'Coach Killer'- Former India Coach Shares Why Deepak Hooda Was Stopped From Practicing

Former India fielding coach R Sridhar has praised India batter Deepak Hooda for his growth and consistency in the game. He also mentioned that in near future, he sees Hooda as a permanent member in India’s white-ball setup.

Recalling Hooda’s early days in cricket, Sridhar shared a hilarious incident, calling Hooda a “coach killer" during his U-19 days.

“He has come of age. I have known him since his U-19 days, when I was a coach there. [He was] young, enthusiastic, and hardworking. I used to call him a coach killer because he loves to practice and practice. Even during his U-19 days, he used to come up and ask, ‘Sir, let’s do a power-hitting session’. He loved it," recalled Sridhar.

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Sridhar further shared that many a times they had to stop Hooda from playing in power-hitting sessions as he used to hit the ball out of the stadium which meant losing expensive white balls.

“We used to tell him, ‘No Deepak, you are not coming because you are hitting the balls into Cubbon Park (a famous area in Bengaluru) and we are losing expensive white kookaburra balls. You are not supposed to hit the ball there, across the road’. He used to have a laugh," added Sridhar.

Hooda had a great Indian Premier League (IPL) season with Lucknow Super Giants after being purchased for Rs. 5.75 crore in the mega auction. His magical stint in the IPL earned him a spot in the Indian national team. He made his international debut in February this year and showcased some great performances. He scored a ton against Ireland earlier this year and became only the fourth Indian to reach the three-figure mark in T20I cricket.

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In nine T20I matches played so far, Hooda has scored 274 runs at a strike rate of 161.17. With these figures, he has now been named in the Asia Cup 2022 squad and looks a strong contender for the middle-order slot in the T20 World Cup as well.

Earlier, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan also shared his stories about Hooda and praised him for his dedication and hard work. It is to be seen how he capitalises his spot in the upcoming Asia Cup.

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