A die-hard cricket fan, Dalip Kumar Choudhary always wanted his son to play the sport. But hailing from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, he did not know how to fulfil his dream. While there were economic challenges, resources were also scarce in the small district town.
But Dalip never gave up on his dream. After teaching in local institutes for a while, when he eventually entered the real estate and hotel business, he made it a point to send his son Mukul Choudhary to the SBS Cricket Academy in Sikar.
Back then, young Mukul was a medium-fast bowler, and he wanted to sharpen his skills to become the most sought-after bowler in the world. But during one of the games, the academy team was short of a wicketkeeper. “That’s how I took up wicketkeeping, and there hasn’t been any looking back since,” Mukul told Sports stars.
Nearly a decade ago, when Mukul joined the academy, he did not know that years later, there would be a bidding war for him in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction, with Lucknow Super Giants eventually picking him for Rs 2.60 crore.
“I have heard stories from my mother that my father was so obsessed with cricket that even before I was born, he wanted his son to be a cricketer. But it wasn’t easy for us to pursue the sport initially, given the financial challenges. But my father did go out of his way to ensure that I got everything needed to be a cricketer,” Mukul, who considers MS Dhoni as his idol, said.
After getting noticed by junior selectors, Mukul shifted to Jaipur a few years ago to train at the Aravali Cricket Academy, along with Kartik Sharma and Ashok Sharma, his Rajasthan teammates, who also got IPL deals this season.
While moving to Jaipur was difficult, Mukul’s mother and younger sister shifted with him so that he never felt lonely and could focus on his game. That worked as he never had to think about his diet, as his mother had taken care of it. “I knew I just had one job in hand, and that was to play cricket,” he said.
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And, hard work paid off as Mukul got picked in Rajasthan’s age-group teams and was handed a debut in the Ranji Trophy two years ago. But as he could score just two runs against Chhattisgarh in that game, Mukul wasn’t considered any further.
“I played a couple of T20S that year, and they weren’t quite memorable, and I did not know what to do. I got frustrated, but then, with the help of my family, I could hang in there,” Mukul said.
However, his determination eventually yielded results as this season, he made it to Rajasthan’s Under-23 squad and in the Men’s State A Trophy, and was the standout performer, scoring 617 runs at an extraordinary average of 102.83. A clean-hitter of the ball, Mukul slowly emerged as a finisher, and he got his major break when Rajasthan called him up for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as a replacement for Kartik, who suffered a finger injury.
Mukul grabbed the opportunity with both hands and played an unbeaten knock of 62 against Delhi to guide Rajasthan to a win, and even on Tuesday, he scored a half-century against Mumbai in a Super League fixture.
As the word spread, he was called for trials by a few franchises. “I was hoping that someone would pick me, but I did not know who. I am glad that LSG picked me, and I am looking forward to playing under Rishabh (Pant) bhai,” he said.
While he knows that breaking into the final eleven would be a challenge, Mukul wants to soak in every moment. “I wouldn’t rush. My objective is to learn as much as I can from that set-up and be ready for an opportunity as and when they come,” Mukul said.
While he is excited to have broken into the glitzy world of the IPL, Mukul is happier to have made his father proud. After all, it all started with his dream.
Published on Dec 16, 2025
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