2017 IPL auction: I never dreamt that I will play in IPL so soon, says Sanjay Yadav

CHENNAI:

R Sanjay Yadav

's was the last name to feature in the list of players to be picked from the IPL auctions. The left-arm spinning allrounder, who plays in

TNCA

second division league for

TI Cycles

, hardly expected that he would be picked by a franchise. No wonder when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) bagged the 20-year-old for Rs 10 lakhs, Sanjay was elated. "Since a player who plays in

Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

has to give his name for the auctions, I submitted my form… it was by default. Being a second-division player, I never dreamt that I will play in IPL so soon. I hardly care whether I am paid a lot. I am just happy to be picked," Sanjay told TOI on Monday.

Born in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, Sanjay moved to Hosur when he was only eight years old. He started performing in tennis-ball cricket at school before coach Premnath spotted him and advised him to join his camp. However, he would often miss the camp since he didn't have the money to travel. "We are a family of six. Besides my parents, I have two sisters and a younger brother. Being a daily-wage labourer, it was always difficult for my father to provide us with bare essentials. But Premnath offered to help me. In fact, when no one believed I will get picked, it was only Premnath who gave me confidence. So I want to do something for him and his coaching camp with the money," Sanjay said.

Sanjay came to the limelight when he put up an impressive show for VB Thiruvallur Veerans in TNPL. He scored a half-century against Dindigul Dragons and went on to play a few crucial cameos. The performance helped him to get selected in the Tamil Nadu team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. "I was playing for Sea Hawks in the third division last year. Then I was picked by TI Cycles before getting a chance in TNPL. But it was playing in Syed Mushtaq which turned out to be an eye-opener. I saw how the players planned and executed those. I was a bit overwhelmed at first but then coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar and L Balaji guided me," said the Virat Kohli fan.

With Balaji being KKR's bowling coach, will it make him comfortable? "I am a bowler who is well-adept at containing batsmen. It was Balaji who told me that I need to pick wickets if I want to make it big. I started following his advice and started to give the ball more flight. So definitely it will be easier for me to have him in the dressing room," said Sanjay.

Now, the southpaw is looking forward to interact with fellow left-arm spinner and KKR teammate Shakib-al Hasan. "He is a bowler who is good at varying his speed. He can deceive the batsmen with slower ones. So my aim will be to learn all these aspects. If I get a chance, I will also try to make the most of it," said Sanjay.