ENG vs IND 2025: Anshul Kamboj's childhood coach reveals seamer's journey from wanting to quit cricket to India debut

Published - 23 Jul 2025, 22:34 IST | Updated - 23 Jul 2025, 22:45 IST

Ace pacer Anshul Kamboj had a moment to cherish on Wednesday, July 23 as he was handed his debut cap for the Indian team. The ongoing fourth Test became the debut match for Kamboj, as he drafted into the Playing XI, after a string of injuries to Indian pacers in the original squad. He will be looking to make the moment a memorable one for himself.

Meanwhile, his childhood coach Satish Rana shared a snippet from Kamboj's inspiring story of coming through the ranks. He recalled a moment from the seamer's career wherein he was almost at the brink of quitting the game in 2020. This was just ahead of the U-19 World Cup in 2020 that Kamboj missed the bus to the marquee tournament due to an injury.

“That was the only time I saw him in tears. He wanted to quit cricket. It was Udham Singh (Kamboj's father) ji who asked him to keep going, because he knew his son’s potential. Udham ji told him, ‘Beta, bas tappa pakad ke daalta reh’ (Son, just keep pick a length and stick to it),” stated Satish, as quoted by The Times of India.

Satish narrated the account of when Kamboj was initially not picked up for the Indian squad despite shining for India A against England Lions prior to the ongoing red-ball series.

“He came back, and the very next morning, he was at the academy. He had brought a few Dukes balls with him and started bowling to a single stump. I asked him, ‘Sab theek?’ (All well?). He politely replied, ‘Sir, I am hopeful.’ He stayed optimistic — and look at him now. This boy is a perfect example of hard work, dedication, and discipline,” the coach shared proudly.

The Haryana-born's father also highlighted and shared how the starting point of his son's cricket during his childhood was Udham wanting his son to cut down on weight.

“He was overweight, and I just wanted to get him back in shape. I never thought he would end up playing for India. But the day I took him to the academy, he got hooked on the game, and it became his life,” narrated Udham.

Kamboj, who made his First-Class debut in 2022, was finally provided his debut cap in Manchester ahead of the game. He was drafted into the setup for after both Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh were ruled out from the current match due to respective injuries.