Abu Dhabi, December 4, 2023: At the age of six, Vriitya Aravind of the Chennai Braves, an Abu Dhabi T10 League team, and his father, an electrical engineer working for DEWA, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, moved to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Vriitya was too young to comprehend cricket while he was back in Chennai, and he preferred to play tennis at school. “My parents introduced me to all sports except cricket when I lived in Chennai. The 21-year-old stated, “I only became interested in cricket after I moved to the UAE.”
Vriitya Aravind used to travel to Chennai frequently as a child to spend time with his relatives. His favorite things to do when he gets home are still wandering around Marina Beach and having family meals out. But for Vriitya, India’s victory in the 2011 ICC Men’s World Cup changed his entire life.
“I visited during the summer when India won the World Cup in 2011.” I walked out into the streets to celebrate with the people when India won. I was forever changed by that moment. Although my dad has always loved cricket, I believe it was the first time I saw the game that I made the decision to play the sport,” he says.
To follow his dream, Vriitya Aravind joined a cricket club in the United Arab Emirates. It was a wicketkeeper scarcity in his Under-11s club. His fielding was so good that his teammates begged him to put on the gloves. And so the journey of the unintentional wicketkeeper began. “My team said put on the gloves and start keeping and I have been doing that ever since,” said the player.
Vriitya Aravind has played 55 one-day internationals and 45 Twenty20 internationals for the UAE after making his debut in a T20 match against the USA in December 2019 at Sharjah. The wicketkeeper-batter has already amassed two ODI hundreds and five T20I fifties in his brief career. He thinks the region’s cricket scene has been growing in recent years since the UAE cricketers have been given opportunities by the Abu Dhabi T10 League and other notable cricket competitions.
“We have the opportunity to mingle with the world’s top players here at Abu Dhabi T10!” We feel really confident when we compete against them. As we’ve seen, the UAE has been doing nicely over the last six to seven months. We also triumphed over New Zealand. We get excellent exposure from these competitions, and we’re now prepared to play with large teams on global stages,” he remarked.
Vriitya Aravind is happy to represent his hometown while pitching for the Chennai Braves in the upcoming Abu Dhabi T10. “Playing for the team I was born into is an incredible experience. It is a dream come true for me to play for the Chennai Braves since I get to represent Chennai, my hometown.”
In addition to playing cricket, Vriitya Aravind attends Loughborough University in England to study psychology and criminology.
He also plays cricket for a Birmingham-based team in the UK. I can come play cricket in Abu Dhabi because it’s winter in England right now. Alternatively, I would need to be present and attend my exams,” he chuckles.
However, Vriitya Aravind has been unable to visit Chennai for the previous five years due to his cricket and academic commitments, and he is eager to return home. “I find comfort in South Indian cuisine. My mother always makes Rasam and Chicken when I get home from England, and it’s always a delight. Although I would want to return to Chennai, I do not want to stay for only three or four days. I’m waiting for the chance to return to my hometown since I want to stay there for a long time. “Hopefully, after my studies are done, I’ll be able to do so,” he ends.
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