‘Never expected the opportunity to come this quickly’

Lucknow: It was double delight for Uttar Pradesh’s young leg-spinner and allrounder Vipraj Nigam after he earned both a place in the India ‘A’ squad for the home one-day series against Australia ‘A’ and a place in India’s Asian Games squad. Nigam has been included after senior spinner Varun Chakravarthy was ruled out of the continental event with a side strain.Nigam learnt about his selection while attending a two-day spinners’ camp at the Centre of Excellence (CoE). “I’m currently at a two-day camp at the NCA and only today I found out that I’ve received a call-up for the Asian Games. It feels great. I had a feeling that my name might come up for a series at some point, but I never expected the opportunity to come this quickly,” Nigam told TOI.The 21-year-old credited his family, coach Sarwar Nawab and his recent exposure to India ‘A’ and the senior team setup for his progress. “This is what we work hard and play matches for, to reach this level. I’d like to thank my family and coach Sarwar Nawab, who have put in so much effort for me. Now it’s my turn to repay them,” he said.Nigam toured Sri Lanka with India ‘A’ last year and also bowled in the nets for the senior Indian team. He said those experiences had helped him develop as a cricketer. “I want to bring those lessons into my game and adapt them well.

I recently applied them in the UPT20 League and I plan to continue using them in the matches ahead,” he said.During the Sri Lanka tour, Nigam said he benefitted from working with spin coach Sairaj Bahutule, a former leg-spinner. “Since he is also a leg-spinner, he helped clear many of my doubts. I also learnt a great deal from Gautam Gambhir and senior players such as KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav, including during the IPL,” he said.The UP cricketer, who has represented the state in all three formats over the past two years, said switching between red-ball and white-ball cricket has become easier with experience. “I understand now when to shift between the formats. I don’t face too much difficulty,” he said. Nigam also credited Axar Patel and KL Rahul with helping him improve his batting.Juyal named in RoI squad for Irani CupUttar Pradesh Ranji Trophy captain and wicketkeeper-batter Aryan Juyal has been named in the Rest of India squad for Irani Cup against Ranji Trophy champions Jammu & Kashmir.Juyal is the only player from Uttar Pradesh to be selected in the squad announced by the BCCI Men’s Selection Committee.Juyal had earlier been named in the Central Zone team for the 2026-27 Duleep Trophy. He has scored 2,237 runs in 36 first-class matches at an average of 46.60. In List A cricket, he has scored 2,003 runs in 47 matches at an average of 51.35.