'Sold house, took loans': Mukul Choudhary's father recounts sacrifices behind son's rise

JAIPUR: Mukul Choudhary’s father couldn’t go to bed on Thursday night, and on Friday afternoon his voice was still crackling with energy. “I didn’t sleep the entire night. All I’ve done is attend congratulatory calls. Mukul has played such innings in the domestic games as well, so I’m aware of his capabilities. He played similar knocks this season in Mushtaq Ali Trophy against Delhi and Mumbai also,” Dalip Choudhary told TOI from Gudha Gorji, a small town in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan.

Dalip’s drive was fuelled by the ghost of his own unfulfilled talent. “I wanted to play cricket, but that could never happen given lack of financial resources,” he said. In 2015, the family of four uprooted their lives and shifted to Sikar, a district 65 kms away, as Dalip chased his dream of making Mukul a cricketer.

“In Sikar, I enrolled my son in the SBS Cricket Academy, where he trained for four years. We faced a real financial crunch, so in 2017, I sold my small house, which we had built just a few years earlier. It fetched me Rs 21.11 lakh. I also took bank loans and borrowed from relatives and friends, which eventually pushed my debt to Rs 3 crore,” Dalip said.

It was at SBS Academy that the right-handed player transformed from a medium-pacer to a wicketkeeper-batter. During an academy match, the team desperately needed a ’keeper and Mukul was asked to step in. As a devoted MS Dhoni fan, the young boy had no problem switching roles for good.

By 2020, after Mukul had already represented Rajasthan at the U-19 and U-23 levels. His father realised it was time to move to a bigger city. “We moved to Jaipur. He now trains at the Aravali Cricket Academy. He has always stayed with the family. His mother and younger sister live with him in Jaipur and I visit them frequently,” Dalip, who now manages a hotel and property business, said.

“To give him more exposure, last year I took him to meet Yuvraj Singh’s father Yograj, and Rohit Sharma’s coach Dinesh Lad. After seeing Mukul bat, Yograj sir told me that my son will play for India,” the father said with pride.