As someone who has watched Prashant Veer evolve into the cricketer that he is now, Sajid Umar, an Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) official and the Saharanpur District Cricket Association (SDCA) treasurer, said that the 20-year-old all-rounder, who hails from the village of Shahjipur, will inspire hope in village cricketers after having been snapped up by CSK for a record ₹14.20 crore in the IPL mini auction on Tuesday.
“He has opened up the platform for all the village players. They will now think, ‘if you continue doing the hard work, definitely a day will come when it’ll pay off,’” Sajid said over the phone.
Sajid further added that Prashant hails from a low-income family. Prashant’s father is a school teacher, his mother is a homemaker, and he has an elder sister and a younger brother.
In 2018, a Saharanpur-based coach, Rajiv Goyal, took Prashant under his wings after being impressed by his talent. SDCA director Akram Saifi has also supported and nurtured him.
“He’s a same-to-same replacement for (Ravindra) Jadeja. He can bowl during any phase of an innings and is a good finisher. In fact, he’s known as the (David) Miller of Saharanpur!” said Sajid.
Published – December 16, 2025 08:39 pm IST
