Food delivery boy from Chennai selected as net bowler for Netherlands ahead of Cricket World Cup

The eagerly anticipated ICC Cricket World Cup is set to begin from October 5 to November 19. The 2019 World Cup finalists England and New Zealand will square off in the campaign opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium, in Ahmedabad.

The Netherlands cricket team qualified for the marquee event along with Sri Lanka after finishing top in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023 conducted in June in Zimbabwe. The team has already arrived in India for their preparation camp. They had earlier invited applications for local bowlers who could bowl them in the nets.

After considering over 10,000 applications, Lokesh Kumar, who hails from Chennai, was chosen as one of the four bowlers for the program. His selection grabbed attention as he works as a delivery driver for Swiggy. The 29-year-old has started training with the Dutch team and expressed his joy at being recognized for his skills.

Thank you for the overwhelming response to our net bowlers hunt, India. Here are the 4 names who will be part of the team's #CWC23 preparations. 🙌 @ludimos pic.twitter.com/arLmtzICYH

— Cricket🏏Netherlands (@KNCBcricket) September 19, 2023

Two youngsters have been contributing to IPL while one bowler has been in action at the University level

Notably, three youngsters viz- Hemant Kumar, Rajamani Prasad, and Harsh Sharma are the other three players who were selected for the Netherlands' preparation camp ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023. Hemant is a left-arm pacer from the village of Churu in Rajasthan. He works as an Assistant Administrative Officer at the Rajasthan High Court. He was chosen as a net bowler for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2022 and Rajasthan Royals in 2023, respectively.

Prasad, who hails from Telangana, has previously engaged in the game. He was a member of the Hyderabad Cricket Association and is currently a net bowler for the five-time Indian Premier League champions, Chennai Super Kings.  Harsh, a left-arm orthodox spinner, was part of the team that won the North Zone Inter University Championship and finished second at the All India Inter University Championship. The Haryana-born player was also a part of the RCB camp that was held in Mumbai in 2022.