From Haryana to Baroda to Rajasthan to Australia, Deepak Hooda makes his way to the big stage

From young to experienced, many are set to play their first T20 World Cup when action gets underway Down Under. Before the first ball is bowled, Firstpost.com brings to you FirstCup – a special series where we chart journeys of T20 World Cup debutants.

Sports biopics are certainly in flavour these days and India all-rounder Deepak Hooda, still early in his career, has already provided a mouth-watering script. This journey from ‘who-da?’ to ‘Hooda’ is a perfect blend of emotions, drama, ups and downs, and entertainment. And most importantly an inspiration to keep the fight alive even when the odds are not in your favour.

Early stage

Born in Rohtak, Hooda didn’t get much support to pursue cricket in his initial days but the 11-year-old kid had all the clarity about what he wanted to do in life and his father Jagbir Hooda, who was an Air Force employee and also a Kabaddi player, enrolled him at the Youth Friends Cricket Club in Delhi.

He used to bowl spin in the beginning but his coach Ravinder Paul Sharma wanted him to concentrate more on batting and also focus on wicket-keeping. Trying his hand at nearly everything in early days allowed Hooda to become a fine all-rounder who can bat anywhere, chip in with few overs and is a gun fielder.

“I enjoyed bowling even in my early cricketing days, but when I started playing club cricket my coach made me a wicketkeeper-batsman. The first two years of my cricket career I played as a ‘keeper-batsman,” Hooda had told Punjab Kings’ (his former IPL team) official website.

Keeping stint, however, didn’t last long as his “knees used to pain a lot” and he would eventually focus more on batting and bowling.

“I got to be in the playing eleven back then just because I agreed to become a wicketkeeper because the senior team did not have anyone for that position. But keeping in the nets all day was difficult for me as a youngster because my knees used to pain a lot,” he said.

“I began working on my batting because I didn’t want to play as a keeper anymore. Back then, my brother and I used to play together and we used to bowl to each other and help improve the other. I liked to be active on the cricket field, be it bowling, batting or fielding,” said Hooda.

From Haryana to Baroda

Hooda’s started making the right noises at a very young age. The right-hander was 14 and was playing for the Kendriya Vidyalaya U-17 team in the year 2009 where he showed glimpses of his talent at the School Games Federation India. In the same year, he got a call-up to train at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore that eventually helped him make a place for himself in Baroda’s U-17 and U-19 teams.

The all-round show at 2014 U19 World Cup

The U19 World Cup has acted as a springboard for many cricketers in the past and it was no different for Hooda. The Indian side, in the 2014 edition, didn’t lift the cup but Hooda made his presence felt by becoming India’s second-highest run-getter, scoring 235 from six games at an average of 78.33 and also bagged 11 wickets.

This was probably one of the reasons that forced Bharat Arun, India’s coach at the Under-19 World Cup, to call him an “exciting all-round package”.

“One thing he really practised was big hitting. He is a very good bowler as well in limited overs, and was one of the best fielders in the Under-19 World Cup. All combined, he was an exciting all-round package,” Arun told ESPNcricinfo.