Follow UsUnder-19 World Cup-winning captain Unmukt Chand made his first-class debut back in 2010, way before leading India to the U19 title in 2012, and very soon, he was touted as one for the future. He did well to pack a punch, scoring 151 in his fifth Ranji Trophy match, and also made his IPL debut as an 18-year-old.
While he continued to be a part of Delhi’s domestic team regularly, his career took a dramatic turn in 2017, and he could never recover from that. What is now considered one of the biggest cautionary tales in Indian cricket, Chand believes politics in the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) cost him big-time.
“Until 2017, when Gautam Gambhir remained Delhi captain, nothing went wrong in the team because he was a very strong leader. He fought for players and backed them. But when he retired, Delhi cricket went through plenty of upheaval. Nitish (Rana) was dropped, Dhruv (Shorey) was doing well, and he was dropped too. And everyone knows what’s happening,” Chand told Lallantop.
“You can call it politics because they threw me out. It has never happened that you remove the captain of India A from your state team. I can’t put the blame on one person, but in a way, the selectors of DDCA are the ones taking such decisions. I felt bad that I served the Delhi team for such a long time and did reasonably well too, and then they made me the scapegoat,” he added.
After failing to find a place in the Delhi side, Chand eventually left Indian cricket for good and even turned up for Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League. Later, he registered himself as a player for the USA and has been a part of the Los Angeles Knight Riders in the Major League Cricket.