Saurabh Netravalkar: USA’s Super-Over Hero Techie And a Former India U19 Player Who Floored Pakistan

Saurabh Netravalkar played a pivotal role in the USA’s historic win over Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2024 at the Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Dallas. His exceptional performance in the Super Over, where he defended 17 runs, was instrumental in the hosts and T20 World Cup debutants scripting the biggest upset in the history of ICC tournaments.

And it was fitting enough, Netravalkar, a former India U19 player and a long-time USA skipper who held his nerves when it mattered the most. After picking up 2/18 in his four overs at a regulation time to keep Pakistan to 159/7, Netravalkar – a Master’s Degree holder in Computer science and a full-time employee at Oracle kept big-hitters Iftikhar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan at bay in the Super Over.

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Highest Wicket-taker for India in U19 World Cup 2010

Netravalkar represented India at the Under-19 World Cup Alongside KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, and Sandeep Sharma, among others, in the 2010 edition. Born in 1991, Netravalkar’s ability to swing the ball both ways earned his a spot in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad at 17. It was part of India’s Under-19 team’s 2010 World Cup campaign, where he finished as the highest wicket-taker of India in the tournament with nine wickets in six matches.

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Techie and Former USA Captain

He soon moved to the USA at the age of 23 and became an integral part of the USA cricket team, all this while having a job as a techie. When the USA’s squad for the T20 World Cup was announced, Netravalkar’s profession as a techie became one of the talking points on social media when one of his office colleagues revealed that he had no idea that the person he worked with was a former national team captain.

“Just found out in my company there is a guy who played Under 19 Cricket World Cup for India back in 2010 and now lives in the US works in Oracle and gonna be playing T20 WC next month for USA!” wrote Netravalkar’s colleague, Chirag on X.

Nethravalkar’s LinkedIn profile reads, “Principal Member of Technical Staff at Oracle and Professional Cricketer at the USA Cricket.”

Sweet Revenge of India U19 World Cup Loss Babar Azam’s Pakistan

The Indian campaign at the 2010 World Cup was rather forgettable, and the team also endured a loss against Pakistan in the quarterfinal, which was the team that had Babar Azam. Azam had a terrific tournament, finishing as the third-highest run-getter.

Netravlkar featured in the game, picked up the wicket of another future Pakistan international Ahmed Shehzad, and returned figures of 5-1-16-1.

Stay updated with the latest from T20 World Cup 2024. Explore T20 World Cup Match Today. Check Updated list of Highest-run getters and Highest Wicket-Takers In T20 World Cup 2024. Check T20 World Cup 2024 Points Table and players with the Most Sixes, Most Fours , Most Fifties And Most HundredsIn T20 World Cup 2024.