Chennai: T. Natarajan’s journey from a nondescript village of Chinnappampatti in Salem district to the glitzy Indian Premier League is nothing short of a fairytale. Cricket wasn’t Natarajan’s priority while growing up in a family that struggled all along to make ends meet. As the eldest of five siblings including three sisters, Natarajan was always worried about taking care of his family. His mother still runs a street-side snack stall, selling fried chicken, to support his father, a daily wage worker in a textile unit. After the IPL jackpot, life will never be the same again for Natarajan’s family.
"The first thing I told my parents was to stop working from tomorrow. In fact I have been telling them to do so ever since I started playing for Tamil Nadu. They have been shouldering the burden all these years," said Natarajan.
As Kings XI Punjab’s Virender Sehwag completed the purchase of the left-arm pacer for a whopping Rs 3 crore from a base price of Rs 10 lakh, Natarajan couldn’t believe what he saw on TV. "I felt overwhelmed and would have cried had my parents been with me here," said Natarajan who watched the IPL auction at the guesthouse of his employer, Chemplast Sanmar, where he has been given free accommodation for the past three years.
The 25-year-old said he would pay off the debts his parents have incurred to build a small house recently. "That would be a big relief for me. Three of my four siblings are still studying and one sister recently got married. And I’m not going to splurge on cars or bikes. My biggest worry now is how I’m going to repay faith Kings XI Punjab have reposed in me," added Natarajan who is known for his lethal yorkers in death overs.
Things turned around pretty fast for Natarajan who was playing tennis-ball cricket in Salem before he moved to Chennai in 2011 to play lower division cricket. The meteoric rise continued as he made his Ranji debut in 2015 against Bengal at the Eden Gardens. But the jubilation didn’t last long as he was reported for suspect action in the same match.
"I feared my career was over. If not for the encouragement from my well-wisher A. Jayaprakash, I wouldn’t have continued. I also have to thank former state cricketers Sunil Subramanian, D. Vasu and M. Venkatarama who helped me during the difficult phase of action correction. The inaugural TNPL where I made my comeback was the turning point," said Natarajan.
Painter’s son makes it to KKR
Along with M. Ashwin (Delhi Daredevils) and Natarajan, all-rounder Sanjay Yadav was the third cricketer from TN to be picked in the IPL-10 auction on Monday. The 22-year-old from Hosur, son of a painter, was also a beneficiary of the inaugural TNPL. A hard-hitting left-handed batsman, Sanjay bowls left-arm spin. Sanjay, who played for Thiruvallur Veerans in the TNPL, will turn out for Kolkata Knight Riders.
Sanjay was born in Uttar Pradesh before his family moved to Hosur 15 years ago. "My father should be the happiest man in the world today. He has spent all his hard-earned money on me and my brother who plays for the state junior team. I can’t believe I would be sharing the dugout with so many star cricketers," said Sanjay, a second year statistics student of Loyola.
