Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar: Coming from the Bandipora district of north Kashmir, the Journey of Cricketer Raja Saleem is an inspirational story of passion, grit, love and determination for the game.
From representing his state at the national level tournaments to taking a back seat and giving up his dream because of an unfortunate back injury, the life journey of Raja Saleem goes on.
As a cricketer, Saleem had shown immense promise in his early playing days while representing his state at the national level. However, fate had opposite plans for him, forcing him to give up the game and dream of playing for the Indian team.
Following a disheartening and life-turning incident, he did not allow his back injury to break his spirit of getting back up. He decided to take the other route and help young talent in the sport build their careers.
o help and guide the budding cricketers of his locality, Saleem opened a cricket academy facilitated with every necessary facility, which has been paying off.
Furthermore, he has earned his name as a renowned coach who teaches on-field skills and unseen traits essential to excel in the game, such as sportsmanship, teamwork, and perseverance to survive in the long run.
Due to the weather condition in the valley, Saleem had to face it as the biggest challenge in front of him, which also kept the young cricketers away from the sport.
He saw this problem as an opportunity to stand out and make a significant difference while introducing an innovative idea of building an indoor training facility and pitches inside a school he owns.
Through this solution, he allowed his students to keep in touch with the game and polish their skills with no hurdles throughout the year.
The continuity in practice further assists the players in performing better in important tournaments. Even at forty, Saleem’s love and passion for the game are contagious and have only increased in all these years.
He still bats like a young batter with exceptional skills and technique. In his district, he has become a source of inspiration for all the upcoming players who sees him as a role model.
He has been doing a commendable job in training future generations in cricket and reflects a perfect example of determination, passion and love for the game.
In his remarks, he noted that he started his journey as a cricketer in 1996 in Bandipora sports stadium, where he first fell in love with the sport. After that, his passion for the game took him to Delhi, where he played nationally.
He recalled his old days and said he had shared the dressing room with many best players while competing in the Ranji trophy and county cricket leagues. He has also represented United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the ‘A-League.
He mentioned that those were some of the most memorable days of his life, which played a massive role in making him what he is today and turned him into a better person and coach.
