Indian Premier League (IPL) has been providing emerging cricketers with opportunities to prove their worth for years. In 2023, Maharashtra’s Tushar Deshpande garnered everybody’s attention as he flourished well in yellow jersey, under the watchful eyes of MS Dhoni. The right-arm quick became the first-ever impact player in the IPL history. Though the beginning of his journey as CSK’s frontline bowler wasn’t that impactful, he improved with every game and is now among the top wicket-takers of the season.
Born in a middle-class family, Tushar has always dreamt to be a cricketer. He started playing when he was in fourth grade and gradually began to practice twice a day, simultaneously managing his studies.
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Tushar’s Coach Samanini recalls how his ward developed the habit of playing under the sun. The former used to study outdoors in broad daylight and on being asked why would he do so, his answer was simple. He wanted to play under the sun so getting used to it in that way.
Whenever a boy from a middle-class household reaches the top of his professional life, his humble upbringing helps him remain grounded. Tushar also has a similar story. His mother’s demise a couple of years shattered him completely but his fighting spirit helped him defy all the odds and reach where he is at the moment.
“Tushar’s mother died two years back. But he has inherited the fighting spirit and this is the reason that today he is at the top but his feet are firmly on the ground. Despite his success, he has not forgotten the words of his mother,” said Samanini.
It was his never-give-up attitude that even during the lockdown, he kept his training on. He had requested to get the gym established in the field itself. He brought all his equipment to the ground in Kalyan where he used to practice and asked all his fellow players to use the facility.
“Whenever he is in Kalyan, he practices at the Wayle Nagar ground and uses this gym”, said his coach.
Tushar’s father, Uday Deshpande, reflects on his son’s hard work, recalling how he managed to make it to the professional cricket circuit of Maharashtra without shifting his base to Mumbai.
“One needs to toil hard to become a cricketer. I used to play cricket in my childhood but I had never thought that one day I would become a professional player,” said Tushar’s father.
“But after Class X, he decided to make cricket his career. A player is needed to give five to six years to this game and he too had to give this much time to cricket. He used to toil hard at the cricket ground in Kalyan. He was a student of KC Vidyalay and even his school encouraged him. So there was no need to go to Mumbai and get admission in a school there,” he added.
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Tushar has played in the IPL for the last three seasons but this year he has emerged as one of the crucial players in the CSK camp. After making his first-class debut in 2016 for Mumbai, he has played 29 games so far and has taken 80 wickets with the best figures of 6 for 70.
“Tushar is a good-natured man. Ground staff at Wayle Nagar ground fondly remember him. I do not know what he wants but all the gardeners at this ground know what he needs. As a father, I am proud of him,” said Tushar’s father.
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