T20 World Cup 2024: 7 Work Lessons To Learn From USA’s Saurabh Netravalkar

Saurabh Netravalkar living the dream of millions of people. The man has become a sensation all thanks to his heroics that helped the USA’s cricket team defeat Pakistan. Followed by his terrific performance against the Men in Blue, where he picked the wickets of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. However, not many are aware of the fact that he achieved all this while working at his day job in the famous Oracle company.
Yes, you read that right. Saurabh, who once represented the Indian cricket team at the Under-19 World Cup, is now making it big at the biggest stage — T20I World Cup 2024.
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Recently, Saurabh’s sister Nidhi made a revelation that Saurabh carried his laptop with him as he was very dedicated to his work. In fact, she revealed that Saurabh has a habit of working after the game.
“He’s been very fortunate to have people who have always supported him throughout his career. He knows that when he’s not playing cricket, he has to give 100 per cent to the job. So right now, when he’s working, he carries his laptop everywhere. And he has the freedom to work from anywhere,” Nidhi said as per News18
Saurabh’s dedication and love for his work and the sport have impressed many. Fans are calling him the ‘Employee of the decade’, while also hailing him for his performances on the field.
Here, in this article, we bring you some work lessons one should learn from Saurabh Netravalkar. Give it a read:
1. Team Player:
Just like Cricket, the corporate world is also all about teamwork, which is a crucial skill in today’s workplace. It requires a lot of coordination and teamwork. Saurabh Netravalkar seems to be perfect in both skills.
2. Focus and Adaptability:
Cricketers need to adapt to different conditions of the venues, pitches, and bowlers. Just like how in the corporate world, professionals deal with complex situations, which require constant focus and learning. Saurabh has adapted well in both worlds with these skills.
3. Pressure Performer:
Cricketers and professionals working in a corporate world thrive under pressure. Saurabh Netravalkar made a name for himself with his contribution under pressure to the USA team in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
“Every project has a deadline so there is pressure… There have been instances when I have worked at night. I know my cricket schedule, so I plan accordingly with my manager. I finished my work before I joined the USA for the World Cup,” the techie said in an interview with The Indian Express.
4. Dedication:
Saurabh Netravalkar is a valuable employee of the Oracle company and also a star performer for the USA. The fact that Saurabh Netravalkar is still working after his T20 World Cup 2024 games proves that he is very dedicated to both — cricket and his work and he is a multitasker.
“I don’t go for evening hangouts, I go for practice,” says the soft-spoken programmer. “Club matches are played on weekends, so many times, I have taken a flight after office on Friday, flown cities, played and resumed office on Monday. My work is going fine and my company has seen the genuine effort I have put in, cricket is not coming in the way of my work. So the office has been very helpful.”
5. Continuous improvement:
Saurabh Netravalkar has worked hard to reach where he is today. He has made continuous improvements in his skills, in both the worlds – cricket and coding. Constantly honing your skills reflects your dedication to lifelong learning, which is essential in every field.
6. Aim for the winning shot:
Saurabh Netravalkar is very clear with his goals in both fields. He has made strategies and has unleashed passion to achieve them.
“After we qualified (for the Super Eight), I informed my office that I will be on leave for some more time. Now my whole office is watching the game, they all have been very supportive,”
Notably, before coming into the World Cup Netravalkar was working on a technology called ‘wildcard searching’. This technology helps in faster search results by auto-guessing or auto-completing the text after the first letters or words are typed.
“We store data of companies and ensure search engines work fast.” Netravalkar also revealed that he has applied for another patent.
7. Let passion be your fuel:
Saurabh’s love for cricket fuels his dedication. It’s admiring how he has balanced both facets of his life and has excelled at both. We need to find the burning passion in our work, and let that ignite us drive to success.