'Khel, Tod': Umran Malik Recalls How His Mother Encouraged Him To Play Cricket During Childhood

Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) pacer Umran Malik bowled extremely well in IPL 2022 to bag 22 wickets to earn his maiden call-up for India vs South Africa five-match T20 International series.

Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 turned out to be a breakthrough season for Sunrisers Hyderabad speedster Umran Malik.

Source : @BCCI

New Delhi: The Indian cricket team is set to play a three-match T20 International series against South Africa, starting on Thursday, June 9. The first match of India vs South Africa T20 International series will be played at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. The series opener in Delhi is an opportunity for team India to script history as the Men in Blue will become the first team to win 14 T20 International matches in a row. Team India has started preparations for this match and series.

Meanwhile, Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 turned out to be a breakthrough season for Sunrisers Hyderabad speedster Umran Malik. The young pace bowler from Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) bowled extremely well to bag 22 wickets to earn his maiden call-up for India vs South Africa five-match T20 International series.

In an exclusive interview with the Indian Express, Umran Malik recalled his childhood days as he talked about what encouraged him to attain such great pace.

Speaking to the Indian Express, Umran said, “I loved fast bowling from the beginning. When I was young, I would play with a plastic ball at home and would get scolded for breaking glass windows. But even then, my mother would not stop me from playing and would say, ‘khel, tod’ (Play, break)."

Umran bowled the fastest ball of the match in every single game he played. He said his father won't stop selling fruits even if the speedster becomes a regular in the Indian cricket team. As per Umran, selling fruits has been his family business for around 70 years.

“That is our family business since the past 70 years. My grandfather, father, and uncle have been working on it. It is not that if I am playing for India, my father will stop working. My father always tells me that we will remain where we have risen from. I come from an average family. I feel very happy that I have made my father proud," Umran added.