Rachin Ravindra emerged as a surprise package in New Zealand's opening game of the ICC World Cup 2023 against reigning champions England on Thursday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Ravindra Jadeja hit his maiden ODI century off 82 balls and helped New Zealand restrict England to 282 for 9 after the Kiwis won the toss and opted to bowl first at Motera.
With his dashing performance, the 23-year-old became the youngest hundred for the Kiwis in ODI World Cup history. He was not out on 123* in 96 balls, including 11 fours and 5 sixes.
Even though he has played in only 13 ODIs, he has already distinguished himself as a guy of class and maturity. Ravindra, who is equally proficient with the bat and ball, will undoubtedly be one of the players to keep an eye on throughout this World Cup, which is being held in his home India.
In a recent interview, Ravindra remarked, "It feels great to play a World Cup here because my parents are from Bangalore.
On November 18, 1999, the left-handed bowler and batsman was born in Wellington to Indian parents. Two years ago at Kanpur, he played his first Test match against India.
Before relocating to New Zealand, his father, software architect Ravi Krishnamurthy, competed in club cricket in Bangalore, the city where he was born.
He is also the grandson of renowned biology professor Dr. T.A. Balakrishna Adiga, who taught at BASE in Basavanagudi and Vijaya College in Bangalore.
Rachin has deep ties to the cricket-crazy country thanks to his Bengaluru-based family. In actuality, his father gave him the names Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.
Rachin Ravindra found the night of July 14, 2019, to be one of the longest and most difficult to bear as he sat in a Bengaluru pub watching New Zealand's tragic defeat to England in the ODI World Cup final.
Ravindra, then 19, was on an annual vacation to India with his father's cricket club, and the roller-coaster ride of witnessing the final is still fresh in his mind.
Rachin's path has been a fairly "cool" one, from watching previous World Cups as a geek to now being a part of the upcoming one.
"It's actually quite a story. My father brings a group of age group lads to India every year, and we were in Bangalore on a senior trip. We were watching the final (2019) in a stock exchange bar.
"I watched the entire final. It was incredible and such a rollercoaster ride with the highs and lows of the game. It was great having Indian supporters around us. "It is an experience I will never forget," Ravindra told PTI.
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