Yashasvi Jaiswal is a star in making Indian cricket. The third youngest batsman to score a maiden century in Australia did not have an easy journey. His everyday battle was fighting for survival on the streets of Mumbai.

He was only 10 when he moved to Mumbai in pursuit of playing cricket. But the young boy had to struggle a lot to chase his dreams in the big city. Initially, when he had nowhere to go, a dairy owner provided him with a rooftop, but with a condition—the boy had to help him out at the shop. However, since Jaiswal was mostly playing cricket and couldn’t contribute much, the shopkeeper threw him out.

He was on the streets again—with a bat and a bag in his hands. He was left with no option but to move into one of the tents at Azad Maidan, a local ground in Mumbai. He lived alongside the groundsmen and sold pani puri in his spare time to earn his livelihood.

“We told him to come back, but he said that he would return to the village only when he becomes a player, he was happy to stay in the tent,” Jaiswal’s mother Kanchan revealed once six years ago. 

“He used to tell me, ‘If I stay at the ground, everything will be easy… as soon as I wake up, I see cricket in front of me’.”

Jaiswal soon found himself caught in a web. On the one side, the youngster was struggling to make a living, and on the other, he was unaware of how to convert his potential into opportunity. Hundreds of children come to Azad Maidan daily in the hope of becoming a cricketer standing out in such a crowd isn’t easy.

Jaiswal was finally spotted by Jwala Singh, a Mumbai-based coach. He was highly impressed by the youngster's passion and talent. Singh not only started training him but also provided him with food and accommodation. 

The fearlessness we see every time Jaiswal walks out to bat isn't always there. In fact, Singh says in his early days, the batsman was afraid of failures, especially of getting out. But with some motivation from Singh and his constant hard work, Jaiswal overcame it all. 

Even before this Australia tour, Jaiswal dedicated himself to Zubin Bharucha’s academy in Maharastra’s Talegaon academy. Jaiswal used to lend hours at the academy during the lockdown period. 

But who could imagine that before the Australia trip, the batsman rushed to the academy again and stationed himself at the Thane Cricket Academy to practice from morning till evening? He used to face nearly 200 overs of throw-downs with a concrete slab on an inclined plane! The yellow-coloured balls were thrown at his rib cage outside the off-stump around 145 clicks.