ICC Cricket World Cup 2023: Meet Swiggy delivery boy from Chennai who has joined Netherlands team as net bowler

Netherlands have set up camp in Alur, Karnataka to prepare for ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

The Netherlands team qualified for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 along with Sri Lanka and ahead of the tournament, have arrived in India for their preparation camp. For this, they had advertised for local bowlers who could bowl them in nets and one bowler, Lokesh Kumar from Chennai has grabbed attention.

While the likes of the Indian cricket team, the Australian cricket team, defending champions England, and Pakistan among others will be favourites, the smaller teams at the Cricket World Cup like the Netherlands will be no pushover.

They had defeated West Indies in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 qualifiers and their players have extensive experience of playing in English county cricket. The Netherlands decided to hold a prep camp in Alur, Karnataka to prepare themselves for the challenges of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

Recently, the Netherlands team put out an advertisement for four net bowlers. They were recently announced and hail from different parts of India.

My Talent Has Finally Recognized – Lokesh Kumar  

Cricket Netherlands took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to express gratitude for the enthusiastic response to their net bowler search in India. They announced the names of the four individuals who will be joining the team for their preparations for the World Cup.

One of those bowlers is Lokesh Kumar, who hails from Chennai and works as a food delivery driver for Swiggy. The team management had picked him after evaluating approximately 10,000 bowlers from India who submitted their entries by uploading videos through a mobile application.

Lokesh Kumar, a net bowler who joined the Dutch team's training on Wednesday, expressed his happiness at being acknowledged for his abilities. The 29-year-old hailed the chance to participate in an international team camp as a pivotal event in his professional life.

"I played in the fifth division for four years. I have registered with the fourth division outfit Indian Oil RO (S&RC) for the current season. After being picked by the Netherlands team as a net bowler I feel, my talent has been recognized.

The Netherlands team members welcomed me with open arms; there was an induction ceremony for the net bowlers before the beginning of the session. The players told us: ‘Feel free, this is your team’. I already feel that I am part of the Dutch family," Lokesh said to the Times of India.

https://twitter.com/KNCBcricket/status/1704492567424028838?r

Lokesh Kumar emphasized how his job as a Swiggy food delivery executive indirectly benefited his cricketing career. He has played in the TNCA league as well thanks to flexible working hours.

“After my college days, my entire focus was on cricket. I spent four years on cricket. In 2018, I decided to take up a job. I have been with Swiggy for the last four years. I earn money only by delivering food; I do not have any other source of income. The work timings are flexible and I can take leave whenever I want to. We usually have TNCA league matches only on the weekends, so I work during the weekdays,” he added.

The left-arm pacer turned wrist-spinner was selected from among 10,000 entrants who uploaded their video for the Netherlands' net bowler's job.