Former India U-19 captain Unmukt Chand’s career has been a roller coaster ride with several ups and downs so far. Once regarded as the next big thing in Indian cricket, Chand’s rise to prominence came after he led India to the U-19 World Cup title in 2012. There was no looking back as the talented right-hander went on to lead India A and also bag a lucrative IPL contract.
However, his inconsistent performances coupled with a lack of chances at the domestic level saw Chand’s career go downhill soon. The 28-year-old announced his retirement from Indian cricket recently to move to the USA in search of greener pastures. Chand has been roped in by Silicon Valley Strikers and is currently playing his trade in the Minor League Cricket (MiLC).
Chand had tendered his resignation to the BCCI on August 13 post which it was confirmed by Silicon Valley Strikers that the Indian batsman will be turning up for them in the ongoing season. Chand, who played for Uttarakhand in the 2019/20 season in order to get more opportunities, had returned back to Delhi for the 2020/21 season hoping to play more often.
However, once again lack of chances forced him to take a call on his future. Chand revealed he was not considering heading to the USA a few months back but seeing himself on the bench while ‘XYZ’ players kept getting chances was like a mental torture for him and came as the final nail in the coffin.
“Well yeah, the last couple of years have been a bit tough on me. Last season, I didn’t get a single game for Delhi. And then again, the same regime, I didn’t know whether I’ll get a game again or not. There were so many ‘if nots’, concerns with the domestic cricket in India right now. So, I didn’t want to go through the same process, it was mental torture for me to see myself sitting out and XYZ playing the games, who I wouldn’t even consider in my club teams,” Chand told Sportskeeda.
“So, these things happen and the whole purity goes away. It just didn’t make sense and I just didn’t want to waste any more time thinking whether these guys will play or not. So, when these things start happening, you are just not into it then. Obviously, I have got a limited number of years and I got to play good cricket, and staying in limbo is a very, very bad place to be in,” he added.
Chand played 67 First-Class matches and 120 List A matches where he notched up 3379 and 4505 runs respectively. He scored eight first-class centuries and 16 fifties before quitting Indian cricket. Chand hopes to represent the US national team in the next couple of years.
