Know the former Indian Cricketer who now serves the nation as an IAS Officer

While many UPSC aspirants are burying their heads in the books for the final test scheduled on 10th October, 2021, we are here to tell you the tale of an administrative officer who was once a member of the Indian Cricket Team.

Before making his first-class cricket debut at the age of 17, he succeeded in cracking the Union Public Services Commission (UPSC) exam. Currently posted in the Customs and Central Excise Department, he has played a total of 12 ODI matches for India, the last match against Sri Lanka in 2001.

Meet Amay Khurasiya- Stalwart of Madhya Pradesh Cricket

Born in 1972 in Madhya Pradesh, he began playing cricket for his state team. But that was just the start of Khurasiya's career as a sportsman - before becoming an international cricketer, Amay had also found success in the Indian Administrative Service examination.

Amay Khurasia made his debut for Team India in 1999. He made his debut in the Pepsi Cup against Sri Lanka. In his debut match, Khurasiya scored 57 runs in just 45 balls. It was his highest international score. He shared a partnership of 125 runs with Ajay Jadeja. Unfortunately, Khurasiya failed to do special in his sports career after this, and soon his international cricket career came to an end.

Brilliant Batting Exploits

Known for his batting exploits in First-Class cricket, Amay Khurasiya international career spanned 12 One-Day International Matches for India from 1997-2001 but it was not until later that he sprang on the domestic scene where he played 119 first-class matches for Madhya Pradesh, scoring over 7,000 runs. In 2001, he made a comeback into ODIs by playing two more matches against Sri Lanka in a tri-series, but without much success. Khurasiya was cleaned up by Chaminda Vaas for a duck after facing just two deliveries. He then never played for India again. He aggregated over 500 runs in a season quite a few times.

These are not only splendid numbers, but along with Devendra Bundela and Abbas Ali, he held  Madhya Pradesh’s batting line-up together throughout his career. Only Devendra Bundela and Naman Ojha have scored more runs than him for Madhya Pradesh.

Career Averages

Source: ESPN

Serving the country as an IAS 

Amay Khurasiya played his First-Class cricket for Madhya Pradesh against Vidarbha in 2006. He soon announced his retirement on 22 April, 2007 after he was dropped from the Madhya Pradesh Ranji team. He then decided to continue to serve the game by training young athletes. Khurasiya is the level three coach of Madhya Pradesh. As of today, he is an Inspector in Indian Customs & Central Excise Department.

Sports vs Academics

If you’re an international athlete, it’s very hard to pursue higher education due to your commitment to making a successful career in the sporting industry. Most athletes will admit that because of their passion for what they do, they often have to put their academic studies on hold in order to focus solely on their sport and honing their craft so that they might eventually become the best in their profession. Picking up a degree with direct ties to the sport you specialize in is a great way to ensure that you get a job even if it means giving up on higher education completely!

India over the years has produced some outstanding cricketers who were brilliant students in their own right. Former India cricketer Amay Khurasiya holds the rare distinction of passing the Indian Administrative Services exam (IAS). 

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