MUMBAI: Ayush Doseja is living a dream season. Playing in his maiden season in the Ranji Trophy, the 23-year-old Delhi batter is the leading run-scorer of the tournament so far, with 790 runs from six matches at an average of 98.75. His tally includes three centuries and five half-centuries, with a top score of 209 against Hyderabad in Hyderabad.Delhi’s Ranji campaign, however, has gone the other way. Winless after six matches, the team is out of contention for a place in the knockout stage. In an otherwise difficult season, Doseja’s run-scoring has been the one consistent positive for the side.
On Wednesday morning, Doseja suddenly learnt that he will be Delhi’s stand-in-captain for the last league match of the Ranji Trophy against Mumbai at the Mumbai Cricket Association’s ground in BKC, which starts from Thursday.Besides notching up a flurry of good scores, the youngster seems to have relished a rare opportunity to interact with modern-day cricket legend Virat Kohli, when the former India captain was a part of the Delhi dressing room during the Vijay Hazare Trophy recently. While he didn’t get a chance to bat with Kohli, Doseja did receive some vital advice from the cricketing superstar.“Virat sir has been my idol since childhood. I follow his diet and fitness regime a lot. I talked to him a lot when I was with him during the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He said that ‘if you are on the ground and can’t give your best, if you don’t give 200%, then there is no point in playing.’ Whenever I get down on the ground, I take this mindset that I have to play cricket with 200% effort. I didn’t play a match with him. I only got a chance to play after he left, but he did give me a lot of tips,” Doseja told reporters at BKC.The young gun would’ve made his debut last season, but for an ankle injury that he suffered. “I twisted my ankle last year, before I was supposed to make my (First-Class) debut. After that, I had the mindset that I have to work on my injury. For two-three months, I prepared for the red ball. It went well, and I am very happy with the season,” he said. Doseja didn’t seem perturbed by the sudden challenge of captaining Delhi, and that too against a heavyweight team like Mumbai. “I have played against Mumbai at the Under-23 level, but this is my first time playing against Mumbai at the senior level. This is my first time playing as a captain at the senior level. It’s a very good experience. I believe in destiny a lot. God has given me the opportunity and I will grab it. It will be a very big experience for me. I will focus on my batting and what I am doing well. I have spoken to the players and they are all positive for tomorrow’s match. It feels good to play such a big side against Mumbai. Everyone is happy and will try to do well as a unit,” he said.Delhi are out of contention for a knockout berth in this edition of the Ranji Trophy, but Doseja said that won’t demotivate the side for the match against Mumbai. “We will take a nothing-to-lose attitude from here, because there’s everything to gain. It’s a big team and every Ranji match is a big opportunity. It’s a live match and it will be watched by the whole of India. All our players are positive and will get a good experience,” he asserted.
