After dismissing Virat Kohli and then steering USA to the quarter-final of the T20 World Cup 2024 by defeating Pakistan, Saurabh Netravalkar has become a sensation among cricket fans across the globe.
The Indian-born software engineer played Under-19 cricket in India before leaving for Cornell University for higher studies where he pursued his passion over the weekends. The left-arm medium fast bowler also has several other tricks up his sleeve, like playing the ukulele and making a mean juice. Take a look.
On a rest day between matches, Saurabh unwinded by strumming his ukulele and crooning Mann Udhan Varyache, a Marathi song originally sung by Shankar Mahadevan. It’s ‘a great life lesson on the nature of the ever-wandering human mind,’ wrote Saurabh.
Yoga is key to staying nimble and Saurabh – a follower of BKS Iyengar’s yoga tradition — shows that by doing the Padmasana and a few other poses.
A wet day doesn’t mean one skips one’s training. Saurabh carried on with his run even when it was pouring, inspired by a bunch of kids who stayed on for soccer practice despite the rains.
Eating healthy in his mantra, and Saurabh walks the talk by whipping up a green juice of fenugreek seeds, ginger, mint and apple for breakfast. This is followed by a spread of nuts, berries and homemade millet rotis and okara (soy pulp).
A day before a warm-up game against Ireland, Saurabh cooked himself some masoor dal in his hotel room and the piping hot bowl sure looks delicious!