From a Street Vendor to a Cricket Star: Inspiring Journey of Yashasvi Jaiswal

The most impressive thing about cricket is that anyone can make it big in the game, provided one has talent and passion. Many would argue that getting the right opportunity at the right time also plays an important role in whether you become a successful cricketer or not. And that argument is not false. It’s only that talent and passion outweigh opportunity by a huge margin. Yet not convinced? Well, Yashasvi Jaiswal’s story might well do! In this blog, we will look at cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal’s journey, stats, IPL, social media, etc,

An 11-year-old youngster from a financially challenged background in Uttar Pradesh runs away from his home to Mumbai to live his only passion in life – cricket. He plays cricket during the day, sells ‘Pani Puri’ during the evening, and sleeps under a tent at night. Repeats this process over and over. Five years later, the youngster makes it to the U-19 Indian Team and is bought by an Indian Premier League (IPL) team Rajasthan Royals for a whooping ₹ 2.4 crores. In IPL 2023, Yashasvi scored the fast fifty in IPL history in just 13 balls against KKR.

This is not a plot from some Bollywood movie! This is the real-life, rags-to-riches tale of cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal and how he achieved so much in just under 21 years of age.

Yashasvi Jaiswal Details

Cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal Biography

Yashasvi Jaiswal was born on 28 December 2001 in the small town of Suriyawan, Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh. Hailing from a family of six children, hardships were always there for young Yashasvi. But that wasn’t much of his concern.

The cricket bug had bit Yashasvi in childhood itself. He idolized Sachin Tendulkar and wanted to become a batsman like him. And that was his biggest concern- the lack of cricket played in his neighborhood.

But Yashasvi’s solution to this issue will blow you away – he decided to migrate to India’s financial capital and cricket Mecca – Mumbai.

“I’d heard a lot about how Sachin [Tendulkar] sir and Wasim sir excelled in Mumbai. So, I wanted to come here and do the same,” he remembered.

And as they say, if your intentions are pure, the almighty will help you in achieving them. A golden opportunity arose when his father, Bhupendra Kumar had some work in Mumbai, and Yashasvi happily obliged to accompany him.

Like thousands of others who come to the city with a handful of dreams, he arrived in Mumbai in 2012 and started to live in the bustling area of Dadar in his uncle’s home. However, he had to soon move out owing to the lack of space.

“My uncle’s house wasn’t so big that I could stay there long term, so I began living in a tent.”

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Jaiswal’s interest in cricket led him to join cricket sessions in Azad Maidan, Mumbai. Initially, he started playing in a casual form before taking the game seriously. After some time, he came closer to the ground near Kalbadevi but had no place to stay. A dairy shop owner let him stay at night for menial jobs.

Quite evidently, passion can change everything in a person’s life. Yashasvi had that in oodles and dreamt of achieving what he came for. In an unknown place, far away from family yet passion drove him to what he has done now.

Yashasvi’s time at the dairy shop wasn’t long-lived, as he dedicated more time to cricket. He lost his place in the dairy shop. These were tough times with no place to stay.

But success was written in his destiny; he managed to get a place in the Muslim United Club’s groundsmen’s tent.

Cricket occupied a major part of his time, but money had become an issue. Jaiswal started helping out a food vendor and worked in the tent serving food, sometimes even to his teammates. He, later in a report told that it felt “terrible” but he accepted it because the situation demanded so.

Yashasvi Jaiswal: Change of Fate

Things were going wayward over time; opportunities to play were looking bleak, monetary constraints were higher than ever and cricket was seeming to take a backseat in Yashasvi’s life. But, if these situations did not happen, there would not have been a word called “life-changing” incidents. One such was the entry of Jwala Singh, a cricket coach.

Someone who has churned out talents like Prithvi Shaw, and Jwala Singh came like an angel in Yashasvi’s life. He took the youngster’s responsibility, provided him with a place to stay, and took his legal guardianship and power of attorney. But most importantly, he started nurturing the immense cricketing potential within the little boy.

Just like every person who has made it big in this world, there was someone who played a huge role in making that happen. Jwala Singh, silently worked behind the scenes while Yashasvi rose the ranks of Mumbai cricket.

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Cricket Career

Just like a new bird that loves its maiden flight, Yashasvi was experiencing his own. Under his coach’s able guidance, he quickly rose the ranks and was selected for Mumbai U-16 squad. And having come to Mumbai to play for the city like his idol Sachin Tendulkar, this new opportunity was a dream come true for the youngster.

Now in Indian cricketing circles, if you shine for Mumbai, India’s mecca of cricket, you are one step closer to an India call-up. Donning India colors was a matter of time and he was in the U-19 squad for India’s tour of Sri Lanka.

The 2018 U-19 Asia Cup was the turning point of his life. He started with a hundred and ended up scoring 318 runs, the highest in the tournament, leading India to victory. In his first Youth test debut, he hammered a 173 and led India to a win. Further, he scored four half-centuries against England and Bangladesh in a tri-series that year.

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With consistent performances in age-group tournaments, Yashasvi was ready to make it to the big league. His senior career kicked off with his first-class debut for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy on 7 January 2019 against Chattisgarh.

But just like every other person, there was a moment, yet to arrive would have changed his life for the good. The 2019 Vijay Hazare Trophy was there.

After a couple of good knocks in the first few matches, it was time for the big one. He recorded a 203* with 17 fours and 12 sixes against Jharkhand and became the youngest List A double centurion.

Talking about his desire to play a big knock, he added, “I always wanted to play a big knock, which is a tradition in Mumbai cricket. I am glad that I succeeded.” After his exploits in the Vijay Hazare trophy, he was selected for Deodhar Trophy and the 2020 U-19 Cricket World Cup.

2020 U-19 World Cup

If the 2020 U-19 World Cup is remembered for a player, it has to be cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal. After all, the youngster has been in such a sublime form throughout the tournament. Just a look at his numbers in the competition will help you understand why we say this – 29*, 57*, 62, 105*.

Snapshots from the batting display that was from Yashasvi Jaiswal & Divyaansh Saxena – Kudos Boys 😎💪 #TeamIndia #U19CWC pic.twitter.com/43a4lFgZbZ

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 4, 2020

The last one, particularly, is the sweetest one, since it came in the semifinal against India’s fiercest rival Pakistan. In fact, Jaiswal, in partnership with fellow opener Divyaansh Saxena, literally made a mockery of the miser target of 172 that Pak. With the ten-wicket victory, the youngster guided India into the finals of the competition in the most confident way possible.

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Career Stats

• Batting & Fielding Stats of Yashasvi Jaiswal

FORMAT	Mat	Inns	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
FC	15	26	3	1845	265	80.21	2734	67.48	9	2	227	24	13	0
List A	32	32	4	1511	203	53.96	1753	86.19	5	7	159	36	8	0
T20	55	53	2	1528	124	29.96	1059	144.28	1	8	182	64	18	0

• Yashasvi Jaiswal Bowling Stats

FORMAT	Mat	Inns	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	BBM	Ave	Econ	SR	4w	5w	10w
FC	15	3	48	28	0	–	–	–	3.50	–	0	0	0
List A	32	13	285	257	7	2/31	2/31	36.71	5.41	40.7	0	0	0
T20	55	3	13	30	0	–	–	–	13.84	–	0	0	0

Cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal in IPL

Gaining success in domestic leagues and age-group international tournaments were one thing, but cracking the IPL is just another level. The “rags”-to-“riches” story was just incomplete.

Yashasvi Jaiswal was drafted into the uncapped list in the 2020 IPL Auctions. The teenage prodigy’s exploits were indeed recognized and how! From a base price of ₹ 20 lakhs to ₹ 4 cr is itself a big milestone. Rajasthan Royals acquired the services of Yashasvi Jaiswal for Rs 4.00 Cr in IPL 2023 auction. Yashasvi Jaiswal scored the fastest fifty in history of IPL in just 13 balls. He achieved this milestone against KKR in IPL 2023.

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Yashasvi Jaiswal IPL Stats

• Batting & Fielding IPL Stats | Yashasvi Jaiswal

YEAR	MAT	NO	RUNS	HS	AVG	BF	SR	100	50	4S	6S	CT	ST
Career	35	1	1122	124	33.00	750	149.60	1	7	136	48	12	0
2023	12	1	575	124	52.27	344	167.15	1	4	74	26	6	0
2022	10	0	258	68	25.80	194	132.99	0	2	28	10	2	0
2021	10	0	249	50	24.90	168	148.21	0	1	32	10	3	0
2020	3	0	40	34	13.33	44	90.90	0	0	2	2	1	0

• Yashasvi Jaiswal Bowling IPL Stats

YEAR	MAT	BALLS	RUNS	WKTS	BBM	AVE	ECON	SR	4W	5W
Career	35	1	6	0	0/6	–	36.00	–	0	0
2023	12	0	0	0	–	–	–	–	0	0
2022	10	1	6	0	0/6	–	36.00	–	0	0
2021	10	0	0	0	–	–	–	–	0	0
2020	3	0	0	0	–	–	–	–	0	0

(Data as per 12th May 2023, Credit- IPLt20.com)

Yashasvi Jaiswal Social Media

 

 

 

 

 

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