NEW DELHI: Mumbai and Punjab Kings youngster Suryansh Shedge, who earned his first India call-up on Tuesday after replacing the injured Nitish Kumar Reddy in India’s T20I squad for the series against Ireland and England, was naturally full of joy.“Actually, I can’t face it, and I think I won’t be able to sink until I’m in flight! I can’t believe it! This is my dream since childhood. And obviously, it’s a very special feeling. And I feel very proud and happy for my parents (Prashant and Priyadarshini), because of the sacrifices for them. able to be a cricketer,” the 23-year-old told TOI.“My mother used to work in a bank, but she quit her job because she had to accompany me to practice and games,” he revealed.Shedge has been training under former Indian batsman Jatin Paranjape for the past two years, with the former cricketer working hard to hone his ward’s game.Expressing gratitude to his coaches, Shedge said: “The way Manish Bangera, Jatin and Monty Desai have helped me through my journey, it’s very comforting because they really believe in me. If the environment is such that everyone knows my abilities, and if they constantly tell me (about my abilities), self-belief comes automatically. So, that helped me a lot.”It will help Shedge who has played under Shreyas Iyer, the new Indian T20 captain, for both Mumbai and Punjab Kings.“It is really true. In the last two years, I have made four debuts under him – in the SMAT, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, India A and the IPL. He is someone who gives his 100% in terms of attitude and commitment to the team, and that mentality seeps into the whole side,” Shedge said.Announced the selection of Shedge as Reddy’s replacement after the latter suffered a quadriceps injury, BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia said, “Suryansh earned the call-up after a string of impressive performances for India A in the recently concluded tri-series in Sri Lanka. Batting in the middle order, the 23-year-old scored 147 runs in five matches and also struck with the ball, bowling 23 overs in the entire tournament. He was also one of the top performers for Mumbai in their victorious Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign in 2024-25, scoring 131 runs at a strike rate of 251.92 in the lower middle order.“Obviously, Shedge’s ability to hit big hits in the slog overs, along with contributing a few useful medium-pace overs, won the confidence of Ajit Agarkar and his fellow selectors.India begin their tour with a two-match T20I series against Ireland in Belfast on Friday before taking on England in a five-match T20I series, starting in Chester-le-Street on July 1.However, Shedge felt he “would have done better” in the tri-series in Sri Lanka.“I didn’t do well in the last two games,” he said.India are scheduled to play five T20Is and three ODIs in England in July. Incidentally, India are without the services of a star all-rounder Hardik Pandya on the UK tour due to a quadriceps injury and work problems. Reddy was expected to fill the void left by Hardik, but now Shedge will be tasked with filling those big boots.After doing well for India A, did he expect this opportunity?“No. For the last two-three years, my mind has been that I should not have any expectations from my cricket, because I feel that at this stage, it is important to remember why you started playing cricket. When I was 8-10 years old and I had to spend on the field, I like to play the sport. So, somewhere along the way, we forgot that. However, for the last two-three years, I have been practicing gratitude and remembering why I started playing cricket,” he said.“So I have no expectations,” he added.Shedge’s CV has been boosted by his ability to bowl a useful mark of medium pace.“I think my bowling has improved a lot in the last two years, and that’s something I’ve worked diligently on, because I know how useful it can be for a team. And if I want to contribute, I have to improve day by day,” he said.Shedge has scored 158 runs in seven matches at an average of 39.50 for Punjab Kings in IPL 2026.“I faced international bowlers in the IPL, so that was a big confidence booster as well. And after sitting out for half the season, I feel very proud to be playing in the XI,” he said.Who are you trying to emulate as an all-rounder? The all-rounder smiled, “Idolize it Ben Stokes. If you see, put in a spell of 12 overs in the Ashes. And he still has to do it for his team. He has to contribute. So I look up to him.”
