HAWKESBURY Cricket Club player Eknoor Singh recently competed in a Sydney Thunder representative competition.
The 18-year-old took part in the Thunder Nation Cup, which features players from different cultural backgrounds. Singh played against a Melbourne Renegades outfit.
Singh was born in India and migrated to Australia with his family. He wants to play for Australia, but said more importantly, he simply wants to make his family, particularly his dad proud of his achievements on the field.
“I'm lucky to have a father who let me pursue my dream of playing cricket,” he said.
“My grandfather – never allowed him to play from a fear he might get hurt due to limited safety equipment at the time.
“Dad still had a huge passion for cricket, so as a kid he saved his money and secretly bought a brand new cricket ball. He would hide it under his bed and never play cricket with it, only sniffed it every morning and every night, and grandpa never found out.”
Singh said his dad was his inspiration as he tries to climb the cricketing ladder.
“It’s because of his confidence in me that I was picked in underage NSW teams since under 13s,” he said.
“I want to give back to those who gave me everything I’ve ever needed when they had barely anything. I want to make my Dad proud.”