Saurabh Netravalkar’s coach at the MCA-BKC Academy, Kiran Mokashi (below), was mighty proud of his ward as he stunned Pakistan to cause the biggest upset on the T20 World Cup stage on Thursday. In a Facebook post, Mokashi, the former Mumbai off-spinner, recalled the left-arm fast bowler’s days at the U-19 level. “I remember he had pretty decent pace, but he was a brilliant student,” said Mokashi, stressing Netravalkar scored more than 95  per cent marks in his Class 10 and 12 examinations.

“He would always be scampering from his classes to his cricket sessions. I told him why not concentrate on his academics as the University would not give him concessions for his cricket matches and practice sessions. He would grin and bear it as he was passionate about the game,” wrote Mokashi, who claimed 146 wickets in 47 first-class games. He ended his post with a lesson for young cricketers: “If you desire and love something passionately, the whole ‘kaayanaat’ [universe] gets together to help you achieve your dream.”