Team India's senior speedster Jaydev Unadkat, after toiling hard for 14 long years in domestic cricket, earned a comeback in the national Test team when BCCI named him as Mohammed Shami's replacement in India's squad for India vs Bangladesh two-match Test series, last year. The veteran player is all set to play his career's 100th first-class match when he leads Saurashtra against Andhra in a Ranji Trophy match.
Ahead of his 100th first-class game, the left-arm bowler took to Twitter to share an emotional post as he recalled how he played with a bleeding finger-nail in his debut match.
"On the eve of my 100th first-class game, I want to take a moment and reflect on this journey which has been filled with emotions, passion & pride! I remember the moment when i made my first-class debut vividly. I had injured my bowling finger a day before the game..
"I so wanted to play & make my debut. I did play with a bleeding finger-nail, and gosh, that feeling was surreal! Today, 12 years & 7 months later, I can proudly say that I played 99 games with the same approach and passion that I had when I played the 1st match!
"…Before I step on the field tomorrow, while I would be grateful to the almighty & to a lot of people, I would be proud of myself for this once, for this was a goal that was close to my heart! Major bucket-list ticked off!," Unadkat wrote in a series of tweets.
So far, Unadkat has played just two Tests for the national team, seven ODIs and 10 T20Is.