Cricket was introduced in India by the British and slowly it became famous among the Indian royalty. Now it has been one of the most popular games in India. Details about the history of cricket in India, the first win in a test match and the first series win by Indian batsmen are glorious as described by Sports Pundit. People of all states, all castes, and of all lands watch cricket with full enthusiasm. Children, especially boys, start playing this game from their early childhood. Though Hockey is the official national game of our country and many other games are also played at national and international levels, nothing can beat cricket. The passion for cricket can be seen among people of all ages. Children, youth, old age people, male, female, all are die-hard fans of cricket. Moreover, it's almost every Indian kid's dream to join the national cricket team. Hard work, talent, and a bit of luck is needed.
To have a career in cricket and to join the team, one needs to be athletic and hard working. Firstly, one needs to join a local team or cricket club in their area. From there one can work their way up through the levels by sheer weight of performance. If there are trials in the cricket club, it may be best for the person to find a coach and develop one's technique.
Regionals under-13, under-15 or under-19 teams play against each other in local leagues within the same state. Eventually, the very best from that league are selected for state teams within an age range.
Other good cricket players can be applied or be called for professional clubs and play in the league, which is separated into categories or divisions. The players for the open state team are selected from these clubs. This is the most common way to get into an Indian cricket team and work as a professional player in India. Even as an adult, with very hard practice and good performance one can go for city selection to be in the regional team. This is the second level in a cricket career: at this level, the competition becomes tougher. It would be best to join a local club that is in touch with the regional Cricket Association.
If the performance is good and one stands out in the district and state-wide tournaments, then you can get selected for Ranji Trophy matches. A good performance in Ranji matches will give one lots of benefits.
If the performance is outstanding in the Ranji Trophy matches as well, then one has a chance in the Indian national cricket team. There are some players who specialize in a particular format of the game such as the fastest cricket bowlers, so they might get selected to play Test matches, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 matches.
There is no proper specified age limit for this purpose. One can start playing cricket as a professional player in their early teens. If one is above the age of 20 or 22 years, they need to work really hard. To play as a cricketer in the Indian cricket team and be another Sachin Tendulkar is a mixture of destiny, vacancies, timing, hard work, etc.