Under-19 World Cup: The hunt begins for India's next Virat Kohli
Hindustan TimesEarlier this week, a young man from Karnataka grabbed the consciousness of the average Indian cricket fan, upstaging even Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. These are among the young men tasked with leading India’s charge at the Under-19 World Cup, starting in South Africa today. Saharan is the skipper, Kulkarni and Avinash have already bagged IPL contracts, the others have gradually made their presence felt over the last few months, ready to take on the world even as Chaturvedi, who missed out on World Cup selection, eyes a graduation to a more senior level in domestic cricket – he has already been picked in the Under-23 side and could make his Ranji Trophy debut in the next few weeks. They will only truly be recognised when they make the senior side and perform; that must be the ultimate goal, not just winning the Under-19 World Cup.” It's hard to fault Dravid’s philosophy but try telling an Under-19 kid approaching the biggest tournament of his life that it doesn’t really matter if he comes home victorious or not. This season alone, in the lead-up to the Under-19 World Cup, the inter-state one-day Vinoo Mankad Trophy was followed by a Challenger Series, then a quadrangular tournament featuring two Indian teams alongside Bangladesh and England.