A special moment captured attention when Sai Kishore took the field to sing India’s national anthem before the start of play. Donning the national jersey for the first time, he could not hold back his tears of joy.

A seasoned campaigner in domestic cricket, the Tamil Nadu lad has impressive numbers. From 49 T20s, he has 57 wickets with an economy of 5.48. He also has 113 wickets in first-class cricket, and 73 more in List A.

The raw emotions showcased what the moment meant to him. After putting in the hard yards in the domestic circuit, Sai Kishore received a call-up for the Asian Games 2023 squad in Hangzhou as part of a second-string Indian contingent under Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Wishes poured in over social media users as many were moved by the heart-touching moment. The well-wishers included Dinesh Karthik: “God has his ways of giving back to people who work hard. This unbelievable player @saik_99 who has DOMINATED domestic cricket with white ball is an absolute superstar and I couldn’t be happier for him. Woke up in the morning and when I saw his name in the 11, I was emotional seeing it. You want some people to do well, he was always on the top of my list.

“The way he’s improved his batting tells you all about him, he was literally a STROKELESS wonder, and from there he’s absolutely transformed into someone who can be relied upon in any format. I can keep speaking about him but for now. I’m just so happy to see him become an INDIAN cricketer and no one can ever take that away from him Go well, Sai.”

God has his ways of giving back to people who work hard

This unbelievable player @saik_99 who has DOMINATED domestic cricket with white ball is an absolute superstar and I couldn’t be happier for him.

Woke up in the morning and when I saw his name in the 11 , i was… https://t.co/6RijBdRP6R

— DK (@DineshKarthik) October 3, 2023

In his maiden India outing, Sai Kishore claimed 1-25 in four overs and held three catches. In the process, he became the second cricketer, after Pakistan’s Hussain Talat, to take a wicket and three catches on men’s T20I debut.

His tight bowling helped India strangle Nepal, who were chasing 203. Earlier, Yashasvi Jaiswal smacked a brilliant 48-ball ton, followed by Rinku Singh’s 37 not out off 15 balls in the end, to post 202-4.

Watch Sai Kishore get emotional on his India debut in the Asian Games 2023:

Emotions aplenty as Sai Kishore swelled up during the national anthem of 🇮🇳, making his T20I debut today 🆚🇳🇵

Drop a 💙 if you believe hard work always pays off 🙌💯#Cheer4India #TeamIndia #Cricket #HangzhouAsianGames #AsianGames2023 #SonyLIV pic.twitter.com/x9fdZjIGg2

— Sony LIV (@SonyLIV) October 3, 2023