Rajasthan Royals (RR) pacer Chetan Sakariya lost his father Kanjibai on Sunday. His father was fighting for life in a private hospital in Bhavnagar after being detected Covid-19 positive. The news comes after it was reported that the cricketer visited his father a day ago in the hospital.
The left-arm pacer earlier stated that his father is admitted to the hospital after health deteriorated. Sakariya hails from a very humble background and is the sole bread-winner for his family.
Chetan recently stated that the money he earned from the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) has helped in his father’s treatment. He was picked by RR for a whopping 1.2 crores this season.
The seamer said that the IPL has helped him stand on his feet in these toughest times.
“I was lucky because I had received my part payment from Rajasthan Royals a few days ago. I straight away transferred money back home, and that is helping my family the most in my toughest time,” Sakariya said during an interview with the Indian Express.
“People are saying stop IPL. I want to tell them something; I am the only bread earner in my family. Cricket is the only source of my earnings. I can give better treatment to my father because of the money I earned from IPL.”
“Had this tournament not happened for a month, it would have been tougher for me. I come from a poor family; my father all his life drove tempo; and because of IPL my whole life, was about to change,” he added.
Before the suspension of this year’s IPL, Sakariya played seven games and picked up seven wickets, including a couple of three-fers. In his first game, he surprised the critics with the figures of three for 31 against Punjab Kings (PBKS). He dismissed KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and Jhye Richardson during the match.
The youngster also had a great outing against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). In his spell of three for 36, he got rid of Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni. Prior to the IPL, Sakariya has played 16 T20 matches, where he has scalped 28 wickets along with a five-wicket haul for Saurashtra.
