Under-19 star Rajvardhan Hangargekar accused of age fraud: Report

Rajvardhan Hangargekar, a member of the young Indian team that recently won the Under 19 World Cup, could face some serious trouble as the pacer has been accused of doing age fraud to become eligible to feature in the ICC event.

According to a report published in Marathi newspaper Saamna, the commissioner of the Sports and Youth Department, Maharashtra, Omprakash Bakoria, has accused Hangargekar of age fudging. Bakoria alleged that Hangargekar changed his birth date from January 10, 2001, to November 10, 2002, to play for India U-19 team.

“Dharashiv CEO Rahul Gupta investigated Rajvardhan Hangargekar’s birth date. It was found that he was admitted to a public school in Dharashiv, where his birthdate was listed as January 10 2001. However, that was changed to November 10 2002, before eighth grade,” Bakoria wrote in his letter to the BCCI as quoted by InsideSport.

“Yes, we have received a letter from the Maharashtra DYS. It is a serious allegation, and we are looking into it. But at the moment, he is free to play. We fully trust the system in place,” said a BCCI official.

Notably, Hangargekar recently grabbed headlines after Chennai Super Kings (CSK) signed the all-rounder in the recently-concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction. CSK acquired the services of Hangargekar for INR 1.5 crore at the bidding event.

The Tujapur-born cricketer has played five List A games for Maharastra, where he has taken 10 wickets at an economy rate of 5.11. Hangargekar has also played two T20s but couldn’t take a wicket in those matches.

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