Zeeshan Ansari

Some Lesser Known Facts About Zeeshan Ansari

• Zeeshan Ansari grew up in a modest family of tailors. His father, Mohd Naeem Ansari, and paternal uncle, Mohd Gayas Ansari, own a tailor shop named New Noor Mohammad Ladies Tailor — Specialist in Ladies Suit & Salwar in Lucknow.

• His grandfather, Noor Mohammad Ansari, was also a tailor, who had pushed all his four kids into the same profession. Zeeshan too was expected to follow the footsteps of his father once he grew up.

• In childhood, Zeeshan studied at a Montessori School in Lucknow and was deeply interested in sports.

• He shares his passion for cricket with his uncle Gayas. In an interview, while talking about it, his uncle said,
  

  I used to play a bit of gully cricket and he would join in even when he was very little. When he turned seven, I took him to the Chowk stadium in Lucknow where there is an academy. Ek to wo bohot door tha, aur paisey ki tangi thi (It was very far and we didn’t have money either). It was primarily money actually. Therefore, we couldn’t send him. There was a friend who used to play with me who suggested that we go to the LDA stadium in Aliganj.”

• At the LDA Academy, the monthly fee was Rs. 300. As Zeeshan’s father could not afford it, the academy’s coach Gopal Singh offered to give free coaching to Zeeshan.

  

• His family could not even afford to buy shoes and kits for him, which were essential for playing sports. So, his coach and friends at the academy contributed money to bring a pair of shoes and a kit for him.

• During his initial days at training, his coach noticed that Zeeshan had a knack for turning the ball so he introduced him to leg-spin.

• Zeeshan’s coach made him watch Shane Warne’s clips on YouTube for long hours to polish his bowling skills. In an interview, while talking about it, his coach said,
  

  He has strong wrists and good control and properly rips the ball. The stock ball used to spin quite a bit. Soon he also developed a very good googly. So much so that at one time he started bowling only googlies. He had to be reined in,”

• After a few years, Zeeshan auditioned for the age group cricket but could not make it to the team.

• After his failure, Zeeshan’s father lost his patience and asked him to quit the game and help him at his tailoring shop. In an interview, while talking about it, his father said,
  

  Hum usko dant-te ke tum khel mein lage hue ho, apna waqt barbad kar rahe ho, kaam mein haath bantao (I used to scold him and tell him that it’s a waste of time and that he should start helping us). It’s cricket after all, you won’t get a chance so easily.”

• However, his uncle Gayas insisted his father to let him continue his game and his father agreed.

• After a few months, Zeeshan made it to Uttar Pradesh Under-19 team. He played average during his first two matches in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy. However, during his first Cooch Behar trophy game in Meerut, Zeeshan claimed 10 wickets and came into the limelight.

• In 2016, Zeeshan made it to the Under-19 Indian squad and represented the team in two matches during the under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.

• In the same year, Zeeshan claimed 23 wickets in 6 innings for Uttar Pradesh in the Under-19 Vinoo Mankad interstate and inter-zonal trophies.

• On 6 October 2017, Zeeshan made his First Class debut for Uttar Pradesh against Railways in the Ranji Trophy in Lucknow.

• He made his Twenty20 debut for Uttar Pradesh in the 2018–19 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on 28 February 2019. The match was held in Delhi against Uttarakhand.

• In 2024, he represented Meerut Mavericks in the Uttar Pradesh T20 League. Zeeshan won the Purple Cap for claiming 16 wickets in the league. His best figures were 3/17 while playing for Meerut Mavericks against Gorakhpur Lions.

  

• In 2025, Zeeshan Ansari was signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs. 40 Lakhs during the IPL auctions in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

  

• In an interview, Zeeshan’s father revealed how his relatives reacted to it when they saw Zeeshan going to a cricket academy. He said,
  

  Ten years ago when I started sending Zeeshan to the academy to play cricket, my relatives used to say that you are dreaming beyond your means. Once, I also felt like making him sit at the shop. But seeing his hard work, I left him to make his own future.”

• In an interview, while crediting his uncle Gyaas for his success, Zeeshan said,
  

  Uncle Gyaas has an important role in my life. Uncle sits with Papa at the shop, but he used to take out time and take me to the academy. Uncle wanted me to play football. I did play initially, but my mind was only in cricket. That is why he never stopped me from playing cricket.”

• His uncle Gyaas revealed that when Zeeshan played the first tournament for his academy, he earned a cheque of Rs. 1000 and when he played for the Under-19 India World Cup squad, he received a cheque of Rs. 2.5 lakhs. He gave both the cheques to his uncle.

• During his initial days at the LDA Academy, Zeeshan used to practise for ten hours on the ground in a day. Whenever there was a big match, he used to bowl 40 to 50 overs daily under the supervision of his coach.

  

• After Zeeshan played for the Indian Under-19 team, his two younger brothers also decided to follow in his footsteps. They joined the Chowk stadium academy (where Zeeshan could not train as it was expensive) to receive training in cricket.

• Zeeshan loves travelling and swimming in his leisure time.