New Delhi, September 2: Former Indian cricket team spinner Rahul Sanghvi may not have had an extensive international career, but he has made a significant impact as a coach.
Born on September 3, 1974, in Surat, Gujarat, Sanghvi developed a deep passion for cricket from a young age. He emerged as a left-arm wrist spinner and made his One Day International (ODI) debut for India at the age of 24 in 1998, playing domestic cricket in Delhi.
During that period, the Indian team already had a prominent spinner in Anil Kumble, while Harbhajan Singh was rapidly establishing himself. This made it challenging for Sanghvi to secure a place in the national team, and he did not receive ample opportunities. He played 10 ODIs in 1998 and one Test match in 2001, taking 2 wickets in Tests and 10 in ODIs.
However, his domestic career was long and impressive. Apart from representing Delhi, he also played for North Zone and the Railways. In 95 first-class matches, he took 271 wickets, and in 68 List A matches, he claimed 97 wickets. Notably, in the 1997-98 season, he achieved a remarkable feat by taking 8 wickets for just 15 runs against Himachal in a List A match, setting a world record at that time. This record was later broken in 2018-19 by Shahbaz Nadeem, who took 8 wickets for 10 runs against Rajasthan. Sanghvi played his last first-class match for Delhi in 2006.
After retiring, Sanghvi decided to venture into coaching, where he found considerable success. He has been associated with the Mumbai Indians franchise in the IPL since 2008. Sanghvi oversees the franchise’s second teams (MI Cape Town, MI Emirates, MI New York, and the women’s team) and has played a crucial role in nurturing young bowlers. His contributions have been instrumental in leading the MI franchise to success in the IPL and other global leagues.
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