Tushar Deshpande has been one of the rising names in the Indian Cricket circuit. The Mumbai pacer has been doing good in the domestic and Indian Premier League (IPL) matches. This was the reason he was called up in the tour against Zimbabwe for the T20I series. He made his U-19 debut for the Mumbai team back in 2011. After the first match, he was criticised by his then-coach.
His coach looking at his first match skill declared to him that the pacer could not shine in the game. After the first match, he was sent home. Tushar’s coach asked him to try out batting instead of bowling due to his height. The coach said even if he becomes a fast bowler he will not be able to bowl above 125kph. With utter disappointment, he informed his mother.
The pacer’s mother told it is his battle and the bowler needs to solve it or stop playing cricket. However, defying all the odds seven years ago he made his debut for the Mumbai Ranji team. But he had an ankle injury and was ruled out of the Ranji Trophy after playing only eight games. The speedster can shape the ball away and hit the deck hard, consistently clocking speeds around 140kph.
Tushar Deshpande’s success story is remarkable
He first came into the light during the 2018-19 season where he picked up 15 wickets in 8 games for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. After his stellar performances, he was picked by Delhi Capitals (DC) in 2020, where the 29-year-old had a decent season. In 2022 Chennai Super Kings (CSK) picked him during the mega auction.
The following year in 2023 CSK faced an injury problem in their pace bowling department, with Ben Stokes, Deepak Chahar, Sisanda Magala, Simarjeet Singh, and Mukesh Choudhary all sidelined with major injuries. Deshpande similarly struggled at the start of the competition. But he recovered and played an important role in CSK’s fifth IPL title. For the forthcoming years, he will look to shine in the Men in Blue jersey.
