Tamil Nadu teenager C Andre Siddarth has been riding the wave over the last year or so. Since making his TNPL debut in July 2024, he has made the step-up to the Ranji Trophy, scoring four fifties in his first six innings, and to the India Under-19s team besides earning an IPL deal with Chennai Super Kings at the auction last December.
Siddarth, 18, rang in the new year by winning the Under-19 Cooch Behar title with Tamil Nadu in Ahmedabad. Before 2024-25, the last time Tamil Nadu had won that Under-19 title was way back in 1991-92, when his uncle Sridharan Sharath, the current national selector, was part of the side. The uncle and the nephew recently spoke about the uncanny coincidence once Siddarth returned to Chennai.
Given Sharath's remarkable body of work in domestic cricket - he piled up 8700 first-class runs at an average of over 50 - the expectations on Siddarth are high and even he feels the weight of it.
"Yes, there is pressure, but it's not about the runs," Siddarth tells ESPNcricinfo before Tamil Nadu's clash against Chandigarh in Salem. "He [Sharath] is one of the greatest batsmen in Tamil Nadu history - so I have to live up to those expectations. My uncle has done so much; I have to do at least half of it or else it might be a disgrace for myself and my uncle. So, that's the pressure I have till date."
On the field, however, Siddarth has absorbed all of that pressure, starting his Ranji career with scores of 38, 66*, 55*, 41, 94, and 78, helping Tamil Nadu top the Elite Group D table in the first phase of the Ranji Trophy. Even before he had made his Ranji debut, a number of Tamil Nadu players, including R Ashwin, had earmarked him as a future star. The team management trusts him to bat at the top as well as in the middle order.
"To be honest, I just wanted to enjoy myself while batting," Siddarth says. "Even if I get dropped for the next game or anything I don't mind. Because for me, it's about going out there, expressing myself and putting the team first.
"The step-up [from Under-19s] to Ranji Trophy for me was mainly a mental switch and not a technical switch. Tanveer Jabbar (former TN batter) and my dad told me not to think too much and just watch the ball and play. So, that helped me a lot while batting."
There are shades of M Vijay in Siddarth's batting, especially when he drives on the up and flicks. Siddarth hasn't seen his uncle bat in his prime - Sharath was in the final stages of his career when Siddarth was born in 2006 - but he has followed Vijay more closely.
"Some people also tell me that I remind them of Vijay," Siddarth says. "I just like the way Vijay approaches his innings and just the way he plays. His batting is very eye-catching - you can just watch him bat the whole day. He's one of the most beautiful batsmen I've ever seen."
Siddarth's father Chandrasekar, a doctor, has also had a big influence on his career. He watches several cricket matches and videos to get Siddarth up to speed with the latest techniques and trends.
"My dad has played a vital role from the moment I touched a cricket bat," Siddarth says. "Till today, my dad is the only one who knows my cricket inside-out and he's the first one I go to when I have a problem. Any problem or anything, he's always been there."
After impressing in the Ranji Trophy, Siddarth was picked in the India Under-19s side for the 50-overs Asia Cup in the UAE. Siddarth had starts in all four innings - 15, 35, 22, 20 - but failed to convert those. After reaching home, he reflected on what went wrong for him.
"I had a good Ranji season, but didn't do well for India Under-19," Siddarth says. "I had to improve my front-foot play because I was playing too much cricket at the time. I felt my basics were going here and there. So, once I was back in Chennai, I was just working on my basics with my dad. And hopefully, I'm back to my normal mojo now."
Siddarth did get some good news in Dubai in December when CSK picked him for his base price of INR 30 lakh. He was eating a burger at Wendy's when his friend broke the news to him.
"I'm really overwhelmed to be part of CSK because in the first round I wasn't picked up," Siddarth says. "I was playing a practice match against Bangladesh, so I didn't know [about the first round]. Then, when I was eating my friend called and told me CSK picked me. I actually didn't believe it until I saw all my WhatsApp messages and everything. Then only it hit me. It's a very good feeling."
While Siddarth is excited to share the dressing room with the likes of MS Dhoni and Ashwin in the IPL, his immediate focus is to keep up his Ranji form and help Tamil Nadu clinch their first title since 1987-88.
"Winning the Ranji Trophy is one of the main goals in my career. It was nice to get the IPL call-up, and it's two months away, but putting on the Tamil Nadu cap for the first time was more special. TN is one of the biggest cricketing states and winning the Ranji Trophy will be the cherry on top.
"But we're just taking it one game at a time. The seniors and the support staff don't give the pressure to youngsters who are coming in like me. I've also resumed my basics after the India Under-19 series in Dubai and we've prepared for the next [Ranji] round with a camp in Chennai."