Many of the world’s leading cricketers are travelling from the furthest points of the globe to make it to Abu Dhabi for the start of the T10 this weekend.
None, though, will have faced quite the journey to get here as Shankar Sajjan, even if his home in India is only a relatively short skip away from the UAE.
The 19-year-old leg-spinner has been flown in from Bangalore to act as a net bowler for Delhi Bulls ahead of the tournament starting on Friday.
It is his first trip outside India, and he did not have a passport before the franchise invited him here.
He speaks broken, conversational English, but scarcely any Hindi, which might have been an equally useful lingua franca for his trip. But he has made it here in time.
“I had not expected this type of opportunity to come, but suddenly it happened and I didn’t have a passport,” Sajjan said.
“When I was sent the selection letter, I was able to get a passport in two days only. It took one day more to get the visa, and I immediately got ready to come to Dubai.
“My district [coach] was there. I showed him my selection letter. They have always supported my cricket career. He made some calls, and got it processed by speed post.
“It is my first tour outside the country. My mind has been very excited. I woke up at 3.30am, had to be at the airport two hours before the 7am flight.
“I got my passport and ticket. After that, I didn’t know where to go, where was the flight. I got confused. I asked someone, ‘Sir, where is the flight gate’. I managed to get to the gate, and got to Dubai.”
Sajjan’s big adventure might have been a daunting one, were it not for the fact he is well used to coping with challenges. Because of a congenital chromosome imbalance, Sajjan was born with incomplete upper limbs.
Despite being “physically challenged,” as he terms it, he has already become a cricketer of renown in his home state of Karnataka.
The Bulls have taken the chance on him because they know his credentials.
He bowled to Afghanistan’s players ahead of their first Test, in Bangalore last year, and has also been employed in a similar role for the city’s Indian Premier League franchise, Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Sajjan said he has does not want to be defined by his condition, but hopes he can inspire others.
“When I was taken to the doctor [as a small child], they said I would not be able to have straight arms, because there are no big bones here,” Sajjan said, pointing at his shortened forearms.
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20 players to watch at the Abu Dhabi T10 League
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1 Yuvraj Singh (Maratha Arabians) A World Cup winner in both T20 and 50-over formats, Yuvraj will become the highest profile Indian yet to feature in the T10 competition. Now 37, the left-hander was a big-money recruit for Maratha Arabians. AFP -
2 Sandeep Lamichhane (Karnataka Tuskers) Only turned 19 in August, but the Nepal leg-spinner has quickly become a go-to bowler in franchise leagues around the world. Few players have travelled more than Lamichhane has during the past 18 months. Chris Whiteoak/The National -
3 Sheldon Cottrell (Deccan Gladiators) The left-arm quick was one of the breakout stars of the 50-over World Cup in England because of his spectacular fielding, his fast bowling, and arguably the most distinctive celebration in the game. Getty Images -
5 Andre Russell (Northern Warriors) Does anybody in world cricket hit the ball further than Russell? Injuries might have prevented him from reviving his international career at the World Cup in the summer, but he is back to help Northern Warriors defend their title. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
6 Paul Stirling (Delhi Bulls) The best player in the first T10 league two years ago, having come into that on the back of a series with Ireland against Afghanistan in the UAE. He has done the same this time, thriving in Abu Dhabi as Ireland qualified for the T20 World Cup. Pawan Singh / The National -
7 Tom Banton (Qalandars) The opener turned 21 on Monday, while flying from New Zealand to Abu Dhabi for this tournament. He was highly sought after at the T10 draft, even though he had yet to make his England debut at that point. Getty Images -
8 Paras Khadka (Team Abu Dhabi) Rarely spotted in franchise competition, which is odd for a number of reasons. First, he is a big-hitting allrounder and fine fielder. Second, he is a great leader. And third, he will attract millions of followers from Nepal just by being involved. Satish Kumar for the National -
9 Mohammed Usman (Delhi Bulls) The Bulls franchise may have changed its name from Bangla Tigers, but one thing remains the same: the extent to which they value Usman. He was the best performing UAE player in the T10 last year, and is on form, having excelled in the T20 World Cup Qualifier in Abu Dhabi last month. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
11 Mohammed Shahzad (Deccan Gladiators) The Afghanistan wicketkeeper had the extraordinary strike rate of 462.5 in making 72 not out in 16 balls for Rajputs against Sindhis last year. It was the innings that launched the 2018 season, and revised what was thought possible of batsmen. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
12 Nicholas Pooran (Northern Warriors) The left-hander scored the most runs (324) and hit the most sixes (33) in the league last season, as he underpinned the Northern Warriors’ title charge. Light on runs of late, but expect him to bounce back. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
13 Eoin Morgan (Delhi Bulls) Some of his hitting when Kerala Kings won the first T10 final in 2017 was scarcely believable. He was finding that range again when he hit England’s fastest T20 half-century, from 21 balls, against New Zealand last week. AFP -
14 Moeen Ali (Team Abu Dhabi) Moeen might have fallen down the pecking order for England lately, but it feels like just a matter of time before he bounces back. Recruited as the star player for T10’s newest franchise, Team Abu Dhabi. Getty Images -
15 George Munsey (Northern Warriors) The Scotland opener has enjoyed a breakout year. He is far more than a one-trick pony, but on the evidence of the T20 World Cup Qualifier, bowlers will want to steer clear of his reverse-sweep. Getty Images -
16 Andre Fletcher (Bangla Tigers) The Grenada opener was one of the most sought after wickets in T10 last season, when he finished second behind Pooran in the run-scoring charts, while playing for the now-defunct Pakhtoons. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
17 Hazratullah Zazai (Maratha Arabians) If he can reprise the feats of last year, it bodes well for Maratha Arabians. Back then, he hit six sixes in an over in the Afghanistan Premier League, and went on to finish sixth in the run-scoring charts in the T10 League. Satish Kumar for the National -
18 Rameez Shahzad (Team Abu Dhabi) One place per side in T10 is reserved for a UAE player. Team Abu Dhabi could realistically select two every time they take the field, with Rameez and Rohan Mustafa two of the outstanding players in the country. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
19 Will Jacks (Delhi Bulls) Not part of the initial draft that took place last month, but Delhi Bulls have good memories. Jacks was the first player to hit a T10 century in competition, when he did so at a pre-season tournament in Dubai back in March. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
20 Corey Anderson (Team Abu Dhabi) The burly left-hander has not featured in international cricket since playing for New Zealand in a T20 series against Pakistan in the UAE last year, but he remains well-regarded in franchise cricket. Chris Whiteoak / The National
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“My mother and father worried how my life would be. How would their son [live his life]? But I have not stopped myself.
“Life is only one chance. Whatever comes to me in my life, I take positives from inside, and try to inspire others.
“I know who I am, what are my strengths, and what I can do. I don’t mind what people talk about me.”
Sajjan earns his livelihood coaching junior cricketers in Bangalore, where he now lives. His family home is a small village, 10 hours’ drive from Karnataka’s state capital.
It is a journey his father, who works for a private agriculture company, first made when his son showed promise for the sport, with the intention of getting him enrolled at a cricket academy in the city.
Guttappa Sajjan’s feeling was a shrewd one. In 2015, his son was one of just 21 selected from over 3,000 aspiring players at a spin-bowling talent hunt run by Anil Kumble.
It was a remarkable achievement, not just for the obvious reasons, but also for the fact Sajjan had only recently converted to bowling spin, and was new to using a leather cricket ball.
“When I first went to the academy in Bijapur, I started as a medium-pace bowler,” said Sajjan, who is taking a break from acting in a Bollywood movie about a team of disability cricketers to be in Dubai.
“But when I bowled, I found the ball would turn automatically [from leg to off] like that. My coach said, if the ball is turning, try to be a leg-spin bowler.”
His previous experiences of bowling to the IPL stars of RCB, and Rashid Khan’s Afghanistan, mean he is not entirely overawed by mixing with the likes of Eoin Morgan, Stephen Fleming, and all the other Delhi Bulls players.
“Delhi Bulls team is different, though,” he said. “When I bowled to Afghanistan, I bowled, then went straight home.
“When I bowled to RCB, I bowled, then after that went home. Now, with Delhi Bulls, I am totally involved with the team.
“I stay with the team, support the team, and this is one of the special moments of my life. I will never forget this moment in my life.”
