of a few elder friends from Kannauj and reached Mumbai.”
After working in an apparel factory for a while, he began operating an autorickshaw through Mumbai’s busy streets. He happened to stumble onto the Sanjeevani Cricket Academy, which was headed by Manish Bangera, a former Mumbai wicketkeeper. Juned felt what it was like to charge in for the first time with the season ball in his palm at that specific Bandra East facility.
Juned expressed her gratitude, saying, “I didn’t have money to buy spikes but many people helped me out and they backed me to keep playing regularly.”
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When Juned was playing for the PJ Hindu Gymkhana in the Police Shield during the shutdown, it was Abhishek Nayar, the current assistant coach of the Indian team, who was the assistant coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders at the time, who saw his potential.
Juned conveyed his sincere gratitude to Nayar and mentioned that being asked by Nayar to join the KKR net-bowling team for the 2024 edition was one of his most memorable experiences.
“So far, he has assisted me in every manner imaginable. I would not be anywhere near where I am now if it weren’t for him. He was the one who advised me to give up driving the autorickshaw and focus only on cricket. Then I went to his institution to train. The finest opportunity for me came when he asked me to play net bowling for KKR during the previous IPL season, Juned continued.
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Sanjay Patil, the selection committee chairperson, picked Juned for the Buchi Babu and KSCA competitions. Juned looks up to Mohammed Shami, who, remarkably, also left UP to pursue his goal.
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