Relaxing at his home here after the U-19 triumph, Siddharth took out his "prized possession", a photograph in which he posed with Tendulkar 12 years ago.
CHANDIGARH: As a five-year-old, he posed with Sachin Tendulkar for a photograph and, 12 years later, Siddharth Kaul is confident he will play alongside his cricketing icon.
Siddharth played a crucial role in India's recent Under-19 World Cup triumph and looks set to play a long innings in the game.
Relaxing at his home here after the U-19 triumph, Siddharth took out his "prized possession", a photograph in which he posed with Tendulkar 12 years ago.
Siddharth's father Tej Kaul, a former Jammu and Kashmir Ranji player and ex-physio of the national team, had taken him to watch a match where he got the opportunity to have a photo with the master batsman.
"Like any cricketer, it's my dream to play for the country. I have been fortunate enough to learn from my dad and brother Uday is also around to give tips. Also, I feel being associated with Punjab Cricket Association has also been a big boon," said Siddharth.
It is because of the training given by his father that Siddharth managed to keep calm when his captain Virat Kohli gave him the ball for the last over against South Africa in the U-19 World Cup final.
"That's the way I have trained both my children. They have been taught not to lose their cool in pressure situations and it helped as Siddharth got two wickets in the final over of the U-19 World Cup," said Tej, who originally hails from Sheetalnath in Srinagar.
Tej, still a senior cricket coach with Sports Authority of India, was always involved in his two sons' progress in cricket and took care that they got training in different aspects of the game.
"Whenever Siddharth and Uday are free from camps and matches, I also train them in different aspects of the game which includes developing physical strength, mental exercises, the bio-mechanics part and also analysing their match videos so that they can work on their weakness and improve in future," he said.
A regular member of the Punjab Ranji team, Uday Kaul, who was recently rewarded with the Indian Premier League contract, is also developing into a fine batsman.
Uday's idol is Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka while Siddharth would be more than happy if he can bowl like one of his idols Allan Donald.
Uday, whose favourite shot is the cover drive, felt it was an advantage to come from a family with a sports background.
"However, at the same time people expect a lot from you and one has to deliver," he said.
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