Eid comes early for Lucknow boy Zeeshan Ansari, shines on his IPL debut

LUCKNOW: From playing gully cricket to making an impressive IPL debut, Lucknow's Zeeshan Ansari has come a long way. He showcased his skills with a three-wicket haul in his first-ever match for Sunrisers Hyderabad. Although his team lost to Delhi Capitals by seven wickets in Visakhapatnam on Sunday, he impressed everyone with his valiant effort, dismissing big names like KL Rahul, Faf du Plessis, and Jack Fraser-McGurk.
A former India Under-19 cricketer, Zeeshan represented Meerut Mavericks in last year's UP T20 League, where he emerged as the tournament's leading wicket-taker with an impressive tally of 24 scalps.
Sharing his thoughts with TOI, Zeeshan said, "I was very excited and a bit nervous before taking the field. My first over didn't go well because I was overwhelmed by the massive crowd, but in the second over, the ball started landing in the right places."
When asked about his experience with the franchise so far, he said, "During the team meeting before my debut, every team member congratulated me."
"It's my good fortune that the person whose bowling I have followed since childhood is now the coach of my team. I have watched Daniel Vettori and Muttiah Muralitharan a lot since I was a kid, and now I have the opportunity to learn from them. I often discuss variations with Muttiah Muralitharan," he added.
"I consider these three wickets on debut as the biggest Eid gift ever," he said.
Meanwhile, Zeeshan's coach, Gopal Singh, said, "Today, I am very happy, and what could be better for a coach than seeing his trained player perform brilliantly in his debut match? Zeeshan has immense potential and has played on big platforms.
He didn't get many opportunities. He performed well in the Ranji Trophy but was benched after just a couple of matches, which left him disappointed. However, the UP T20 League reignited his hopes, and he became the highest wicket-taker with his outstanding performance, which led to his selection by SRH."