CHENNAI: When he started playing cricket, Sandeep Kharub, a left-arm pacer from Haryana, like any aspiring cricketer, wanted to represent India. He went on to play for his state in the age-group tournaments and was trying hard to get into the senior Haryana team when a road accident cut short his cricketing career. Riding on a bike, Sandeep lost control as an Army truck took a U-turn on that fateful day. He skidded and fell down with a tyre of the truck crushing his fingers on his left hand.
Sandeep returned to the field after a few months but could not hold the ball and hurl it towards the batters as he used to do in the past. That made Sandeep, now 43, to foray into coaching, develop players and live his dream of representing the country through them. Daksh Kamra, one of the latest recruits of Kolkata Knight Riders, is one among them. Bought at his base price of Rs 30 lakh at the mini-auction, Daksh is a right-arm mystery spinner. The 23-year-old from Hisar, Haryana has many variations like carrom ball and googly but bowls the latter at a speed of 95-97kmph making the batters rush.
With his role model Varun Chakaravarthy struggling at the moment, Daksh might get a game sooner rather than later and his coach strongly believes his ward will grab the opportunity with both hands. "That road mishap might have ended my dream but I am quite sure my pupils like Daksh will help me realise it," Sandeep, who runs Elite Cricket Academy in Hisar, told The New Indian Express.
Sandeep saw Daksh playing cricket around 14 years ago and soon the association began as he decided to coach upcoming talents from the area. "He is a good batter and can hit long sixes. As far as his bowling is concerned, he used to be a leg spinner but around four years ago, we decided to do something different. The game, especially the shortest format, has evolved a lot. So I told him to use the crease and add more variations. He is around six feet tall and that helps him a lot. It helps him generate a lot of bounce. His googlies are good and as they are bowled at a pace of around 95-96kmph, they rush the batters. Besides, it is also difficult to read his fingers when he bowls the carrom ball," the coach added.
Training with sprinters, hurdlers
Cricketers at the Elite Academy do fitness training with track and field athletes. The pacers train with javelin throwers while spinners including Daksh join 100m sprinters and hurdlers for their morning fitness regime. "Training with track and field athletes helps them gain more fitness. Physiotherapist Dr Sumit Ranjan prepares a 10-day schedule for each of them keeping their specific skill sets in mind. The fitness training is followed by gym sessions a few hours later with cricket practice at the nets, which is usually held in the evening. A lot of emphasis is paid on fitness in our academy and that is helping them."
Daksh came under radar with his good show while playing for the U23 Haryana team. Scouts from Rajasthan Royals and KKR took note of those performances and he received calls from both the franchises for the selection trials ahead of the 2026 mini auction. "RR head coach Kumar Sangakkara was impressed with him and so was Abhishek Nayar, who is chief coach of KKR. Nayar in fact asked him to bowl different variations and was visibly satisfied with what he saw. Daksh was then asked to represent Mumbai Customs at the DY Patil T20 Cup. He played an important role in helping Mumbai Customs clinch their maiden title."
Back problem
Daksh aspired to be a pace-bowling all-rounder and used to bowl medium pace but a back injury when he was 15 made him become a spinner. "Nobody in our family played any games. I used to play cricket but for fun. Daksh was always interested in the game since his childhood. He was around 15 when he started feeling discomfort in his back. It was then his coaches decided to switch to spin. The move worked as he developed the required skills in no time. Coaches including Sandeep sir and Haryana Cricket Association played a big role in his development as a player," said Rakesh Kamra, Daksh's father who runs a building material and cement shop in the city.
Coach Sandeep emphasised that sharing the dressing room with professional players will work wonders for his ward. "He is learning a lot even if he has not got a game yet. He will come better and wiser from there. It's just the beginning as fans will see a lot from him in the future," Sandeep signed off.