Prince Yadav: From escaping dad’s beatings to beating batters with pace in IPL 2026

NEW CHANDIGARH: It was not long ago that Prince Yadav would get a frequent thrashing from his father for loitering around in the neighbourhood playing tennis-ball cricket. Till the age of 17, Prince played every tennis-ball cricket match in Dariyapur Khurd, a village beyond Virender Sehwag’s birthplace, Najafgarh, in the southwestern outskirts of the Capital.

“Bahut maar khaata thaa ghar pe. (I used to get a lot of beating at home),” says the LSG pacer, with a mischievous smile during a chat with TOI here, “I never aspired to become a professional cricketer. The thought never even crossed my mind. I just enjoyed playing tennis-ball cricket and did nothing else.”

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At first glance, it’s hard to imagine Prince as a fast bowler. He doesn’t stand very tall and the ultralean physique could be very misleading. His father’s (a retired Railways Police Force personnel) concerns were legitimate. The family’s earnings largely depended on farming wheat, perhaps Prince didn’t seem to be adding anything to it. But the irony is that he is still into playing tennis-ball cricket at the age of 24, even as he is fast becoming a stand-out uncapped Indian fast bowler in the IPL.

“I still play tennis-ball cricket even after coming back from last year’s IPL. I can’t speak for everyone, but it helps me with my arm speed because you need to put in a lot of effort to bowl fast with the tennis ball. Yorker zorr se lagta hain (you can bowl a quick yorker),” he says before quickly adding, “Whenever I get time off from cricket, I go to the farms. I am in love with farming. We harvested wheat just a few days back.”

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On Sunday, Prince came out of the massacre caused by Punjab Kings batters with figures of 2/25 in his four overs. He has been known for his yorkers in Delhi cricket. This year, though, he looks like a more rounded bowler. LSG bowling coach Bharat Arun claims he has all the ingredients to make him a special fast bowler. “We have seen that he can get the ball to swing and also has variations. He has got a good variety of slower balls and the yorkers. And he works very hard towards sharpening those skills whenever he gets a chance to bowl,” Arun says.