Anshul Kamboj’s selection for the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford completes a journey that began in the Haryana countryside and wound through years of domestic toil. At 24, the right‑arm seamer from Fazilpur village in Karnal was considered unlucky to miss the initial squad for the England tour, yet injuries to Nitish Kumar Reddy, Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh created the opening he has finally seized.

Kamboj’s story is often compared with that of neighbouring Panipat’s Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra: both were introduced to sport as youngsters carrying extra weight, and both discovered a calling that reshaped their lives. In Anshul’s case, the push came from his father Udham Singh, whose pride and delight form the emotional core of the tale.

Udham, who has battled epilepsy for more than a decade, remembered telling local coach Satish Rana to “make the boy bowl” simply to shed a few kilos. “He was overweight and I wanted him healthy—never dreamt he would play for India,” he told Times of India. That innocent request lit the spark. From the first net session, Anshul was hooked, and cricket displaced everything else. Today Udham cannot hide his excitement: the call‑up has returned a smile that illness had long erased. “Since the phone rang, he hasn’t stopped grinning,” Anshul’s younger brother Sanyam said in a conversation with TOI, adding that their mother’s recent kidney‑stone surgery prevented the family from seeing Anshul off to Manchester but cannot dampen the celebrations planned on his return.

Progress was anything but linear. A stress fracture forced Kamboj out of contention for the 2020 Under‑19 World Cup and briefly plunged him into despair. Udham’s reaction was pivotal. “Beta, bas tappa pakad ke daalta reh” (“Son, just keep landing the ball on the spot”), he urged—a mantra Anshul has followed ever since. It paid off spectacularly last Ranji season when he claimed all ten Kerala wickets in an innings (30.1‑9‑49‑10), becoming only the third bowler to achieve the feat in India’s premier first‑class tournament. The haul reinforced his reputation for relentless accuracy and earned an IPL contract with Chennai Super Kings in 2024, where Stephen Fleming and M.S. Dhoni praised his heavy, deceptive length and ability to extract seam movement even when conventional swing is absent.

Domestic success also yielded 17 wickets in Haryana’s victorious 2023 Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign and a place in the India A attack that toured against England Lions. Though overlooked for the senior side’s opening two Tests, Kamboj returned to Karnal undeterred, spending solitary mornings bowling at a single stump with the Dukes ball he would later use in England. Coach Rana feared rejection might crush him, but Anshul’s quiet reply—“Sir, I am hopeful”—proved prescient.

Those who have worked with him highlight more than skill. R. Ashwin, a team‑mate at CSK, likens his tactical acumen to Zaheer Khan and Jasprit Bumrah, noting how Kamboj arrives at the crease with a specific plan rather than vague talk of “expressing himself.” Haryana coach Amarjeet Kaypee praises his stamina and uncluttered action, assets prized in English conditions where long, probing spells are essential.

As he prepares to cap a dream with a debut, the journey’s defining influence remains clear. Udham Singh’s simple desire to see an overweight child embrace fitness has matured into a father’s pride in a Test cricketer. For Anshul, every stride to the bowling crease on Wednesday will echo the encouragement that began at a village academy: bowl straight, keep believing, and the door to India colours can be broken down.