Akash became the 313th player to earn a test cap for India

You have worked hard to reach here: Dravid

Akash Deep bagged 3 top order wickets on debut

With the Indian Cricket Team opting to rest pacer Jasprit Bumrah in order to manage workload, Right-arm fast bowler from Bengal Akash Deep got an opportunity to make his debut in test cricket in the 4th test match between India and England being held in JSCA Intrnational Stadium in Ranchi. 

What an absolute beautiful speech by Rahul Dravid to Akash Deep on his Test debut.

– Rahul Dravid. 🫡👌pic.twitter.com/Onv9wWrI4t

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) February 23, 2024

He became the 313th player to earn a test cap for India. “Akash, your journey started from a place named Baddi, which is roughly 200 km from here. You have faced a lot of hardships in this journey. You have worked hard. You have seen a lot of ups and downs. You, on your own, moved from Baddi to Delhi to play cricket. You were inspired by the 2007 T20 World Cup win. You stayed alone in Delhi and put in the effort. Then you moved to Kolkata from Delhi. You played domestic cricket and put up impressive performances. Your journey has taken you to Ranchi, which is 200km closer to your village and you are going to get your India cap here today. Please enjoy this moment and this match. You have worked hard to reach here. This has been your dream. We are happy that we are here with you to fulfil this dream. Enjoy these five days and your entire career. With great joy, I present to you India Test Cap No, 313,” Indian coach Rahul Dravid said while handing him the test cap. 

Akash Deep has been very impressive with the ball so far, having bagged 3 wickets in 15 overs with all three of them being top order batsmen. It would suffice to say that the Indian Cricket Team has a problem of plenty as far as balance in the pace bowling department is concerned.