New Delhi: For most young cricketers, the safest route is often the most obvious one. If you are a talented top-order batter, you keep batting. If you are a handy left-arm spinner, you keep bowling. Shivang Kumar chose otherwise.
The Bundelkhand Bulls all-rounder in the Madhya Pradesh League (MPLT20) knew early on that merely being good in either might not be enough in modern cricket. To make a mark, he felt he needed something different—something that would force people to take notice.
A Unique Transformation
"As a batter, I used to think that I was a very good top-order batter. Additionally, I always aimed to be an asset for the team and constantly considered what more I could contribute. You know by picking wickets, becoming an all-rounder for the side. The demands of the game are different now. Normal won't work; you need two or three variations as a bowler. So I became a chinaman while developing my carrom ball. Then I worked on my googly which created a very good combination," he told TimesofIndia.com in a virtual interaction.
The transition was anything but straightforward. A naturally attacking batter turning himself into a left-arm wrist-spinner invited scepticism. There were moments when those around him questioned whether he was making the right choice.
"Yes, it (criticism) used to come a lot of times. People around me used to say that this is just destroying your own career. You should focus on your batting. You bowl good left-arm spin, but I knew that this was not enough. If I also become like others, who will give me a chance in the top also. So, I got the benefit of having a different mindset and thinking out of the box. And I was able to do well."
Family Support and Sacrifices
That desire to be different was not shaped only by cricket. It was reinforced at home, where his parents often viewed his future through different lenses. While his mother worried about studies and the uncertainty that comes with pursuing sport professionally, his father, a Chief Inspector of Ticket in the Indian Railways, backed the cricket dream.
"My mother is a teacher. She favoured academics. And my father was in sports. So there was a lot of clash between the two," he explained. "So then my father used to say that now let him play. Now let him focus on cricket. He will study, he will manage it. This clash used to continue."
The sacrifices made by his family remain central to Shivang's story. Hours spent travelling for matches and training sessions often came with concerns and anxieties at home.
Sure, there was a cricket connection at home. Praveen Kumar, his father, played U-19 cricket for Bengal before taking up the job with the Indian Railways. The father ensured his son would continue to play cricket even as a job option with the Railways presented itself.
Rise Through Domestic Cricket
It helped that he was making inroads in different competitions. He demonstrated explosive batting in MPLT20 2025 for Bhopal Leopards which earned him a blockbuster Rs 13 lakh prize tag from the Bundelkhand Bulls. Not just the batting, the bowling was doing its magic too. He picked 10 wickets, including a fifer against Karnataka, in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He took eight wickets in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
His work with the bat and ball saw Sunrisers Hyderabad splash Rs 30 lakh on him ahead of IPL 2026. In 13 matches, he took nine wickets, including a 3/33 against the Punjab Kings.
"When I used to travel, they would worry. And my mother used to ask a lot. So now hopefully I have been able to justify their struggle. I have been able to justify their sacrifices. I will continue to do more. That's all I hope," said the 24-year-old Shivang.
Inspiration from Father and Brother
If his parents disagreed on the path, his father and brother played major roles in helping shape the cricketer he would eventually become. "First of all, I would like to give a lot of credit to my brother. I was not so interested in the beginning that I should do this or carry forward. But there was a demand for the game because a left-arm spinner wouldn't often bowl against a left-hander. Because left-handers tend to dominate. So I developed a carrom ball for that situation. Then the carrom ball became a good asset for me. Then I continued developing from there."
His father, meanwhile, saw the potential in combining high-quality batting with a rare bowling skill. "My father still says that you are not justifying your own talent. That if you are such a good batsman, you should score runs. You are doing chinaman bowling, which is a rare community in this world of cricket. The combination that you have at this time. My father used to say 2-3 years ago that I had become such a unique combination. That there is no one else in the world like you. I carried forward my father's vision."
Role Model Hardik Pandya
The inspiration also came from watching players who could influence games in multiple ways. One name stood out -- Hardik Pandya. "And I am also feeling good because I was also thinking that how can I be different. Because when I used to see Hardik Pandya during his early days, he was very different. When he came to bat, he looked like a batter. And when he was a bowler, he looked like a bowler. I also wanted to do something similar for my team. I wanted to become a valuable asset for the team. So that was the only vision in my mind. And hopefully in the next 5 years, I will be able to justify my own talent."
Humbling IPL Experience
His rise has since taken him from domestic cricket to the IPL, where he has found himself sharing dressing rooms with some of the biggest names in the game. The experience, he says, has been grounding rather than overwhelming. "It is a humbling experience for that. No one gets chances so soon... people around me are good and they keep telling me to not have any attitude and just stick to my strengths and work. God has given you a chance, chosen you and you should respect it. Be thankful to god that you are getting a good platform and people around you believe in you."
MPL's Role in Talent Development
Back home, Shivang believes the MPL has played a significant role in creating opportunities for players across Madhya Pradesh, including himself. Making it clear he was not a one-trick pony, he blitzed to a 17-ball 65 against the Malwa Stallions earlier this month during the MPL. His seven fours and five sixes, after picking two wickets in the first innings, ensured Bundelkhand Bulls scaled the 216-run target with 5 balls to spare.
"I mean, I would like to give a lot of credit to MPL too. The way this new talent is coming out. I didn't even know that there is such a good talent in MP. Until last year, I was also a talent. But when I come here from IPL, I see how good the talent is. And MPL, which I think is the topmost state league. A lot of talent comes out of here."
As more players from the state find opportunities at the highest level, Shivang sees it as evidence that the system is working. "And 10-12 players from MP were in different IPL teams this time. So it is a matter of great respect. 10-12 IPL players are coming out of MP. And they are playing. And they are also the main players in their teams. So something good is happening with MPL."
For Shivang, though, the journey remains far from complete. The batter who turned himself into a chinaman bowler did so because he believed standing out was the only way forward. The challenge now is to ensure that uniqueness translates into sustained success.
