Hyderabad: Renowned commentator Padamjeet Sehrawat recently shared that former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra had a playful exchange with his late coach Tarak Sinha and a couple of days later, the left-arm pacer gave a new house key to his coach.
Nehra, who played a pivotal role in India's 2011 ODI World Cup triumph, is known as one of the most entertaining characters in the dressing room and a man with a big heart. Many former cricketers who have shared dressing rooms with Nehra have shared very funny incidents with him.
Speaking at the Richa Jain Kalra's podcast, Padamjeet Sehrawat shared Nehra's heartwarming gesture towards his coach who was struggling with personal issues.
"Once, Nehra was training at Sonet Cricket Club and coach Tarak Sinha was late to reach the ground. Nehra teased his coach, saying, How will you train your students as you himself coming late," said Padamjeet.
"Tarak Sinha replied, "You're an Indian cricketer, you live in a bungalow and I live in a rented house. My house owner has sent a notice that two will have to leave that place within two days. I went to search for a new place and hence got late."
"For the next two days to that banter, the club remained closed due to rain and on the third day, Ashish Nehra got three hours late to reach the club. Reigniting the banter, Sinha sir said, Test player! You were giving wise words that day, what happened to you today?" he added.
"Nehra handed over the key of a house to Sinha revealing that he had bought him a new home to save him from his crisis," Padamjeet concluded.
The incident has also found a place in the book 'Driven- The Virat Kohli Story' by eminent journalist Vijay Lokapally.
Who Was Tarak Sinha?
Tarak Sinha is widely regarded as one of the best cricket coaches in India’s history. He founded the Sonnet Cricket Club in Delhi in 1969, which produced some of the country’s finest cricketers, including Ashish Nehra, Virender Sehwag, Aakash Chopra, Anjum Chopra, and Shikhar Dhawan.
India's current top wicketkeeper-batter, Rishabh Pant, is the latest prominent name to emerge from his academy. He was affectionately known as "Ustaadji" in local cricket circles.
Sinha also served as the head coach of the Indian women's team from 2001 to 2002. In recognition of his contributions, he received the prestigious Dronacharya Award from the Government of India in 2018. Unfortunately, he passed away in 2021 after battling cancer.
