Son of a Mumbai maid stars in his debut Under-14 cricket match

Sunil Verma

Born in a poor family and sent to a children’s home at the age of just 6 to make sure his cricketing ambitions stay alive, life has taken a turn for the better for the 13-year old Sunil Verma.

Playing the Ajit Naik Memorial Under-14 cricket tournament, the fast bowler took 8 wickets to help his team Karnataka Sporting Association register a victory by an innings and 10 runs over Shivaji Park Youngsters last week.

After electing to field, Karnataka bowled the opposition out for 55 with the youngster claiming 3 wickets for 10 runs. In reply, Karnataka scored 98 and gained a lead of 43 over the team from Shivaji Park. Verma, then, returned to take 5 wickets in the 2nd innings, thereby helping his team complete a well-deserved victory.

He has played in local tournaments before, but the Memorial was his first ever selection tournament. All set to make his Harris Shield debut, he will be representing his school Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Mankhurd, next month, signalling a quick rise to prominence in the Mumbai cricketing circles.

Lacking basic necessities

Talking about his journey so far and how he learned the nuances of the game, he said: "Till I was six, I didn't even know what a school looked like. Since my parents used to go out in search of work, I used to pass my time playing with kids in my locality and eating leftovers.”

“I ate just one meal in a day. It was only at the children's home that I learnt the importance of education. A bonus to it was eight months ago, when Sahil sir (former Mumbai opener Sahil Kukreja) and Ajinkya sir (his coach Ajinkya Kamble) started teaching us the nuances of cricket at the hostel's ground."

Sunil, who is currently in Standard VIII, further added, "My mother Sangeeta earns a living washing utensils and my father paints walls and roads for money. Their combined earnings (around Rs 5,000 a month) were not enough to run the household.

“Hence, they put me in the children's home. I miss home badly, but I love being at the hostel as I get all the basic necessities clothes, food and education."

Could have lost direction had he stayed at home

Verma feels that he could have indulged in wrong practices like drugs, alcohol etc., and become a criminal had he continued staying in his locality.

"The kids in my locality steal people's belongings and sell them. With the money, they indulge in wrong practices like drugs, alcohol etc. The children's home is like a saviour to me. It keeps me away from the life children in my locality lead," he said.

Seeing the vast improvement in their boy’s quality of life, his parents also enrolled Anil, his younger brother, in the same Chembur Children's Home in 2011.

Natural cricketing talent

Coach Kamble, meanwhile, is full of praise for Verma’s hard-working nature and hopes to see him become successful in the field of cricket one day.

"Cricket comes to him naturally. His bowling action is clean, and he makes the full use of the new ball. He maintains his line and length, and that's the reason he gets wickets.

“He is a hard-working kid. He gives his 100 per cent when he comes for practice (10 hours a day on school holidays and five hours on normal days).

It's been just eight months that we started teaching these kids to play cricket. But, in his very first selection tournament, Sunil scalped eight wickets, which tells you something about his talent. He doesn't let his personal struggles show on the field. It is this quality that will stand him in good stead," Kamble said.