Left-Arm Bowler Pappu Roy New Cricket Star On The Horizon
Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s slow left-arm bowler Pappu Roy stood out with the three-wicket haul for 45 runs, despite his team’s defeat in the second match of Deodhar Trophy at Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi on Wednesday.
India B beat India C by 30 runs in the match.
Pappu was selected to play for India C team, led by Ajinkya Rahane after an impressive debut in Vijay Hazare Trophy. Other international players like Suresh Raina, Abhinav Mukund, Vijay Shankar and Washington Sundar are also a part of the side.
Making his debut this season in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for his adopted state Odisha, Roy claimed 14 wickets in eight matches with an average of 18.42.
The New Kid On The Block
Though a native of Khajuri village, about 41 kilometres away from Chhapra in Saran district of Bihar, Pappu had been staying in Odisha and playing for the state.
For this left-arm spinner playing in Deodhar Trophy was a dream come true.
However, it has been heart wrenching journey for this 23-year-old, who had to struggle for basic requirements of life about some years back.
He lost his parents, Jamadar Roy and mother Parvati Devi, at a very young age.
He cannot even remember his village since his parents took him to Kolkata, in search of work, very early in life. His father was a truck driver. He died of heart attack.
His uncle and aunt took care of him but once his uncle, a daily wage labourer, died, the 15-year-old found it difficult to even arrange one meal a day.
He started playing and bowling at Howrah Union Cricket Academy, for a free thali or juice to satisfy his hunger. He survived for cricket only.
Initially, he started off as a pacer but on the advice of Howrah Union Cricket Academy coach Sujit Saha took up left-arm spin bowling.
Despite being the highest wicket-taker in CAB’s second division league in 2011 when he got 50 wickets in nine matches for Dalhousie, he could not make it to the Bengal team with Iresh Saxena and Pragyan Ojha around.
He then left for Jajpur in Odisha from Kolkata in 2011 in search of work and food. His friends, Mujakir Ali Khan and Isif Iqbal Khan, arranged accommodation for him. He then started playing from MCC Club of Jajpur.
In 2015, he got his first break in the Odisha U-23 team.
Within three years, Roy made his senior team debut in List A cricket claiming 14 wickets from eight group league games for Odisha. Against Andhra, he dismissed India Test player Hanuma Vihari and former national U-19 captain Ricky Bhui off successive deliveries.
He is fluent in speaking Odia.
Pappu’s left-arm spin got him 14 wickets at an average of 18.42 and an economy rate of just 3.79 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19.
His only hope is to get at least one chance in the playing XI.
