Indian fast bowler Akash Deep attributed his remarkable debut performance, where he took three wickets in the fourth Test against England, to his late father, who passed away in 2015. He expressed contentment in fulfilling his father's aspiration for him to "become something significant in life."
Tragedy struck Akash Deep's family when his father, Ramji Singh, passed away due to paralysis. Within a span of six months, he also faced the loss of his elder brother en route to a hospital in Varanasi.
"I thought I have to do something after I lost my dad and brother in one year, then I stepped out to play cricket. I had nothing to lose and everything to win," Akash Deep told reporters.
On his Test debut, the 27-year-old delivered an exceptional opening spell, dismantling England's top three batsmen and finishing with figures of 3/70.
By lunchtime on Friday, England had found themselves reduced to 112/5. On Day 1 of the fourth Test against England, Akash Deep made a comeback after the no-ball drama to secure his first international wicket by catching Ben Duckett off-guard. Akash's debut was notable as he grabbed eyeballs by snaring three prized wickets in Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett, effectively halting Zack Crawley's progress at a critical juncture. He left England teetering at 57/3. However Joe Root came to England's rescue and hit a splendid century to take the visitors to a respectable 302/7 at the end of Day 1's play.
"I dedicate this to my father because it was his dream that his son does something in life. I couldn't do anything in his life (when he was alive), so this performance is for my father. Every cricketer has one dream, to play for India in Tests. That was also my dream," said the Bengal pacer who hails from Baddi village in Rohtas district of Bihar, about 300km from Ranchi," Akash Deep further said.
"We didn't know about cricket while growing up; cricket was not there where I come from. I played tennis cricket after 2007 and got to know about cricket after 2016. Since then, I have been following (Mohammed) Shami bhai and (South Africa's Kagiso) Rabada. I got my Test cap at a place which is near to my village (in Bihar) as well as Bengal from where I play. Bengal supported me well. In my journey, my family played a big role. My family is also here. No doubt, it's an emotional feeling but there was just one thing going on in my mind -- how to contribute to the team," he added.
Akash Deep buys Bumrah's advice
Right after the close of Day 1, the 27-year-old revealed Jasprit Bumrah's advise which helped him perform in fourth Test against England.
“I wasn't nervous, had spoken with my coaches, so I wasn't tense ahead of the game. I don't know how it happened, but I used to take every game as my last game and tried my best. Bumrah bhai advised me to drag the length back slightly (in international cricket), that's exactly what I did,” Akash said after the match.
Akash rues no-ball drama
The Bengal pacer finished the day with an exceptional spell of 3/70. However, Akash experienced a bittersweet debut moment when he initially sent Zak Crawley's off-stump tumbling, only for the joy to be short-lived due to a no-ball call. Despite this setback, Akash ultimately found redemption by successfully dismissing Crawley later on. He confessed to feeling disappointed about the no-ball incident. He observed that initially, there was some assistance from the pitch, but as the game progressed, the ball softened, and the pitch slowed down.
“I felt bad (on the no-ball), I was just hoping that the team doesn't lose because of that (since Crawley was batting well). There was a bit of help early on, but the ball became soft and the wicket was slow as well. We just tried to be as tight as possible and bowl in the right areas,” he added.
Akash Deep on his First-Class journey
Regarding his progression since his First-Class debut in December 2019, Akash Deep said:
"I don't know what I did, but whenever I used to play a match, I used to think that this is the last match of my life, and whenever I achieved success in a given match, I tried to incorporate that (method) in the next game."
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