LSG’s Mukul Choudhary names MS Dhoni as inspiration after match-winning knock vs KKR

Lucknow Super Giants batter Mukul Choudhary, who smashed 54 not out against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, credited MS Dhoni as his inspiration. He also recalled his father’s sacrifices and his journey from a small-town academy to professional cricket.

Hyderabad: Mukul Choudhary, who came up with a sensational match-winning show with the willow (54 not out, 27b, 2×4, 7×6) for Lucknow Super Giants against Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL league match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday night, says he always looks up to the MS Dhoni as a finisher.

“I always look up to him. His helicopter shot, which is very iconic, is my favorite. The way he led India in the 2011 World Cup, everybody remembers it. I want to be like him and finish off matches and help my team win,” Mukul said on the JioHotstar special show.

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On the story of his father’s sacrifice and his journey of playing cricket, Mukul said: “It was my father’s dream to play cricket at a big level, we come from a very poor family and he wanted someone from the family to play cricket. Nowadays, there is a lot of money and fame in cricket.”

“ Cricket is his favorite sport, but our family condition did not allow him to play cricket professionally. He had already made up his mind, even before he was married, that when he has a son, he has to make him play cricket. When I was young, our family situation was not strong and it was not possible for him to get me enrolled in a cricket academy,” he said.

“At that time, he also used to teach in a college and was preparing for RAS as well, then he understood that either he can prepare for Rajasthan Administrative Service or he can make me play cricket professionally. So, he left his Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) preparation, did some property work, earned some money, and when I turned 12 years old, he enrolled me in the SBS Cricket Academy in Sikar city for the first time,” Mukul explained.

On the early struggles of finding a cricket academy, Mukul said: “The challenge was that I did not know anything about cricket before I started playing at a professional level. I had no cricket connection in my family. Nobody from our area was a cricket player. I did not know anything about the sport. I remember in 2015, It was my birthday that day and My father and I left in the morning to search for an academy.”

“ There were three districts nearby – Churu, Jhunjhunu and Sikar. We were looking for an academy in those three districts. At that time, SBS Cricket Academy in Sikar had just opened up. We saw it there and decided to take admission in that academy. It was a new academy and the people running the academy were very fond and passionate about cricket. So we found the right place to begin my cricket journey,” he concluded.