Nisarg Naik: Raising the bar for scouts and helping women’s cricket make a name

Listen to Story Jasprit Bumrah recently became the Player of the Series in India’s two match Test series against South Africa. His rise is known to all, having first played a big stage back in 2013 for the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, do you know that it was for John Wright that Bumrah got a chance to don the MI colours and show the world what he is capable of? Wright, also a former Indian men’s cricket coach, picked Bumrah up through scouting.

There are numerous talents in India waiting to get a chance at a major level. That’s exactly where a scout comes into the picture and helps young cricketers get a proper platform to showcase their skills. 23 year old Nisarg Naik is one of them. Age is a not a factor for the young Nisarg, who has also worked with former Indian cricketer Nooshin Al Khadeer.

Playing cricket remains a dream for Nisarg, having also been picked for state probables, but it is through scouting that he has come up the ranks. For Nisarg, women’s cricket holds a special place in his heart, as he feels that female cricketers deserve equal attention and respect as the ones in the men’s game.

Having also worked in the IPL nets, Nisarg knows about the standards that are needed for players to go big at the highest level. India Today caught up with Nisarg Naik for an exclusive chat where he talked about his methods of scouting and the homework that’s needed to pick players from every nook and corner of the country..