Nobody from Assam has played for the senior Indian cricket team yet. Riyan Parag dreams of being the first.
In front of a full house at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here over the weekend, facing a bowling attack that featured Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga and Hardik Pandya, and batting alongside Steve Smith, he showed he certainly has a right to dream.
He made a 29-ball 43 before being run out and more or less ensured a badly-needed win for Rajasthan Royals. Watching him bat with remarkable maturity, it was difficult to believe he had turned 17 only last October.
And it was only his second match in the IPL. In his third, against Delhi Capitals on Monday, he became the second-youngest ever wicket-taker in the IPL, when he removed Shreyas Iyer. He could well be the find of the season.
Parag had been looking forward to playing for the Royals ever since attending the trails for the franchise. “I had done decently well and was hoping for a call,” Parag told The Hindu . “But being the last name at the auction was a bit nervewracking.”
Looking back at the most famous innings of his young career yet, he said Smith was very helpful in the middle. “He calmed me down and asked me to play my natural game,” Parag said. “He said if the ball was there to be hit, go for it. It was overall a good match for me, as I was able to contribute to my team’s victory.”
He is happy being part of Royals. “The atmosphere is very friendly and homely,” he said. “There is no junior-senior kind of thing. The seniors, like Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Steve, are open for discussion any time.”
His goal is to be an international cricketer like them. “When I started playing cricket, my dad (Parag Das, who played 43 First Class matches for Assam) said that I should have a goal,” said the lone IPL player from Assam. “I told him that I wanted to play for the senior Indian team.”
Inspirational father
It was after watching his father doing his drills for cricket that Parag became interested in the game. “He has been my biggest inspiration,” he said.
“I am also grateful to my first coach Nawab Ali and the Assam Cricket Association for all they have done. The conditions in Assam are not favourable for cricket you know, as it is raining all the time.”
He said he would be happy if he could inspire more youngsters from Assam to take up cricket. “I myself am young still, of course,” he said. “But I would tell them to have a dream and chase that dream.”
“He has bright future,” said Steve Smith. “He is a terrific young kid. He works very hard, he is fit, strong. Even in the first game he played, he batted with a cool head and taught a thing or two to the senior players including myself. He is a quick learner.
