Kumar Kartikeya meets family after nine years, pictures go viral

Cricket is a life-changing sport and players give their everything to succeed in this game. Behind the success of every cricketer, there is hard work, perseverance and many sacrifices. These numerous sacrifices pave the way for players to achieve their dreams on the cricket field. Recently, another incredible story of a cricketer’s determination has come to light as Madhya Pradesh spinner Kumar Kartikeya revealed that he met his family after nine years and three months.

The 24-year-old took to Twitter to post a picture with his mother to express his happiness.

“Met my family and mumma after 9 years and 3 months. Unable to express my feelings,” Kartikeya captioned the photograph and shared it with his fans.

The spinner had earlier said that he would return home only after achieving something major in life. Back in May, he shared that he would go home after the completion of the 2022 Indian T20 League where he made his debut.

“I haven’t been home for 9 years. I’d decided to return home only when I achieve something in life. My mom and dad called me frequently, but I was committed. Now, finally, I’ll return home after the Indian T20 League. My coach Sanjay sir had suggested my name for Madhya Pradesh. In the first year, my name came up in the Under-23 team as a standby player, and I felt a huge sense of relief to see my name on the list,” Kartikeya had said in an interaction with Dainik Jagran.

The bowler burst onto the scene as he made his first-class debut in 2018, bowling traditional left-arm spin. The 23-year-old had a turnaround in his career after the Mumbai franchise signed him midway through the Indian T20 League 2022 as he switched to bowling left-arm wrist spin with an array of variations.

He made his Indian T20 League debut in the match against the Chennai Franchise on April 30 at the DY Patil Sports Academy. In four matches, the southpaw went on to pick up five wickets at an economy rate of 7.85.

The greatest achievement of his career so far came in first-class cricket, when he bowled exceedingly well to guide Madhya Pradesh to their maiden Ranji Trophy title in June.

Bowling in the final against Mumbai at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore, Kartikeya picked up five wickets in the match, including a four-wicket haul in the second innings. He ended up with 32 wickets in the season, finishing as the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament.