Express News Service
CHENNAI: When Pawan Sen came across Renuka Singh Thakur at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Academy more than a decade ago, she was among a group of 20 or so teenagers at the first-of-its-kind residential place. He told them that one day some of them would go on and play for India. The reaction, he recalls, from the players was laughter.
Cut to the present, as many as three cricketers from the academy have represented the country; Sushma Verma, Harleen Deol and Renuka. All three were a part of the squad during the recent tri-series in South Africa last month. “She (Renuka) comes from a very remote area (Rohru). Back then, for them, to represent the state was a big thing. Cricket did not have as much craze as other sports in Himachal. Then Sushma’s debut happened, then Harleen and Renuka. The players got a lot of motivation and the interest has gone up drastically,” Sen told TNIE.
Renuka might have been the last to play for India among the three, but she has made rapid strides in the last 12 months. That she was the ICC Emerging Player of the Year for 2022 tells enough. At a time when Shikha Pandey seemed to be out of favour and Jhulan Goswami was on her swansong, the pacer stole the show. She was the leading wicket-taker in the Commonwealth Games, but numbers aside, the way she rattled every top-order that came up against India is what made her stand out.
The 27-year-old has built a reputation for herself to deliver early breakthroughs. To the extent that every time she opens the bowling, she is expected to do that. But sometimes, especially when the pitches haven’t aided her as much as they did in England, she has struggled. However, she has realised that and tried to improve her variations.
“We worked a lot on yorkers, line and length control, which has improved since her debut. Being a medium-pacer who doesn’t operate at a high speed, variations are key. She speaks before every match and I just tell her to stick to basics when there is not much help from the surface. You can’t change things in one day and need time for that. She has also realised that,” Sen added.
It is this constant search for improvement and to be better that has brought Renuka this far. Since her debut, no pacer from a full member has taken more T20I wickets. Sen remembers the conversation after the group stage CWG match against Australia. The pacer took 4/22 with the new ball but Grace Harris changed the game after. “She told me ‘if I had taken one more wicket, we could have won.’ She is never satisfied. Keeps telling ‘aur better karna hai’ (have to do better). Now, watching the Australian lower-order dominate with the bat, she has developed an interest in batting also. She is keen to improve her batting so that she can contribute.”
Also, after every match, she calls Sen to ask about what she did well on a particular delivery or what did not work for her in a spell. “I have to keep track of the schedule and watch every ball of the match irrespective of the time zone as later in the day or the next day, she will be asking me for specific feedback with a lot of questions,” says Sen.
As India are set to take on Pakistan at Cape Town in their opening game of the T20 World Cup on Sunday, Renuka has a responsibility on her shoulders. She will be sharing the new ball with Shikha, but one has to wait and see how the conditions play out. While Sen wants her to keep it simple if there is not much swing, Renuka would want to make an impact on the global stage. For it will not just be Sen who will be watching her play, but also the young talents at the HPCA academy.
“When we opened a few months ago after lockdown, the kids came back and they all asked when will she (Renuka) come to the academy,” says Sen. “I tell them that she also started like them and it took her 12 years. That they have to devote time. That after the World Cup, she will come and tell them where she started at a small village in Rohru and how much sacrifice she had to make. Watching her play for India, they also believe. Hum bhi India keliye, khel sakte (we can also play for India).”
In what is still a very young international career, Renuka has already made a massive impact not just for India, but on all the young talents from where she began her journey. If she delivers in South Africa, there is only one way to go from hereon.
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