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- Published: June 7, 2024 15:22
New Delhi: A willy and quirky left-arm bowler who has earned a repute for his fiery spell at the T20 WC, Saurabh Netravalakar has become the new internet sensation. A full-time software developer at Oracle and a part-time cricketer for the United States, Netravalkar’s inspired bowling of 2/18 from 4 overs saw his side register consecutive wins at their maiden T20 WC appearance.
If Saurabh Netravalkar, who had figures of 2-18 and bowled USA to victory in the super over vs Pakistan, wasn't disgustingly talented enough — ( He is an engineer at Oracle and an MS in CS from Cornell University.) he's also a damn fine ukelele player. (video from his insta) pic.twitter.com/vEErMccyXX
— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) June 6, 2024
Although Pakistan has a history of some major upsets at the World Cup right from Ireland in West Indies 2007 (ODI WC), this win has given a major boost to the confidence of the USA Cricket team. Moreover, it will also be an important trajectory on the path of development of cricket in the country.
Apart from Netravalkar many other Indian-origin players also have made a significant contribution to the team’s success. Notably, the contributions of Monank Patel and Nitish Kumar deserve a special mention. USA’s grand success against Pakistan and a thumping victory against Canada means that they are in the driving seat to qualify from the group for the Super 8s if they manage to beat Ireland.
Sundar and Satya the next time they see each other and discuss who’s going to poach cricket superstar Saurabh Netravalkar from Oracle
https://t.co/FkCBZ5X8Wr— Trung Phan (@TrungTPhan) June 7, 2024
“Life has given me a second chance…“- Saurabh Netravalkar
Apart from his love for coding and developing cricket-centric apps, Saurabh also loves to play the ukulele. However, the 32-year-old Mumbaikar has found a new-found talent in cricket. Moreover, the journey of Saurabh from a promising young talent in Indian cricket to the eventual migration to the United States and start his second innings has been immensely impressive.
Netravalkar started his journey with the India U-19 Team along with many budding stars like KL Rahul, Harshal Patel, Mayank Agarwal, Jaydev Unadkat, and Sandeep Sharma. Additionally, he was also part of the Mumbai Ranji team. But with a lack of proper opportunity to garner his talent and stiff competition in the Indian cricketing circuit, Saurabh decided to make a switch to the USA.
Since then, the journey has been a linear journey of coding, cricket and ukulele. While it highlights the multi-tasking of Netravalkar, it also throws light on the quick adaptability and undying passion of Netravalkar for the game.
The LinkedIn Profile of SAURABH NETRAVALKAR 🥶 pic.twitter.com/qBn5HajI30
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) June 6, 2024
Although it’s a long way for cricket to make its stronghold in the United States of America, the multi-talented can have his time for celebration after a remarkable display with the ball in hand. Moreover, it also leaves the door open for the various stockholders of cricket to attempt to exploit the immense cricketing pool of America.