Behind U-19 star Abhigyan Kundu’s rise: unorthodox coach who made him sleep at railway station and parents who didn’t interfere | Cricket News
When Abhigyan Kundu’s parents first walked into Chetan Jadhav’s cricket academy in Navi Mumbai, their request to the coach was very simple. Their son, they said, was too energetic. He ran endlessly inside the house, refused to sleep, and needed an outlet. If cricket could tire him out enough to ensure a good night’s rest, that would be enough. What they didn’t know then was that this restless energy would soon turn into an unrelenting addiction to cricket. And that they had found a coach with quirky methods that work. Jadhav’s lessons extended well beyond technique. Despite Abhigyan’s comfortable upbringing, the coach made him travel in unreserved train coaches, sleep at a railway station for a night, and share meals with players from far humbler backgrounds. “Cricket alone isn’t enough,” Jadhav explains. “He needs to learn about life.” Inside Jadhav’s office, Abhigyan’s journey is meticulously documented. Files filled with scorecards, printed records of every fifty and hundred, and over 6,000 GB of batting footage chronicle every session, every mistake, every correction. On Saturday, the Mumbai wicketkeeper-batsman …

