BHOPAL: In 2020, a boy asked for a cricket bat of premium willow. The Covid lockdown had shut down the family’s civil construction business in Chambal and it was a luxury they could ill afford, but his father took a loan and bought one for Rs 65,000.It was an expensive gamble. But that “KL Rahul” series bat is now repaying the loan, not in rupees but in runs and resolve. And the boy from the badlands of Chambal, once known for its dacoits, is the new India Under-19s cricket captain.Yashbardhan Singh Chauhan, a promising uncapped cricketer and his family’s youngest member (he turns 18 in Nov), leads India against Sri Lanka in the upcoming series.It was early 2020 when Yashbardhan, already showing promise as a batsman, asked for the bat. His innocent request initially put frowns on the faces of the family elders. Their business contracts had just been cancelled. Every penny counted.His father, Anami Singh Chauhan, had then described the purchase as “our biggest bet on his dream”. The spanking new willow fetched bountiful returns: Yash amassed 1,300 runs with it in the Under-13 Kanmadikar Trophy in 2021, drawing the attention of selectors and coaches.Every boundary off that bat felt like a small repayment for all the anxious nights that had preceded the purchase, the family said.“I told Yashbardhan to always keep that KL Rahul series bat with him. That bat effectively set him on his cricketing journey,” said an elated Chauhan, currently in the flour mill business in Gwalior.The bat became talismanic. Yash carried it around like an accessory, from practice to matches, from small grounds to tournament halls, a symbol of the family’s sacrifice and hope. While teammates occasionally borrowed his gloves or pads, the willow was never loaned.When a senior Ranji player once asked him if he could use it, Yashbardhan refused. Not out of arrogance, the family insisted, but out of reverence for what the bat represented: a father’s faith in his son in a time of crisis.“This bat carries my deepest emotions. I can never share this willow with anyone,” Yashbardhan told TOI.Now, national duty calls as Board of Control for Cricket in India has appointed him U-19 captain. Selectors cited his consistent run-scoring, temperament under pressure, and quiet respect within the dressing room as reasons for putting the weight of leadership on his young shoulders.