Small-Town Natarajan's Big Cricket Leap

Brut India

From a tennis ball cricketer to making his international debut at 29, this is how T Natarajan hit just the right length in life...  Thanks to SunRisers Hyderabad for the footage.

Transcript

00:00I have a poor family background. I am 36 km away from Salem.

00:11My village name is Chinnupumatti. I have three sisters and a brother.

00:15I am the eldest. My father is a butcher.

00:19My mother runs a chicken shop.

00:23I have come from a normal family.

00:30I used to play a lot of tournaments in my spare time.

00:50I used to save that money to buy things.

00:58Shoes were very important to me.

01:02My team used to sponsor me.

01:06I used to play with those shoes for a year.

01:12My aim was to play Ranji Trophy in Tamil Nadu.

01:15I used to play Ranji Trophy in every state.

01:22I played Ranji Trophy in every state.

01:25I was very happy when I was selected.

01:29I was selected in Salem after 28 years.

01:42I was very happy.

01:45My debut game was called Suspect Action.

01:48I will never forget that day.

01:51I struggled a lot for a year.

01:54When I came back from Suspect Action,

01:57I felt very strong mentally.

02:00That's when I realized how much I had struggled.

02:03I like to motivate people.

02:06When people encourage me, I feel very confident.

02:12I am that kind of a person.

02:14When I came back from Suspect Action,

02:17I realized who Natarajan was.

02:45I was very happy.

02:47But I was very scared.

02:49I thought it was enough if I was selected in a basic place.

02:53But I was under a lot of pressure.

03:10There were many bowlers in our team.

03:13There were many bowlers in our team.

03:16I was very happy when I was selected.

03:19Mr. Murali spoke very well.

03:22He taught me a lot in the first two years.

03:24I felt that I didn't get a chance in the first two years.

03:27He spoke to me.

03:29I didn't have any problem with that.

03:31It happens a lot.

03:32You are new here. Learn a lot.

03:34Don't feel bad.

03:35I played Ranji Trophy very well in the last two years.

03:39I played all three formats this year.

03:43There are new coaches now.

03:46They handle the players very well.

03:49Mr. Lakshman speaks very motivatedly.

03:52I like that a lot.

03:53Whenever I talk to him, I get positive thoughts.

04:13I used to practice cricket with a batsman.

04:16I never used to practice with a shoe or cone.

04:20I used to play cricket with a batsman and a bowler.

04:23My secret is the tennis ball.

04:42I want to train more people like me and bring them to the top.

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