New Delhi, January 29: India quick Kuldeep Sen revealed the words of encouragement he got from captain Rohit Sharma and former head coach Rahul Dravid, that he clung to in the two-plus years since he got injured.
In December 2022, Kuldeep sustained a back injury while training for the second ODI against Bangladesh after making his debut in the series opener.
"I was quite frustrated. But Rahul (Dravid) sir and Rohit (Sharma) bhaiya encouraged me. They told me that I have a lot of potential and that I would soon get fit and play for the Indian team again," Kuldeep told ESPNcricinfo.
Kuldeep returned to first-class cricket in January last year, before turning up in three games for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. But once again, injury struck him and this time it was his knee.
After spending almost a year on the sidelines, the 28-year-old returned to domestic action for Madhya Pradesh's Ranji Trophy affair against Kerala last week.
"As a fast bowler, you have to be ready for injuries. An injury does not announce itself, there is no timeline for it but I have definitely worked on reducing it. Even when I was recovering from injury, my focus was to come back as soon as possible," he said.
"During this time, I have worked on my lines and lengths according to the longer and shorter format of the game. For a fast bowler, it's important to be mentally strong. During my recovery, I worked on my fitness for the longer format as it makes it easier to prepare for the shorter format," he added.
Kuldeep saw his dream of playing cricket in Rewa, a city in Madhya Pradesh. With the lack of training facilities and resources, Kuldeep's journey became even more challenging.
"I started playing cricket at the age of 13-14. I didn't think of becoming a cricketer then, it was just fun to play the game," Sen said. "There was no TV at home and when matches came on Doordarshan, there was an option to go and watch TV in the neighbourhood," he said.
"One day, in Rewa itself, I had gone to watch cricket with my friends in the stadium. I was watching the match from a distance and continuously fetching the ball from the boundary line and throwing it back. That is when Aril Antony sir's (Sen's coach) noticed me and he asked - 'Will you play cricket?' That's where my journey began," he added.
Often dreams don't turn into reality. The financial situation of his house played a major role when Kuldeep was chasing his dream. His father runs a hair salon in Rewa. The financial condition of his family was always tight. Kuldeep gave credit to his coach Antony for helping him out during the difficult phase.
"The financial condition of the family was not good, but Antony sir helped me a lot. Many times, he did not even take fees from me, many times he provided shoes if needed," Sen said. "I started playing by borrowing a cricket kit from my friends. For a long time, even in domestic cricket, I played wearing borrowed shoes from Ishwar (Pandey) bhaiya," he said.
"My mother supported me a lot at home, but my father initially wanted me to focus on studies. But when I started playing first-class cricket, my father was convinced and now I am able to help my family financially," he added.
As Kuldeep aims to stay injury-free and enjoy his time on the field, the red-ball format remains his priority. But he went on to state that he relishes the challenges in the white-ball format as well.
"My priority is red-ball cricket but the shorter format also has its own importance and challenges. As a red-ball bowler, you have time to think about executing your strategy but it's a real test of your patience, whereas in T20, you don't have time to think and you have to be ready to change your strategy constantly," he said.
In his last outing for MP against Kerala, he scythed three wickets. As he looks for consistent game time, Kuldeep wants to take it one step at a time rather than thinking too far ahead.
"At the moment, I'm just focused on performing. If I perform, the roads will open automatically. If I think too much, the pressure will increase on me. So, my focus is only on how to win a match for my team," he said.
