Kolkata, Nov 26 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh wicketkeeper-batter Aryan Juyal still remembers every second of the moment that changed his cricketing journey in his early days at Mumbai Indians ahead of IPL 2022.
One morning at the nets before IPL 2022, MI mentor Sachin Tendulkar — his childhood hero — walked up to the young Juyal, who was focused on batting with a positive intent.
Tendulkar watched him bat and gave him an invaluable life lesson: “You don’t need to be the next big MI superstar; just be the best version of yourself.” “We were playing in the nets, I saw him coming, then he came and stood on my net,” the UP opener remembered after a match-winning 93 not out against Goa in their Syed Mushtaq Ali opening game here on Wednesday.
“After batting I went to him, he said 3-4 lines, which came out of my mind, because I was so awestruck, that my idol is standing in front of me.” “He helped me a lot, he told me small things, that no one can do what Aryan can do. So you have to do what you do, you have to improve that, you don’t have to do the work of (Kieron) Pollard, you don’t have to do the work of Rohit Sharma, you have to do what you do.” That was the first time he wore the MI blue and for a moment, the path looked straight. But a knee injury that struck during the Deodhar Trophy, derailed everything. He missed the UP T20 League, missed an IPL season, and could not even put his name in the IPL 2023 auction.
Juyal had to rebuild.
Lucknow Super Giants picked him up next, and though he didn’t get a debut, he insists the dressing room changed him for the better.
“But I’ve got to learn a lot from LSG also, because that whole year there were different players, Rishabh bhaiya (Pant) was there, the support staff was so good, so I got to learn a lot with them.” And the one player who left a mark on him was the one he studied up close: Pant.
“Rishabh bhaiya didn’t have a great time in first 12-13 matches. But he backed his playing style.
“So from this you get to see that your self-belief, you have to stay on that, you have to stay on your game, and in the last match he scored a good 100 (118 not out vs RCB). So, from that you get to learn that you have to back your game, you have to believe in yourself.” Those lessons resurfaced on Wednesday at the Jadavpur University ground, where the 23-year-old played one of his most mature T20 knocks — an unbeaten 93 off 57 balls — to anchor Uttar Pradesh’s challenging 173-run chase against Goa in their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Group B opener.
It wasn’t just a match-winning innings; it looked like a statement to the IPL 2026 auction table slated on December 16 in Abu Dhabi.
“I feel that if I am giving my 100 per cent every day, and I am trying to be one per cent better, I am learning something.” ‘One day, I’ll play for India’ ================== The ambition to play for India remains, he said nonchalantly.
“Obviously, I think that one day I will play for India. If you don’t think that I will go ahead, then there is no use of it.” Born to doctor parents, Juyal is also honest about the weight of expectations.
“I think people have expectations, but I know what I can do, what I can give to the team, how much effort I can give, so I think I am focusing on that.
“It is tough to manage expectations of the family, because they have worked so hard for you, your coaches, your mentors, so it is difficult, but if you focus on today, and give your 100 per cent, then these things will get sidelined.” A keeper-batter with high intent, strong domestic numbers and improving temperament, Juyal could be the one Mumbai Indians may be seeking in the coming times.
He was always an MI fan, and they were the first franchise to take a chance on him, and a reunion in 2026 does not seem far-fetched.
For now, he is doing what Tendulkar told him that day, not trying to be Pollard, not trying to be Rohit, and just be Aryan Juyal. PTI TAP TAP AH AH
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