Yash Dhull: ‘Bats like Virat Kohli, leads like MS Dhoni’; U-19 World Cup-winning captain Yash Dhull’s journey so far | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: “Mujhe Virat bhaiya ke jaisa cricketer banna hai (I want to become a cricketer like Virat Kohli)” – coach Rajesh Nagar recalled Yash Dhull’s words from his school tournament days.
Today, Dhull has etched his name alongside his inspiration and idol Virat by guiding India to the 2022 ICC Under-19 World Cup title, India’s fifth in the history of the tournament, in the Caribbean. The Yash-led side defeated England by four wickets in the final to lift the coveted trophy at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.
Nagar is a proud coach and eagerly waiting to meet Yash, when he gets back home with the Cup.
“I was confident that Yash will win the title for India. He is always hungry for wins. I am so so proud of him. I am a proud coach. He has led from the front and the entire team has performed. This is a wonderful team. India have been dominant in the u-19 World Cups and that domination continues. India were the strongest side in this tournament,” Nagar told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.

(Photo credit: ICC)
‘BATS LIKE VIRAT KOHLI, LEADS THE TEAM LIKE MS DHONI‘
Yash idolises Indian run-machine Virat. Coach Nagar too sees glimpses of Virat in the 19-year-old batsman, but he also sees shades of the legendary Mahendra Singh Dhoni when the youngster from Delhi dons the hat of a captain.
“If you see him (Yash) bat, you will see glimpses of Virat Kohli in him. He is very aggressive while batting. He hits the ball aggressively. He has that elegance. In fact, while fielding too, you will see shades of Virat in Yash. He doesn’t like to miss any chance while fielding. He always used to say ‘mujhe Virat bhaiya jaisa cricketer banna hai’,” the coach further told TimesofIndia.com.

“But as a captain, he (Yash) is just like Dhoni – calm and composed. Just like Dhoni, he also supports his players or teammates, backs them and guides them. He is calm and cool when it comes to taking decisions. He is a combination of Virat and Dhoni. He bats like Virat and leads like Dhoni,” Nagar added.
Just like Dhoni, Yash too backs his teammates and supports them to the hilt. Nagar went on to share an incident.

(Photo: TOI arrangement)
“We had an inter-school tournament in Dehradun. The captain of the team had to sit out due to injury. Yash was younger than him. I went to him and said you will lead the team today, because I knew he is a good leader. A good leader is always a good captain. A good captain may not be a good leader. He was leading with maturity. The opposition team was from Patiala and players like Prabhsimran Singh were playing in that team. Yash brought an off-spinner into the attack and told him some areas to bowl at. That off-spinner claimed seven wickets in that match,” Nagar recalled.
“Yash’s decision surprised everyone because that offspinner didn’t perform that well in the previous matches. Ahead of the match, I was also not in favour of playing that off-spinner, but Yash was adamant about playing him and that player won us the match. Whenever a player is not able to perform and not getting a chance, he (Yash) fights for him and backs him. There have been a number of occasions when he fought with coaches to play some players. He just wants results,” Nagar further told TimesofIndia.com.
YASH DHULL – THE BEGINNING
Before becoming the fifth Indian captain to win the ICC u-19 World Cup, Yash made headlines thanks to his brilliant 110 vs Australia in the semi-final. In that match, which was seen as India’s toughest match of the tournament, India lost two early wickets and were 37-2, when Dhull and vice captain Shaik Rasheed came together to put on a match winning 204 run stand. For his family and coaches who have known him since he was a child, this was another example of the calmness he can showcase while batting, despite scoreboard pressure or any other obstacle.

(Photo Credit: ICC)
Yash was 9 when his grandfather took him to Bal Bhawan School Cricket Academy in Dwarka, Delhi, and met Nagar. Just like every other new student, Nagar asked Yash to pad up and hit the nets. Nagar threw some deliveries at him with the help of a sidearm ball-thrower. Yash displayed some good technique and played those deliveries with ease.
Nagar was surprised to see a 9-year-old Yash’s techniques. He decided to throw another challenge at him and the youngster accepted that too.

(Photo: TOI arrangement)
“Yash’s grandfather was in the Air Force and he brought Yash to me at my academy. I asked a few students to bowl at him and he played those deliveries wonderfully. I wanted to test him more. I told him we have a tournament the next day and if you score, I will give you admission. He was ready.
“In his first tournament, he went on to score a century. I gave him admission. He was a natural talent. He was dedicated and most importantly he was disciplined. This quality he inherited from his grandfather who was in the defence forces. He was honest towards the game,” Nagar signed off.