Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar was one of KKR’s top picks. His tussle with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) came in the way of his NOC and therefore, he wasn’t available for the initial stages of the tournament. Ashok Dinda, then 24, was making a mark for Bengal in First-Class cricket. Eyeing local talent, Dinda was called as a net bowler to bowl at the likes of Ricky Ponting and Brendon McCullum.
In an interview with journalist Indranil Basu on SK Live, Ashok Dinda recalled the “win-win” net session that left Brendon McCullum bamboozled, Ricky Ponting fuming and went on to be career-defining.
Ashok Dinda’s superlative spell in the nets attracted the attention of the team management and skipper Sourav Ganguly. He was picked for the practice games and then the KKR squad.
On April 18, 2008, Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium hosted the first-ever IPL game. Ashok Dinda went on to be the only cricketer to make his T20 debut in that game.
Opening the bowling, he dismissed Virat Kohli and then Wasim Jaffer, ending the game with 2 for 7 from his three overs.
Brendon McCullum set the tournament alight with 158* off just 73 balls as KKR posted 222 for 3. Ashok Dinda finished his maiden IPL season with 9 wickets at 28.88 and an impressive economy rate of 6.66.
Share a fantastic relationship with Ricky Ponting: Ashok Dinda
Ashok Dinda went on to reveal that it was Ricky Ponting who had put in a word for him, and that they still share a great camaraderie.
A stalwart for Bengal, Ashok Dinda represented India in 13 ODIs and 9 T20Is between 2009 and 2013. In his final season as a domestic cricketer, the 36-year-old represented Goa in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
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