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The reason why we mentioned “Cricket Personality” is because attributing just one skill wouldn’t be enough to introduce Pradeep Chawla. Pradeep Chawla has remained connected with those 22 yards in Delhi in different capacities over the years and he has been quite commendable in every role which he has performed. A former First Class Cricketer himself, Pradeep has represented Delhi in Ranji Trophy and One Days with a career spanning almost a decade from 2000/01 to 2008/09. A right handed batsman, Pradeep has played state level cricket at various age groups while he was also a part of the India U15 squad. What’s more, Pradeep had a stunning batting average of 71.20 for Delhi in the limited overs format.

After a commendable career as a cricketer, Pradeep forayed into cricket coaching and he is one of the reputed cricket coaches in Delhi. Pradeep Chawla has a prolific record of training players who are today playing at the state level. Pradeep Chawla also recently completed BCCI Hybrid Level 1 Course of cricket coaching and it’s out of his immense experience in the field of cricket, that he serves as the member of selection committee at Delhi Cricket Association for U14, U16 and U19 age groups. The job of a selector is very difficult yet under rated and it certainly requires someone who has enough cricketing acumen and Pradeep Chawla seems to be an apt face to serve in that department.

Speaking with Cricketgraph, Pradeep Chawla shared “I am rooted to the field of cricket in different capacities since last 3 decades but I have ensured that I give my best in every role which was conferred to me. Whether as a cricketer, as a coach or as a selector I have always worked with a vision to improve the quality of cricket in Delhi.  As a cricket coach, around 7 to 8 players who trained under me are today playing at state level and it gives me immense joy to see players progress”

Delhi is probably amongst the top 5 cities after Mumbai where cricket is played in full throttle. Infact, Delhi is known to give many international cricketers right from the likes of Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Ashish Nehra to name a few. High quality of grassroot cricket plays a very important role in breeding state and international level players & for that good coaches are equally important. Coaches who can impart the right knowledge and skills to the players.

Coach Shubham Jain from Delhi is one such name who has made a name for himself when it comes to cricket coaching. Shubham Jain has been a former cricketer himself during his early days. Shubham started playing cricket at the age of 11 under Coach Mr. Binder Singh and he went on to represent teams like Delhi Club, PNB Club (Punjab National Bank) amongst others. Shubham Jain began his coaching career in 2015 and now he has close to 7 years of experience in cricket coaching.

Shubham Jain runs India Diamond Cricket Academy in Delhi located at Shastri Park near Metro Bus Depot Stand. Shubham serves as Senior coach and his areas of specialization are batting, wicket-keeping and fielding. Shubham is also BCCI Level 1 Certified Coach which ensures the players at his academy receives coaching of international standards.

India Diamond Cricket Academy has all the modern facilities ranging from 3 nets, 80 mtrs cricket ground, bowling machine and even weekly matches are organized for its players. Speaking with Cricketgraph, Coach Shubham Jain shared-

“My academy has around 50-60 students at present and we have all the required facilities for quality coaching at India Diamond Cricket Academy. My vision is to train youngsters with the best quality coaching so I can prepare players for India”

PICTURES FROM INDIA DIAMOND CRICKET ACADEMY, DELHI

India is a country which plays the highest amount of cricket across all levels amongst all the countries in the world. With such a vast history and heritage, India is indeed one of the most powerful cricketing nations at present and this has been possible because of a large pool of talented cricket coaches right from the grassroot level to International circuit.

Aman Nirala

Aman Nirala from Delhi is one such name who has slowly made a mark for himself as one of the promising Cricket Coaches in Delhi Cricket. Aman started his cricket coaching career in Bangalore under world famous fast bowling coaches Ian Pont and Stephan Jones. Aman also holds the experience of getting trained under India’s fielding coach R Sridhar at National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. The beginning of Aman under quality coaches like Ian Pont, R Sridhar and Stephan Jones has ensured his skills were developed upto international standards.

Aman Nirala player

As a player, Aman has played Bangalore Division level cricket. Aman has also represented Orissa Team at State and District Level. The year of 2014 was quite prolific for Aman as he got two major breakthroughs getting a chance to work with Mumbai Indians in Champions League and India Senior Women’s Team. Aman contributed as a net bowler for both the sides and it was his experience with International players which brought a major change in his coaching approach.

At present, Aman runs Cricshala Cricket Academy at 3 C’s Sports Ground, Gurugram while he also specializes organizing corporate, open age and age group tournaments.  Cricshala Academy today boasts various facilities which includes 2 proper cricket grounds, 5 nets, 3 turfs, hostel, food as well as night practice. As a coach, Aman has worked with many state level players like Sikkim U23 player Vicky Jaiswal, Orissa One Days player Sunil Rawal, U16 Nagaland Player Rahul amongst others.

Here’s wishing Aman all the luck for his coaching career as well as for his professional career as a cricketer.

Sagar Vats is one of the promising cricketers coming out of the pool of talented cricketers in Delhi. Having started his cricketing journey at the age of 9, Sagar has always believed that he can go all the way.

Speaking with Cricketgraph, Sagar shared “I’ve always believed in my abilities and everytime I’m on the field, I just try to give my 100% for the team,” said Sagar. This winning mentality has helped Sagar to great heights in the Delhi cricketing circle.

Sagar Vats

Sagar started his coaching at Shiksha Bharati Cricket Academy before joining Paramount Cricket Academy and developed his game there for 5 years. Now he is honing his skills under the coaching of Coach DevDutt at the Venkatesh Cricket Academy.

Sagar Vats crickeyer

Sagar has played Zone Level Cricket in Delhi for the U-14 and the U-16 and has delivered consistent performances ! His biggest accomplishment so far has been playing in CBSE Nationals in 2019 for the U-19 team. Sagar is a right handed opening batsman and a right arm spinner. His all round abilities have made him a key part of his team’s setup. So far, he has scored 60 half centuries and has picked up more than 40 wickets !

Now approaching the age of 19, Sagar is aiming to make the next couple of years a turning point in his career and follow in the footsteps of his cricketing hero Rishabh Pant.

Sagar Vats

 

AWARDS & ACHIEVEMENTS OF SAGAR:

Mohammad Aaqil is amongst those young breed of cricketers who started pursuing cricket coaching at an early age. Mohammad who is now 29 years old has close to 7 years of experience in cricket coaching with a prolific career to boast.

Mohammad began playing early at the age of 8 under Coach Dharmendra Yadav from Delhi XI Cricket Academy. As a professional player, he worked his way up and represented many teams namely Uttar Pradesh Blue Zonal team, Delhi XI, Team World XI Cricket Academy and Apex Club amongst others. However, it was at the age of 25, Dharmendra realized that making it big in this competitive arena would be a challenge and that is how he forayed into cricket coaching.

In last 6 years, Mohammad has coached various teams and clubs while he has also developed new skills as a cricket coach. In 2017, Mohhamad had served as Logistics Manager for Gujarat Lions in IPL. Mohammad Aaqil currently works as a manager and coach at the World XI Cricket Academy. Apart from that, he has worked with various teams like Team Ambition, Team World XI Cricket Academy, Team Kronos and Team VNC. In the last few years, Mohammad has also become a very efficient sidearm specialist who is able to provide many variations to the batters while training.  

mohammad aaqil

For the uninitiated, World XI Cricket Academy is a reputed cricket coaching center which boasts of a complete 70 mtrs cricket ground, two centre wickets. 4 nets with night practice facility, hostel facility under the supervision of 5 coaches. World XI Cricket Academy is also known to arrange many national and international tours.

Mohammad also has many coaching certifications which lends further credibility to his skills. Below are some of his coaching certifications:

Mohammad Aaqil cricket

Speaking with Cricketgraph, Mohammad Shared “My aim is to work with franchise teams in IPL as a sidearm specialist. I want to coach young players from IPL franchises and give them quality training through the years of experience and skills which I have developed”

Cricket has become so much close to everyone’s heart in India that it has become more of an emotion than a sport. It has become more of a religion than a profession. When the passion is so high, it’s quite understood that competition will be equally intense. One needs to be at their A Game to survive and not many can survive that hustle.

In many cases due to severe competition, many talented and hard working players who aren’t unable to scale heights also turn into cricket coaching. They are willing to share the wisdom with others through the amount of struggles which they have experienced. One such name which pops up is Brijesh Yadav from the land of Azamgarh which is also the native place of India U19 & Mumbai Ranji player Sarfaraz Khan.

Brijesh Yadav began playing cricket at a very early age but coming from a small town like Azamgarh, opportunities always eluded him. A right handed solid batsman & a left arm medium pacer, all-rouder Brijesh gave his best in whatever limited resources he had, his hard work and commitment as a cricketer also made him got selected in the Nagpur U19 Camp. Apart from that, he continued playing consistent level of club cricket in his district till he finally decided to pursue Cricket Coaching at the age of 25. 

Brijesh Yadav
Brijesh Yadav

 

Some of Brijesh’s Best Performances:

Brijesh opened an academy in Azamgarh, U.P to ensure aspiring players from his area are not deprived of opportunities. Brijesh opened B.R Cricket Academy which today boasts of 70 to 75 players. The academy is equipped with 3 nets and all other necessary facilities required for ideal training.

BR CRICKET ACADEMY, Azamgarh
BR CRICKET ACADEMY, Azamgarh

 

What’s more B.R Cricket Academy is also affiliated with Azamgarh Cricket Association which means talented players from the academy can get enough opportunities to play in selection tournaments. Brijesh who started coaching in 2016 now has close to 5 years of coaching experience. Brijesh now works as the Head Coach at his academy and he aims to give the highest quality training to his players. Brijesh also went to MS Dhoni Cricket Academy last year where he completed his Coaching Certification to enhance his coaching skills.

 

Speaking with Cricketgraph, Brijesh shared “My aim is to produce players who can play for India, as you all know, even Sarfaraz Khan is from Azamgarh and like him I want more players who can make our country proud. I have established this academy and we really have some talented players. With the right amount of visibility and opportunities, I am confident that our players will prove themselves”

In today’s times, cricket has become so competitive and popular, that you will come across thousands of players from the smallest of districts in India wanting to make it big. It’s quite understood, with the number of aspiring cricketers in India, you equally need good number of cricket coaches to handle them and when we talk about good & experienced Coaches, name of Virendra Vegda from Rajkot, Guajrat certainly makes it into that list.

Virendra Vegda

Virendra Vegda started his journey from European Gymkhana under Coaches Mahendra Rajdev Sir & Anil Pevulian sir. After toiling hard at club level and age group levels of cricket with consistent performances, it was in 2004, Virendra made his first class debut for Saurashtra in December 2004. 

Even, though his tryst with Saurashtra was shortlived, Virendra made a mark for himself by playing overseas cricket for almost 13 years. Virendra played UK Club Cricket from 2004-2016 while he also represented Australian Club for one year. As a player, Virendra played almost 10+ years of state level cricket beginning from Rajkot U16 Team to representing Saurashtra Senior Team in Ranji Trophy. Apart from that, Virendra has also served as a professional overseas cricketer in countries like UK and Australia. 

VIRENDRA VEGDA COUNTY
    VIRENDRA VEGDA PLAYING IN UK Club County

As a professional cricketer, Virendra was a genuine all- rounder with deceptively quick variations as an off spinner. Virendra had the ability to bowl long, accurate spells while he was also a very good middle order batsman who could change the course of the game in no time. Off the field, Virendra is a team man, a great motivator and personality which is always cool to be around. Even at the age of 40, Virendra ensures to remain connected with this beautiful game in any which way possible. Virendra currently serves as the Assistant Coach with Saurashtra Senior Team who became the Ranji Trophy Champions in 2019/20 season.

Virendra Vegda with Indian Team

 

Sharing with Cricketgraph when asked about his best cricketing moments, Virendra shared “Though I am into the field of cricket since last 25 years which had many highs  but my favorite moment was certainly being on the cricket field representing Team India vs Sri Lanka in 2007. I was the 12th man while I got a chance to be a part of the match in the 19th over as a substitute fielder.

RANJI WINNERS SAURASHTRA

Apart from that, it feels very proud to work with Saurashtra as an assistant coach, a team which has dominated the domestic circuit in the last 4 or 5 years. The experience of working with top level players out of which many are representing India is certainly very cherishable”

____________________________

PROFILE

VIRENDRA VEGDA WITH RANJI TROPHY

Major Teams as a Player:

Rajkot U16, Rajkot U19 Saurashtra U19, Saurashtra U22, Saurashtra U25, Saurashtra Ranji Trophy, Substitute Player in Indian Cricket Team (2007), Agartala Cricket Team.

As a Player:

Virendra Vegda with MS Dhoni

VIRENDRA VEGDA WITH JAYDEV UNADKAT

As a Coach

Major Trophies:

Coaching Certifications:

A player, a coach, a selector, when a person manages to stay connected with the game in every which way possible, it shows the passion and love which they possess for the game. Yes, Pratik Mehta is one such name who has spent all his life between those 22 yards. Pratik Mehta started playing cricket at the age of 14 from RYCC Club, Rajkot at a time when the sport of cricket was not that luxurious or accessible in Gujarat. With limited facilities at that time, it was certainly a task to travel all the way daily from his house to his cricket academy in Rajkot.

But as we say, if one has the spirit and commitment to do something, then they can do anything. Such was the case with Pratik Mehta too, after years of hardwork, he soon found himself representing Saurashtra U16 Team in 1991. The journey as a professional cricketer kicked off for him as he represented Saurashtra at U16 level for 3 years while also made it into the elite U16 West Zone team which he represented for one year. From 1994, Pratik Mehta made it into the U19 West Zone team and represented U19 West Zone for 2 years till 1996.

The moment which made entire Gujarat and his entire district proud was when he made it into the India U19 squad which played against Sri Lanka in 1996. Though he did not get a chance to play for India but making it into the squad itself was no less an achievement for a player coming from a small town like Rajkot. Pratik’s tryst with cricket continued further as he made his debut for Saurashtra Senior Team in 1998. November 28, 1998 was the day he represented Saurashtra for the first time in Ranji Trophy vs Karnataka. Pratik went on to play all formats for Saurashtra with a professional career spanning 15 years.

pratik mehta cricketer

 

Recalling some of the best moments of his career, Pratik shared winning Vijay Hazare Trophy (Ranji One Days) for Saurashtra was one of my best moments in domestic career. In feb 2020, Rajkot Railway won the Western Railway Cricket Tournament for the first time in history & Pratik remembers scoring 247 runs at an average of 123.00 in that series.

Pratik mehta (1)

 

Apart from that, he also recalls scoring a brilliant 94 off 80 balls vs South Africa in a practice match. The memory which he will never forget will certainly be his unbeaten hundred (108*) in a Ranji Trophy Match vs a star studden line up of Mumbai which had the likes of Ajit Agarkar, Iqbal Abdullah, Wasim Jaffer, Ramesh Powar, Rohit Sharma in the same playing XI. Scoring a hundred vs Mumbai in Mumbai vs a team which had a star studded Indian line up, it was certainly a dream come true moment for him.

 

As a cricketer, Pratik hanged his boots in 2013 and forayed into coaching in the same year. Pratik believed that, passing on the knowledge which he has possessed with years of experience as a player will help the next generation. It was at the age of 38, he took his first coaching assignment with Railways Cricket Academy, Rajkot. Since then, Pratik has also coached Rajkot District U16 & U19 Teams. Pratik’s association with Saurashtra Cricket doesn’t end as a player. In 2019, Pratik was appointed as the Senior Selector of Saurashtra Cricket Association and we all know how challenging a role it can be of being a selector!

 

Saurashtra team, winners of Ranji Trophy last year have made tremendous progress in the last few years and Pratik shared with Cricketgraph “It feels proud to work and remain associated with a champion team like Saurashtra, I am satisfied and happy for whatever little contribution I can make for Saurashtra, cricket has given me everything and now it’s my time to repay it back in whatever capacity I can”

Click here if you wish to get coached by Pratik Mehta: https://www.cricketgraph.com/coach/pratik-mehta-coach/

“Giving up has never been an option for me. Every Time I’ve been dealt a setback, I work even harder towards a comeback.” said Keshav Singh Dalal when asked how he bounced back from failures at selection trials.

Keshav had been trying to get into the Delhi Cricket setup since he was 12 and after three consecutive failures at selection trials for the U-14 and the U-16 teams, it would have been an easier option to just quit but not for Keshav. He came back from those setbacks with persistence and hard work and eventually got selected for the U-16 and U-19 Delhi teams.

Keshav’s cricketing journey started at the Gush Cricket Club in Delhi under the watchful eyes of former Indian Test Player, Gurusharan Singh. He saw a spark in him straight away and a journey towards the dream of representing India began !

Playing at the U-14 age group, Keshav was already excelling and was a class above his companions. He was winning Best Batsman and Man of the match awards in National Tournaments but he had a bigger dream, to represent his beloved Delhi.

2017 proved to be a breakthrough year for the young Wicketkeeper-Batsman ! On his first international tour to South Africa, Keshav ended up being the tournament’s highest run scorer. The runs kept flowing throughout the year as he scored 2489 runs at the average of 43.66 , which included 6 centuries and 18 half centuries ! Keshav capped off the best year of his cricketing career by earning a call-up for Delhi State U-16 team !

In 2018 and 2019, Keshav not only improved on his batting but also on his keeping. “Rishabh Pant and I train at the same Club (Sonnet Cricket Club)  Under Coach Tarak Sinha (Dronachary Award) and sometimes I do get a chance to interact with him. He always tells me to work on my wicket keeping to have a successful career and I’ve been trying to improve in that department.”

Keshav’s hard work behind the stumps was patent as he notched up impressive numbers of catches and stumping’s in Under 19 Cooch Behar Trophy for Season 2019 and 2020.

Not only is he dangerous from behind the stumps but also when he is batting in those 22 yards. Keshav’s striker rate and average has seen a steady rise throughout the last 2 years and he is aiming for bigger things in the coming year.

“I’ve been working on my fitness and workouts during this lockdown,” said Keshav. “I’m also having keeping and batting drills with my father so I’m in good shape and ready to play cricket when the tournaments begin.”

Not only is Keshav excellent at cricket but he is brilliant at academics too ! Keshav passed his 12th standard Board Exams with 91% in 2020 and plans to continue to work hard in both Cricket and academics.

Still on 18, Keshav will be aiming to follow-in the footsteps of his idol, Rishabh Pant, as the young Delhi Wicket keeper-Batsman aims for big performances in the coming years.

 

 

The young coach from Delhi is set to be a part of the biggest tournament of his life! But having achieved everything the hard way he is ready for the challenge !

Growing up in Delhi, Dev Dutt had a dream similar to every other cricket loving kid in the country, to represent India internationally. Fate however, had other ideas. After the untimely demise of his older brother, Dev Dutt had to give up playing cricket and got into cricket coaching at the age of 18.

“I completely stopped playing cricket after the death of my brother, ” said Dev Dutt. ” I always knew I was going to do something for the game which has given me so much joy and with the help of a former Indian Test player, Gursharan Singh, & Rajpal Solanki Ji I started coaching young kids.”

Dev Dutt has trained a host of up and coming players from the North of India. Some of the gems coached under him include the former Indian U-19 World Cup and Kings XI player Mayank Dagar and other talented U-19 and U-23 players like Siddharth Dogra, Sagar Dahiya, Vikas Solanki and Yash Raj Madan


Dev Dutt is currently the Head Coach and Managing Director of the two famous cricket academies in Delhi – Venkateshwar Cricket Academy and Harbeer Cricket Academy and he has organised Harbeer Singh Memorial Tournament U-14 seven times and Naresh Memorial Cricket Tournament for the U-19 category five times respectively.

International players like Shane Watson, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma and Ashish Nehra practise in these academies from time to time and they even encourage the budding cricketers with tips and suggestions. Dev Dutt even provides free coaching to poor kids, who he feels are talented enough to have a future in cricket. He also provides them with cricketing gears and everything they need to have proper training sessions.

“Nothing makes me happier than watching these young players excel,” said Dev Dutt.

Now the coach of Indian Deaf Cricket Team, Dev Dutt is ready for the biggest tournament of his life – The DICC Cricket World Cup in 2022. The chance to represent India in a World Cup event is rare and Dev Dutt is relishing this opportunity.

“Yes, it is the biggest tournament of my career and I am ready to enjoy it and try my best to help the team!, ” said Dev Dutt.

Still young in his coaching career, Dev Dutt hopes to help numerous other players on their way to fulfill their cricketing dreams !ddcs

 

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