By Shamik Chakrabarty in Kanpur
A line from Bob Dylan’s Forever Young comes to mind: “May you build a ladder to the stars and climb on every rung”… Or it could be Henry David Thoreau: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be.”
Growing up in Dehri village in Sasaram, Akash Deep belonged to a different world. The nearest hospital was about 150 kilometres away in Patna. His family never encouraged him to play cricket. In fact, for a school teacher’s son, playing cricket wasn’t acceptable at all. But Deep dared to dream. He has built a ladder to the stars and is now climbing on its every rung. For a boy from a nondescript Bihar village, who lost both his father and elder brother because proper medical facilities weren’t available, playing for India was akin to building castles in the air. The 27-year-old has realised his dream and is now in the process of cementing his place in the side.
It looks like India will play on a turning pitch at Green Park. As reported by RevSportz, two pitches have been prepared at this venue for the second Test between India and Bangladesh. The one with grass cover wasn’t tended to at all two days before the start of the match. The surface next to it, with a bit of a bald look, went through the busy fingers of ‘decking up’. Brushes were used, and it was watered as well, albeit in certain areas.
If that pitch is used for the second Test, India might play three spinners, with Kuldeep Yadav returning to the playing XI on his home patch. One of the seamers will have to make way in that case. Will it be Mohammed Siraj or Deep accompanying Jasprit Bumrah? If the team’s media activity offers a clue, the Bengal seamer might edge his Hyderabad teammate. Deep came to the press conference on Wednesday.
Just four seasons ago, when Bengal qualified for the 2019-20 Ranji Trophy final, Deep was his state team’s No. 3 pacer, behind Ishan Porel and Mukesh Kumar. Porel now struggles to get games for Bengal, while Mukesh has played Test cricket, albeit without inspiring much confidence. He is a very conditions-specific bowler.
After making his Test debut against England in Ranchi earlier this year, Deep has been rising to prominence. There’s a sense that gradually he could seal the third seamer’s slot behind Bumrah and Mohammed Shami (when he returns to the fold) if he continues his development. Some areas still need attention, like Deep’s ability to bowl with the old ball, but he is slippery off the deck and can bowl long spells.
“I’m not thinking too far ahead,” said Deep at the press conference. “I try to keep things simple and not put myself under pressure.”
The first thing he thought about after receiving the India call-up was not to make a fool of himself. “Every kid dreams about playing for India. The goal is always to live up to the standards.”
When asked about playing alongside Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the newcomer spoke in reverence. “They are legends of the game,” he said. “Still, the dedication they show and the hard work they put in every day… I have been learning about dedication and hard work from Virat bhai and Rohit bhaiya.”
He spoke highly of Rohit as a captain. “I consider myself lucky to play under Rohit bhaiya. He has never put me under any pressure. He has always backed me to play freely.”
Deep also shared a childhood memory of how the name ‘Green Park’ made him think everything around the stadium would be green. On a serious note, he described the pitch as “neither very helpful nor very docile.”
At the end of the day, a bowler will have to bowl in the right areas. Deep knows that.
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