For Angkrish Raghuvanshi, love for cricket outlasts every setback

CHENNAI: There’s a notion that cricket has become a business for modern-day cricketers, with the Indian Premier League offering enough riches to make the game more about the pay cheque than the passion.

But Angkrish Raghuvanshi is a reminder that, for some, the love for cricket still runs deeper than the riches of the IPL.

The 22-year-old has spent roughly 16 of his last 36 months dealing with one injury or another. Yet, after returning to the middle and producing a valiant double century against Tamil Nadu U23 here on Sunday, Angkrish spoke less about the setbacks and more about why he kept coming back.

"To be frank, I've spent roughly 16 of the past 36 months sidelined,” Angkrish said after his well-constructed 202 against Tamil Nadu U23 here on Sunday.
 
“First it was a stress fracture in my back, then a fracture in my right hand, followed by my left. There have been plenty of highs and lows, but I knew what I signed up for—injuries are an inevitable part of professional sport.”

“But at the end, mere dil mein itna pyaar hai yeh sport ke liye, toh mujhe lagta hai kuch bhi ho jaye, yeh sport enjoy karunga poora life (I have so much love for the sport that I will enjoy it for the rest of my life despite whatever setbacks)."

Even when he was injured, his long-time coach and mentor, Abhishek Nayar, kept pushing him beyond limits, sometimes forcing him to run when he was down with a finger injury, or asking him to do ‘bicep curls’ while nursing a back injury.

"He's (Nayar) a very motivating guy. Every time I have a conversation with him, after the conversation I have a lot of clarity,” the 22-year-old said.

“When my back was injured, he said, 'So what? You can still do bicep curls.' So just work on different parts of cricket, whether that be meditation or visualisation or other parts of fitness. This time my finger was injured, he said, 'So what? You can still run; your legs are fine.' So that's how it was."

After an enterprising 51 in the first innings against Tamil Nadu U23, the 22-year-old put on a dazzling display in the second innings, smashing a rare red-ball double ton. In the second innings, he absorbed the pressure early on with the new ball before launching a scathing attack as the ball got older, piercing through gaps like a surgeon.
 
“I was just trying to look at the ball and enjoy my cricket over there,” he said.

“I'm playing (cricket) after such a long break, and it gave me some clarity as to where my happy place is (in the middle of the ground), so I just tried to bat as long as I could."

During his double century, the right-hander scored 16 fours and four sixes, striking at 72, and taking on spinners with so much ease. Growing up in the Maidaan culture, Angkrish picked up sweeps and reverse sweeps, developing it over time with Nayar.

Nayar also prompted the young Angkrish to pick up what has become a vital part of his skill set now, wicketkeeping. Until the 2025 edition of IPL, Angkrish had barely kept wickets in his career. When his side, SoBo Mumbai Falcons, needed him to don the gloves in Mumbai T20, the 21-year-old was ready and slowly grew into the role.

By the time he arrived for KKR's IPL 2026 pre-season, having done it for Mumbai in Vijay Hazare Trophy, he already became the franchise’s first-choice option. In the lead-up to IPL 2026, when he transformed himself into a full-time keeper, Angkrish spent much of his time in the nets with KKR’s fielding coach Dishant Yagnik, who also doubled up as the 22-year-old’s wicketkeeping senpai.

“Before the IPL, I'd barely batted [in the nets]; I was keeping for like hours in the nets. I think Dishant [Yagnik] prepared me really well for that challenge,” he recalled before adding, “Obviously, at the start, when I picked up the gloves, it was really tough, but by that time, when I got into facing Varun (Chakaravarthy) and Sunil (Narine), it became a lot easier because I had so many hours behind me."

Back to Chennai, despite the double ton, Angkrish wasn’t content with the progression, revealing that there are some ‘technical things’ he’s been working on to improve.

“I don't think about personal goals — whether that be how many runs I'll score or anything. I don't have goals like that. I just have — before a season — it's how many trophies I can win for my team, whatever tournament. Whether that's for my club Parsee Gymkhana, whether that's for my state Bombay.”

After all the injuries, disappointments and time away from the game, Angkrish is back where he wants to be –  in the middle, playing the game he never stopped loving. The double century was simply a reminder of why he kept coming back.