'Had a job offer at the CAG office' - Kuldeep Sen recalls story ahead of IPL trials

Madhya Pradesh pacer Kuldeep Sen impressed on his debut IPL appearance for Rajasthan Royals (RR), where he defended 15 runs in the last over and helped his team secure a victory against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). All of his deliveries clocked speeds of 140+ in the last over as he managed to contain Marcus Stoinis, who was going all guns blazing. Sen finished with figures of 1/35 off four overs.

Royals posted an interview with Sen on their official website, where the fast bowler revealed about a job offer he had at the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in Gwalior ahead of IPL trials. He also mentioned the expectations people had as he comes from a small town, Rewa. Sen told that head coach Kumar Sangakkara and Director of Cricket Zubin Bharucha were impressed by his performances during the trials.

“From where I belong, only Ishwar bhaiyya (Ishwar Pandey) had played in the IPL until now. So people here had a lot of expectations from me and supported me at all times. I gave many trials, but nothing seemed to work out. When I got a call-up for the Rajasthan Royals trials, I had a job offer in Gwalior at the C&AG office, where another trial was waiting for me. I went to Nagpur first and did my best to impress Sanga sir and Zubin sir. They were happy with the way I bowled, so I was hopeful things would work out for me,” said Sen.

Sanju Samson backed my skills: Kuldeep Sen

Kuldeep revealed Sanju Samson backed his skills and told him to perform as he does in domestic cricket. Both players faced each other in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22 match between Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. In the match against LSG, the four main players had bowled their full quota of overs, and it was upon Sen to ensure to ensure a victory for his side.

“I knew that if I executed my plans to perfection, I’d be successful. The idea was not to bowl any extras in that over, not to try anything new, and just stick to my usual plans. Sanju came to me and told me to bowl the way I do in domestic cricket. He backed my skills and told me not to worry about the result and just go for it,” Sen added.