Deepak Joshi is Mumbai cricket’s long-time ‘Numbers Man’ but 55-year-old scorer, but now has a much bigger assignment than keeping a tally of the fours and sixes hit by Kohli and Sharma.
Joshi, a medical technologist has been employed by the South Mumbai Hospital for the past 28 years, but of late has been on frontline duty performing X-Rays for all suspected COVID-19 patients.
Joshi, who stays in Virar, a suburb of Mumbai, restarted his hospital duty on May 24.
“On May 24, I travelled in three buses for over three hours and re-joined duty whole-heartedly at the hospital. In my eight-hour daily shift, I handle 15-20 suspected COVID19 patients and primarily take their chest X-Rays,” Joshi told PTI on Monday.
For nearly a month now, Joshi, who has been Mumbai Cricket Association’s (MCA) official scorer in over 328 games (domestic and international) hasn’t seen his family.
“I haven’t visited my home since May 24 and have been staying in the accommodation provided by the hospital. I thank the hospital management for that.” he said.
“My wife and daughters are worried about my safety, but still they are encouraging me to continue working. They want me to take all the necessary precautions. Their support means a lot to me,” said Joshi.
“Also, some of the officials of the Mumbai Cricket Association spoke to me and complimented me for the work I am doing. That also keeps me motivated,” added Joshi, who has been an official scorer for 11 Tests, 21 ODIs and 5 T20s.
Joshi is available for duty round the clock or whenever the need arises apart from his regular shift hours.
“These are times when everyone needs to do their best beyond call of duty. I am always available whenever duty calls,” Joshi said.
John Stephenson
john@cricketinvestor.co.uk
#MCA #DeepakJoshi #Covid-19
