Teen Cricket Star's Journey From Sleepless Kid to U-19 Hero

When Abhigyan Kundu's parents brought their hyperactive son to cricket coach Chetan Jadhav, they had one simple request: tire him out enough to sleep at night. That restless energy has now carried the 17-year-old to the Under-19 Cricket World Cup, where he just delivered a match-winning 80 against Bangladesh.

Jadhav's coaching methods were anything but ordinary. Despite Kundu coming from a comfortable family with an engineer father and doctor mother, the coach made him ride unreserved train coaches and even sleep at a railway station for a night.

"Cricket alone isn't enough," Jadhav explains. "He needs to learn about life." The coach shares meals between players from different backgrounds, teaching humility alongside batting technique.

Before accepting Kundu as a student, Jadhav set one firm condition with his parents: they couldn't interfere with their son's cricket journey. In Mumbai's competitive youth cricket scene, where parental pressure often derails young talent, this boundary proved crucial.

The hands-off approach worked beautifully. Kundu's father didn't even watch Saturday's World Cup match live, receiving updates only through coaches instead.

Why This Inspires

By age 13, Kundu had already scored nearly 29,000 runs across local matches, including two scores over 400 and nine double centuries. His coach, trained by legendary mentor Ramakant Achrekar, pushed him through old-school training: 5,000 balls faced daily and two overs of running every other day.

What sets Kundu apart isn't just his numbers. "Whether he scores 100, 200, or 300, he never shows off his bat," Jadhav says. "He just focuses on batting."

Saturday's innings against Bangladesh showcased exactly that temperament. When India desperately needed stability, the young wicketkeeper-batsman delivered calm, controlled responsibility under pressure.

Kundu maintains balance between cricket and academics, scoring 82 percent in his Class 10 exams. Even now at the World Cup, his Class 12 science textbooks travel with him for exams next month.

"He's more worried about exams than cricket right now," Jadhav laughs.

The journey from sleepless child to World Cup star started with a coach willing to teach life lessons beyond the cricket pitch. Sometimes the path to excellence requires learning to sleep on railway station floors before you can dream of cricket glory.