Indian sunrise in Irish cricket – Simi Singh

The story of Simranjit’s journey from Mohali to Dublin is exciting. Simranjit Singh, who is fondly called Simi by the Irish cricket lovers and teammates, has created a space for himself in the international sports arena through his 13 years long adventures in Ireland. Simi Singh reached Dublin’s American College from Mohali 13 years back when he was just 17.

The soft-spoken boy befriended cricket during the intervals of his studies.

13 years later, now, Simi Singh is the shining all-rounder of Irish international one-day cricket team. He is debuting in the international cricket in a match against Bangladesh on Friday, May 12th in the tri-nations series. Simi has replaced Andy McBrine based on his performance in the List A cricket.

New-Zealand is the third team apart from Ireland and Bangladesh for the tri-nations series which is starting this week.

Simi’s ambition was to become part of international cricket. “This moment is special, I can not believe it,” says Simi.

“It is true that, when I was a kid, I wanted to play cricket in the international level representing India. The wish to play in the international level has become a reality now”, Simi said. “The training has already begun. I’m in a thrilling mood.”

Simi became an Irish citizen only last month. He grew up in Mohali, a city adjacent to Chandigarh in Punjab. As a boy, he used to play at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium. He later played for the Under-14 Under-17 and U-19 teams representing Punjab.

“After 19, I came to Ireland guided by my close friend Gaurav who was here. He motivated me saying that I could study here and play cricket if I moved to Ireland. Although I came here as a student, my ultimate goal was to become a cricketer. That has become actualised now. Now my only aim is to play well,” says Simi.