Rounak Waghela: 17-year-old Delhi’s Jadeja gears up to face his idol in Rajkot

“Baat toh karna, ek selfie bhi leni hai, magar conversation kaise start karoonga, itne bade cricketer hai, match ke baad shayad handshake karte waqt mauka mile(I want to talk to him. I want to click a photo with him. I don’t know how I will start the conversation. He is such a big cricketer. Maybe after the match, while shaking his hand I will get the chance),” Rounak tells The Indian Express in one breath over the phone from Rajkot.

The 17-year-old is named in Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad for the game against Saurashtra in Rajkot after his exploits for Delhi U-23 side. Rounak has picked up 31 wickets in five outings in the Col CK Nayudu Trophy and 22 scalps in 7 Men’s U23 State A Trophy.

The youngster has earned the moniker of Jadeja from his teammates because of his accurate bowling and excellent fielding.

“It feels good to be compared. But Ravindra Jadeja is a different class and to reach his level I will have to work extremely hard. If I will get the chance I will take a few tips from his on bowling and fielding. He is like a cheetah in the field.

“The performances in the U-23 have helped me get in the team. It is a massive opportunity for me. I will get the chance to bowl Rishabh bhaiya in the nets and if lucky, to Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja in the match,” he says.

Rounak Waghela trains at the Venkateshwar Cricket Academy in Dwarka under Devdutt Baghel.”He was seven when he came to our academy. He wanted to be a medium pacer. After three years, I told him to focus on left-arm spin,” Baghel says.

“Once he started bowling left-arm spin, the boys in the academy started calling him Jadeja, Jaddu and the name has struck to him. Initially like any Delhi boy, he was Virat Kohli’s fan but slowly Jadeja took over. He wants to be an excellent fielder like Jadeja. He bats at No 7 and 8.

“With the bat, he has done well at the U-16 level but senior cricket is different but he has worked hard on his batting. He has played a crucial role in East Delhi Riders winning the inaugural Delhi Premier League as well. He bowled the last over in the final,” he adds.

Rounak Waghela with other trainees at the Venkateshwar Cricket Academy in Dwarka. (Express Photo)

Rounak’s father, Deva Ram, runs a small academic coaching centre at his home in JJ Colony in Raghubir Nagar, Tagore Garden in West Delhi. Deva Ram is a maths teacher.

“I used to give private tuitions. I set up this coaching centre very recently,” he says. The father credits Rounak’s success to coach Baghel, who has not taken a penny since the time he joined the academy in 2014.

“I have no contribution to his cricket. I took Rounak and my elder brother’s son Kush to the academy without much thought. Baghel sir liked both of them and since then he has picked both the boys from our house and dropped them off after the training session. Never took any money from us. His name is Dev which means god and he is that for us,” says the father.

Rounak might have lived all his life in Delhi but his roots are from Ahmedabad in Gujarat. “I grew up in Ahmedabad. My father worked there for 30 years. Once he retired, we moved to Delhi, but our roots are from Gujarat” says Deva Ram.

Devdutt who took care of Rounak’s cricket was left emotional when the youngster and his father presented him a cheque of Rs 1,25,000 for the academy from the money that he got after playing BCCI’s U-16 tournament.

“Best moment of my coaching career,” he says. “I told him no I won’t take the money but then he said it is for the academy and the cricketers, who come from humble backgrounds.”