Paul Valthaty is a former Indian cricketer who played for India in the U-19 ICC Cricket World Cup of 2002. He was also part of the squads of Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals.
He received fame for his tremendous knock of 120 runs in the Indian Premier League.
Personal Life
There is not much information about Valthaty. All that is known is that he was born on 7th December 1983 in the Boravali district of Mumbai.
His family originally hails from Andhra Pradesh.
Career
Paul Valthaty trained in Dilip Vengsarkar Cricket Academy, Mumbai. Showing exceptional results, he was recommended to the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) president Mr. Chamundeswarnath by Vengsarkar.
Paul Valthaty made his way up the ranks in cricket in Mumbai. He finally made his professional debut with India in the Under 19 World Cup against New Zealand in 2002.
During that tournament, Paul Valthaty suffered a career-halting injury. During a match against Bangladesh, he received a significant hit from a ball to the right eye. To date, there are problems with his vision due to this injury. He did not get any breakthroughs in senior cricket. Valthaty just got to play one more match in Mumbai in 2006.
Rajasthan Royals then picked him up in 2009 for the IPL season.
Paul Valthaty went on to play a few matches for them, eventually getting a spot for Mumbai in the Twenty20 Tournament. After putting on classy performances for the team, he got a place in the Kings XI Punjab side for the 2011 season.
Paul Valthaty had a fabulous season with the team in the 2011 season. He was brought to fame because of his spectacular innings against the Chennai Super Kings. While chasing a big 189 run target, Paul scored 120 runs in 63 balls and was not out in the match. It was his 13rth overall century, his first fastest century, and the first century of the 2011 IPL. His century still remains in the Top 10 highest ever scores in the tournament.
Disappearance
After the fantastic match against CSK, Paul Valthaty performed amazingly again in the next game. He scored a total of 75 runs in 47 balls. Paul also averaged the best bowling stat ever for the Kings XI Punjab with a total of 4 wickets taken and 29 runs given.
Paul’s sensational season earned him a spot on the squad for the 2012 and 2013 seasons. But, the decline in his performance was getting noticed all around. Valthaty faced yet another career-halting injury.
He had a ganglion on his wrist, which made his wrist powerless. He tried to play on but couldn’t fight it. Eventually, it ended his career within the IPL. In an interview with Brut India, he mentions that he tried to make a comeback in 2014 and 2015, but no opportunity opened up.
Statistics
Valthaty has some decent stats to his name in all of his short professional cricketing career.
He has played a total of 3 first-class matches, two one-day fixtures, and 25 T20 matches.
In all these formats, he has managed to score a total of 246, 52, and 742 runs, respectively.
Paul has managed to maintain a Strike rate of above 25. His highest ever strike rate was 32.00. He scored a total of three half-centuries and one century, with his highest score in a match being 120*.
Where Is He Now?
Paul Valthaty, after abruptly ending his IPL career and disappearing from the format, could not make his desired comeback. Valthaty says he has no regrets about the happenings and that it was just a misfortune—the 38-year-old now plays for Air India in the Mumbai Twenty20 League. In addition to playing for Air India, he coaches aspiring players in the Homeground Cricket Academy, Mumbai. He says that it is a privilege to guide the children of the suburban districts of Mumbai. He believes in teaching and nurturing the young talents so that they can achieve their dreams as well.
In an interview, Valthaly stated, “I enjoy this role as well. If someone is not able to break open that door of selection or just make them realize their strengths, their weaknesses, I enjoy that aspect as well, and probably I’m looking forward to this new phase of aspect and the new phase of my life.”
