Thousands cheered for Umran Malik when he uprooted a stump or two in the recently concluded IPL season. But growing up, when a young Umran would break glass windows, he had one fan supporting him. His mother.
“I loved fast bowling from the beginning,” says the 22-year-old at the Indian Express Idea Exchange.
“When I was young, I would play with a plastic ball at home and would get scolded for breaking glass windows. But even then, my mother would not stop me from playing and would say, ‘khel, tod’ (Play, break).”
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PremiumMalik, who picked 22 wickets in 14 games this IPL season, was all praise for his mother and her cooking skills.
‘It’s very delicious, come whenever you can and taste it,’ he said when asked about the kheer she cooks.
The pacer, who grabbed eyeballs by consistently clocking past 150 kmph in the premier T20 league including touching the 157 mark, is currently part of India’s squad for the five-match T20I home series against South Africa.
A lot has changed for Malik in the last year since he made his first appearance for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the second leg of IPL in the UAE. He got an immediate call up for being India’s net bowler at the T20 World Cup and is now set to feature for the senior team.
But he knows that wouldn’t stop his father from continuing the family business of selling fruits.
“That is our family business since the past 70 years,” he said.
“My grandfather, father, and uncle have been working on it. It is not that if I am playing for India, my father will stop working. My father always tells me that we will remain where we have risen from. I come from an average family. I feel very happy that I have made my father proud.”
The first T20I between India and South Africa will be played in Delhi on Thursday, June 9, 2022.
