Yash Dayal charts his way back to the top
His confidence was shattered after being hit for five consecutive sixes in the last IPL season but he has finally managed to put that behind him.
Ups and downs are part of everyone’s life and few cricketers will know that better than Yash Dayal. After being hit for five consecutive sixes in the last edition of the Indian Premier League, the pacer seemed low on confidence but he now feels ready to make his presence felt in the 2024 season. A ₹5 crore contract for the new season to play for Royal Challenger Bangalore is further proof that the team trusts his talent as well.
“It was a nightmare when I was hit for five consecutive sixes. I was disappointed too but didn’t lose heart and I knew that I would come out of this trauma soon and back on track, and I did the same thing,” said Yash, a day after bagging the new contract from the RCB on Thursday.
“Everyone came to my support after those sixes but the biggest push was from my father Chandrapal Dayal, who taught me the hard facts of the game as a father as well as a former cricketer too. He only told me to stay positive and keep working hard as such things happen in everyone’s life and one should not stop doing the hard work,” said Yash, 28, who also draws inspiration from England’s Stuart Broad.
Despite being struck for six successive sixes by Yuvraj Singh in the 2007 T20 World Cup, Broad went on to become one of the few bowlers in world cricket to take 600 Test wickets. "I always try to learn from Broad, who finished his career with 600 Test wickets even after being hit for six sixes off consecutive deliveries,” said Dayal, who wants to let his bowling do the talking for the Lucknow Falcons in the UPT20 League.
After a successful start for Gujarat Titans in 2022 with 11 wickets and an economy of 9.25, Yash went through his bad phase in the next season, getting just two wickets in five matches. But he seems to have got his act together and he showed that by bagging 13 wickets for home side Uttar Pradesh in domestic cricket, including 3/17 in a Vijay Hazare Trophy against Arunachal Pradesh this month.
“Domestic matches helped me win back my confidence after the last IPL season, and I would love to continue my form in the further matches, including the Ranji Trophy, starting next month,” said Yash, who finished his one-week's training at the NCA on Thursday.
Dayal said that those five sixes taught him a big lesson in life, and he will try not to repeat those mistakes again. “The UPTwenty20 League has boosted my confidence ahead of the new domestic season. I am focused on the process and trying to learn from my mistakes of the past so that they can’t be repeated,” said Yash, who took nine wickets in UPT20 League.
Yash’s father Chandrapal, who himself played for Allahabad University in Vizy Trophy, said that those five sixes by Rinku Singh were tough to digest for the family. “Even my wife didn’t have food on that day, and everyone was upset at home, but we didn’t lose heart and stood like rock behind Yash,” said Chandrapal, who taught the finer points of the game to his son in the early days.
