It was him who told me to stop driving the autorickshaw and devote all my time to cricket: Mohammad Juned Khan

There were quite several Indian Premier League and international superstars who featured for India and the Rest of India in their Irani Cup 2024 tie which was played at the Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. However, the most boisterous ovation came for Mohammad Juned Khan, the right-arm medium-fast who was making his debut for Mumbai.

There was immense reason for the same - after all, his birthplace was just 120 km or so from the venue - prompting many of his extended family members and friends to make it to the stadium to witness history unfold. At the tender age of 14, Juned had to relocate from Kannauj to Mumbai. However, this wasn't the usual tale of an ordinary boy moving to a big city to make his dreams come to fruition. In fact, it was to make ends meet for his family.

“There were problems at home and I had to start working and help the family make ends meet, so I followed in the footsteps of a few elder friends from Kannauj and reached Mumbai,” stated Juned, as quoted by The Hindu.

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He started off working at a garment factory before moving on to start driving an autorickshaw on the bustling streets of Mumbai. It was a coincidence that he came across the Sanjeevani Cricket Academy, which was run by ex-Mumbai wicketkeeper, Manish Bangera. It was at that particular facility in Bandra East that Juned experienced what it felt like charging in with the season ball in his hand for the very first time.

“I didn’t have money to buy spikes but many people helped me out and they backed me to keep playing regularly,” mentioned a grateful Juned.

Had it not been for him, I would have been nowhere near where I am now: Juned

It was the then-assistant coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders, Abhishek Nayar, the current assistant coach of the Indian team, who identified Juned's potential while he was representing the PJ Hindu Gymkhana in the Police Shield when the lockdown was in force.

Juned expressed profound appreciation to Nayar and shared that one of the most special moments for him was when Nayar asked him to be a part of the KKR net-bowling group for the 2024 edition.

"He has helped me in every possible way so far. Had it not been for him, I would have been nowhere near where I am now. It was him to told me stop driving the autorickshaw and devote all my time to cricket. Then, I started training at his academy. When he asked me to join KKR as a net bowler for the last IPL season, it was the best opportunity for me,” added Juned.

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Juned, who looks up to Mohammed Shami, who interestingly also left UP to make his dream an actuality, was drafted for the Buchi Babu and KSCA tournaments, by the chairperson of the selection committee, Sanjay Patil.