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Prithvi Shaw on Saturday had become the household name and a new inspiration for many cricket aspirants. As he became the toast of the nation for leading India to a fourth U19 World Cup title, Shaw's coach Santosh Pingulkar took a ride down memory lane when he had spotted a talented three-year-old Shaw. Shaw who is already been dubbed as the next Sachin Tendulkar, shot to prominence as a 14-year old when he scored 546 off 330 balls, an innings that contained 85 fours and five sixes, for his school Rizvi Springfield in the Harris Shield, a minors' cricket competition in Mumbai in 2013. Shaw's innings was then the highest score in school cricket. So let us walk down memory lane and see Shaw's journey from Virar to New Zealand.
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1- India's U19 captain's journey started in a modest town in Virar near Mumbai but avenues kept opening for him as he grew as a cricketer. "Prithvi Shaw came to me when he was around three years old. It was a co-incidence when I first spotted him playing on a municipal corporation ground first. I had come to Virar from Aurangabad to take permission for the local ground when I saw him play there," said Pingulkar. (IE)
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2- Prithvi's genius was harnessed to his father Pankaj Shaw's determination. Back then, at 4:30 every morning, 30-year-old Pankaj would wake up before Prithvi to prepare him for the 6:10 Virar local – their only connect to the stadiums of Mumbai. But the 70-km ride between Virar and Mumbai was never an easy one. "If we don't make it for the 6:10 Virar local, it is impossible for my little boy to travel in the crowd with his cricket kit," said Pankaj. (IE)
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3- When Shaw was seven years old, his coach felt that Shaw had the potential to go big and when he was 8-9 years old he played the CPCC tournament organised by Chandrakant Pandit's academy. At nine we sent him for selection for MCA U-14, he got selected for the second round, but in the third round was stopped as he was young. (IE)
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4- Once he started playing the tournaments, Prithvi's cricketing skills saw an upswing. He was the youngest batsman in the 2007 Under-14 Vinoo Mankad Tournament organised by the District Sports Organisation, but caught everyone's eye with his skill. In the 2008 Giles Schools Tournament, an event that was 125 years old at the time, Prithvi scored two half centuries and a 43, scores that helped his school finish runners-up. He scored a half century and a 47 in the Mumbai Under-13 selection matches. (IE)
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5- Shaw said that his favourite cricketer was Sachin Tendulkar. He had already caught the eye of the batting great and Tendulkar gifted him his weapon of choice – a bat. This one was a professional SG bat that suited his size. (IE)
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6- In 2006 Shaw experienced playing on turf-wicket for the first time. He shined in several local tournaments it was then that coach Pingulkar decided his pupil needed to move to Mumbai. (IE)
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7- After moving to Mumbai, Shaw played for MIG, soon he was selected for the U-19 team and the rest is history. "It is sure that he will play for India. It is his luck, that he got a coach like Rahul Dravid, who gave him an opportunity." (IE)
