Gaud nearly quit cricket in 2024, reveals childhood coach Bilthare

Indian women’s team pacer Kranti Gaud’s maiden fifer (5-37) on Saturday helped the visitors bundle out England for 170 and secure a commanding 115-run first-innings lead in the ongoing Test at Lord’s.

It also ensured Ghuwara-based Gaud, 22, in only her second Test, became the first woman to have her name etched on the Lord’s Honours Board. All centurions and five-wicket takers have their names etched on the prestigious board. betsport24.es

Rajiv Bilthare

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However, Gaud’s childhood coach, Rajiv Bilthare, has revealed that she had considered quitting cricket a couple of years ago. Gaud was just 13 when her father brought her to Sai Sports Academy for coaching in 2017.

“In 2018, Kranti played for the MP U-15 team and thanks to her performances, the MPCA [Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association] gave her a chance in the U-19 team too. However, she struggled from 2022 to 2024 while being part of both, the U-22 and senior women’s teams, as she was not getting a place in the playing XI regularly. She was distraught and returned to home [Ghuwara], and did not come to the academy for 10 days. So, I went to her house to check on her and she said, 'Sir, nothing is going well and I don't want to play.’ She had made up her mind to leave cricket. I convinced her, saying that every player, be it at the state or even international level, has witnessed such phases. I told her sternly that if she is scared then she should not come to the ground, but if she wants to achieve her dreams, I can help her,” Bilthare told mid-day over the phone from Chhatarpur on Sunday.

Bilthare also sought help from MP team coach Bhawna Shrivastava and Chhattisgarh team coach Shweta Mishra to convince Gaud.

“Kranti’s parents, MP team coach Bhawna and Chhattisgarh team coach Shweta also spoke to her and it worked. Kranti worked harder thereafter and made a strong comeback, taking four or five wickets against Bengal in the final to help MP win the Senior Women’s ODI Trophy in December 2024. She has not looked back since,” Bilthare explained.

London [UK], July 13 (ANI): World No. 1 Jannik Sinner thanked his fans for their unwavering support after successfully defending his Wimbledon men’s singles title.

Taking to X following his victory, the Italian expressed his gratitude to supporters who stood by him throughout the tournament.

“We did it again. Thank you all for the love and support," Sinner wrote on X.

Sinner retained the Wimbledon crown after defeating Alexander Zverev 6-7(7), 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-4 in the men’s singles final.

Sinner also reached a major career milestone as he registered his 100th Grand Slam match victory by defeating Zverev.

The triumph made Sinner the eighth active men’s player to achieve 100 wins at Grand Slam tournaments. He joins an elite list featuring Novak Djokovic, Stan Wawrinka, Marin Cilic, Alexander Zverev, Gael Monfils, Kei Nishikori and Grigor Dimitrov.

The 24-year-old now boasts a 100-22 win-loss record at Grand Slam events, giving him a win percentage of over 82 per cent. His recent record at the sport’s biggest tournaments has been particularly impressive.

Since recording his 39th Grand Slam victory in the opening round of the 2024 Australian Open, Sinner has compiled a remarkable 62-6 record in majors. During that period, his only defeats have come against Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Novak Djokovic and Juan Manuel Cerundolo.

Among active players with at least 100 Grand Slam match wins, only Djokovic owns a better winning percentage than the Italian.

Sinner’s first Grand Slam match victory came at the 2020 Australian Open against Max Purcell. Earlier during this year’s Wimbledon, he also became the Italian man with the most Grand Slam singles match wins, surpassing the previous national record with his 95th major victory after defeating Nuno Borges in the second round.

The Italian has enjoyed particular success against American Ben Shelton at Grand Slam events, recording four victories over the left-hander across Wimbledon and the Australian Open in recent seasons. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

India vs England 2026: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became the youngest-ever debutant for Team India in men’s cricket at the age of just 15 years and 99 days just a couple of weeks back. But since then nothing much has gone right for Rajasthan Royals as he was dropped from the side for the fifth and final T20I match against England last week after scoring only 42 runs in 3 matches with a top-score of 15.

Sooryavanshi had broken the record of Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, who had made his Test debut against Pakistan at the age of 16 years and 205 days in Karachi in 1989. A lot was expected from Bihar and RR opener after he became the youngest-ever batter to win Orange Cap in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after he scored 776 runs in IPL 2026 season with a strike-rate of 237.3.

He also broke the record for most sixes by any batter in an IPL season, after smashing 72 maximums in IPL 2026. Just days after Team India’s 4-0 whitewash in T20I series vs England, Sooryavanshi has got offer from star India cricket Yuvraj Singh to coach him.

Yuvraj, who is only Indian cricketer to hit six sixes in an over in T20I cricket, has won the ODI World Cup as well as the T20 World Cup with Team India. Speaking to JioStar, former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh expressed his desire to mentor Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the same way he did with Abhishek Sharma.

“I always call myself a Terminator. Now there is Terminator 4, Abhishek Sharma, who is four times better than me. And after him comes Terminator 6, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who has evolved even more. I did my part in my time, Abhishek elevated it, and now Vaibhav is setting new standards. This is the third phase of the same journey.

“It is great to see the sport evolving. When I watch Sinner and Alcaraz, I see how tennis is changing. I see the same evolution in Abhishek and Vaibhav. I have spent a lot of time training Abhishek, and I would love to spend time with Vaibhav as well. He has a great career ahead of him. He is a serious player in the making, and I believe he will get there,” Yuvraj added.

Every champion starts with an idol. #VaibhavSooryavanshi and #AbhishekSharma open up about their admiration for #YuvrajSingh, sharing what it means to learn from one of India’s greatest match-winners!

A special Wimbledon conversation that brings together an icon and two of… pic.twitter.com/eqDLGkkGVY

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) July 12, 2026

Apart from Abhishek Sharma, Yuvraj Singh has been mentor of other Indian cricketers like Prabhsimran Singh from Punjab. According to various reports, Yuvraj is in line to become the new batting coach of Delhi Capitals team from the IPL 2027 season.

Speaking to JioStar, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi shared his experience of meeting Yuvraj Singh. “Yuvi Paaji is my idol too. Meeting him for the first time was a special moment. I got to spend time with him and he shared a lot of insights about the game. He spoke about the mental side of the game, how to handle pressure, and the importance of believing in yourself. It feels great to have so much to learn from someone like him. I am sure it will help me a lot in my career going forward,” Sooryavanshi said.

Meanwhile, Abhishek Sharma shared his experience of watching the Wimbledon 2026 final with Yuvraj Singh and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

“I can feel what Vaibhav is feeling right now because Yuvi Paaji is my idol as well. I remember when I first met him, it was kind of the same feeling that he’s feeling right now. So obviously, watching my first Wimbledon, and that too the finals, with Yuvi Paaji and Vaibhav, it’s a special day for me,” Abhishek Sharma said.

Someone calls a turf contractor. Gets a quote. Calls another. Gets a completely different number. Calls a third, and now they have three figures that don’t even seem to be describing the same product. This happens constantly in football ground construction in India, and it’s not always because someone is trying to mislead you. FIFA-standard […]

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