Noida To Nairobi: Story Of Pushkar Sharma, Ex-Mumbai U-16 Captain Who Now Represents Kenya

In an exclusive interview with ABP Live, Pushkar talked about what inspired him to take up the sport and his cricketing journey.

Pushkar Sharma. ( Image Source :ICC )

Life has not always followed the perfect script for Pushkar Sharma. But the 22-year-old never gave up on his dreams. The India-born all-rounder always wanted to be a cricketer and many personal tragedies came along his way while chasing his dream. After going through a lot of hardships, in December last year, Pushkar finally got to play international cricket albeit not for India. The batter represented Kenya in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier last year. 

Pushkar had to move to Nairobi after his father passed away due to cancer, and he saw an opportunity there which helped him not only continue pursuing the sport but also a job, that helped his family come out of a financially difficult situation. That meant leaving behind all his cricketing achievements back in India which included leading the Mumbai U-16 team.

In an exclusive interview with ABP Live, Pushkar talked about what inspired him to take up the sport and his cricketing journey.

Here are the excerpts from the interaction:

Q: What motivated you to pursue cricket on the professional front?

A: In childhood, my family and I used to watch cricket matches on television together. During that time I decided that I also wanted to be on TV like the cricketers I was watching, so I asked my dad how to become one. He told me that I had to first join a cricket academy and score plenty of runs there day in and day out.

Q: Tell me about your journey both personal and professional? Where did you start playing cricket?

A: I started playing cricket by joining the YMCA club in Greater Noida under the supervision of coaches Mr Subhash Chaudhary, Mr Jagat Kishor and Mr Brijesh Singh (sports teacher at Vishwa Bharati Public School). My career started from there and all the coaches were happy with my performance. In one of the tournaments, we played with a Mumbai club team in Haryana. Then, I shifted to Mumbai and started playing for Al-Barkaat Malik English School. After a good performance in Mumbai, I was selected as the captain of the Mumbai Under-16 team in 2014-15. Prithvi Shaw also played under my captaincy.

Q: What forced you to move to Kenya?

A: No one forced me to move to Kenya. My father passed away in January 2017 due to cancer. Then, I received an offer to play cricket and work in Kenya, which was a good opportunity for me, as my family was facing a financial crunch. Before moving to Kenya, I was working and playing for IndiaFirst Life Insurance, a company which contributed tremendously to my cricketing journey. IndiaFirst had offered me a five-year sponsorship. I am thankful to Mr Praveen Meno (Chief People Officer of the company) for helping me fuel my journey.

Q: Tell me about your family members. How have they supported you from the very beginning?

A: My father, Late Shri Shiv Kumar Sharma, passed away on 2nd January 2017. My mother's name is Shrimati Sushma Sharma (Nirmal). I have two elder sisters, Jyoti and Nidhi, who are married. I have received support from all my family members, especially my dad. I hope every sportsman has a family like mine. When I go back to India, I will go to Edmatpur (Agra) to pay my respects to my Guruji, Yogeshwar Maha Prabhu Shri Ramlal Ji Maharaj. I am here because of God’s blessings and the support of my family.

Q: Where do you see yourself in the coming 4-5 years?

A: Every player wants success in life. When we play for a club, we think of trying for the state team. Then, when we start playing for the state team, we dream of getting selected for the national under-19 or the senior team. Furthermore, when we begin playing for the senior team, we aspire for representing our country globally. Now that I am playing for the Kenya national cricket team, my focus is to score runs for Kenya and then think about playing in the IPL or other big T20 leagues.

Q: Who is your cricketing idol and why?

A: My idols are Gautam Gambhir and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. I am an opening batsman (and a left-hander), just like Gambhir, so I have learned a lot from him and he is my favourite batsman. I admire Dhoni for his captaincy skills. Since I have led several school and club teams as a captain, I have learnt how to handle pressure from him. Dhoni is my heartbeat.