Coimbatore: In India, where cricket is larger than life, being handed an opportunity to play for the Indian team is a dream for most lads, be it in urban set-up or in the gully. One such lad is Coimbatore's P Nirmal Kumar whose hard work and determination has gained him a spot in the India Under-19 team.
Coimbatore: In India, where cricket is larger than life, being handed an opportunity to play for the Indian team is a dream for most lads, be it in urban set-up or in the gully. One such lad is Coimbatore's P Nirmal Kumar whose hard work and determination has gained him a spot in the India Under-19 team.
"If you say getting admission into a good college and securing a good job are successful things, I would say that following my dream and achieving it, is my definition of success," says an elated P Nirmal Kumar whose dream has always been to play cricket for India.
Recently, the All India Junior Selection Committee picked India A, India B and India C teams for the Paytm U19 Challenger Trophy 2019 at Hyderabad which kick-started on November 11. The tournament is also featuring Nepal ‘A’ as the fourth team.
P Nirmal Kumar, a Class 12 student of Sri Jayendra Saraswathi School here in the city who has been playing cricket for the past 7 years received a call to play for the U19 India 'B' team in the tournament.
Starting his cricket career at the age of 9, it was not a smooth journey for Nirmal since he had to face many ups and downs. As a young boy, Nirmal was very passionate about cricket since his father Pragadeeswaran who was a cricketer played many league matches in the district. Hence, Nirmal had his father's support and encouragement to follow his passion for cricket.
At 13, he was selected to play in the district team for the very first time. From thereon, there has been no looking back for him. The very next year, Nirmal was selected to play the Round Robin tournament in which he performed well, earning for himself a spot in the U14 State team. Consistently performing with the bat and ball in both district and State teams, Nirmal was shaping up as a steady player. Thereon, he was selected for the Junior Super Kings to take part in the International Junior Academy Tournament held at Yorkshire, England.
Talking to Simplicity, Nirmal says, "Playing cricket is my most favourite thing to do. As a child, I was playing tennis ball cricket with my friends and neighbors in our neighbourhood. I was not serious at the beginning but my coach seeing my talent asked to me continue playing the game and I would say that was the first step in my career. Further on, I was struggling in the U-16 State matches as I did not get enough chances in batting to prove myself. So, my coaches advised me to concentrate on my bowling too. That helped me become an all rounder," added Nirmal who credited his success to the coaches for making him a good player.