Alumni We’re Bowled Over: Engineering Alum Is a Top Cricket Player Stories You May Like Big Red Men’s Rugby Has a Winning Record—and an Inclusive Spirit Math Major Wins Silver in an Unlikely Sport: Chessboxing She’s Got Game: Sarah Spain ’02 Is a Star of Sports Journalism Saurabh Netravalkar, MEng ’16, balances a career in tech with a spot on the U.S. national team and in a pro league By Melissa Newcomb In February 2026, tens of thousands of spectators packed a stadium in Mumbai, India, for the World Cup in men’s cricket. For Team USA, it was a world away from home—but for player Saurabh Netravalkar, MEng ’16, it was a return to it. Netravalkar had grown up in Mumbai, watching his father play cricket in the streets outside their apartment before picking up the sport himself at age 10. As a teen, he made India’s national program and trained in the same stadium where he now stood—this time representing the U.S. and facing competitors alongside whom he once played. Alex Davidson / ICC “It was a nostalgic, full-circle moment,” recalls Netravalkar, who moved to the U.S. to pursue a master’s in computer science on the Hill. “My family, friends, and people from the community I grew up in were there.” Today, Netravalkar and wife Devi Snigdha Muppala, MEng ’16, live in the Bay Area, where he balances life as a professional cricketer, husband, father of a young daughter, and longtime software engineer at Oracle. The Bowers College and Duffield Engineering alum is a left-handed bowler—the sport’s version of a pitcher in baseball. He plays not only for the U.S. national team but for the Washington Freedom of Major League Cricket, the sport’s U.S. pro league, and has competed in premier leagues in the Caribbean, Bangladesh, and UAE. providedPlaying for India as a teen. “I am going to contribute to the team to the best of my ability, and share my experiences with the youngsters who are up and coming,” Netravalkar says. “I want to enjoy every moment and see where life takes me.” During his time as a master’s student, Netravalkar played cricket as a club sport. When he and his wife—whom he met on the Hill—moved to the Bay Area, he began playing on weekends with members of the national team. That led to a successful tryout, and he debuted with the U.S. squad in 2018. “I make it a lifestyle to meet my gym benchmarks, eat well, and just be a good human being,” Netravalkar says. “The outcome in sports will follow.” I make it a lifestyle to meet my gym benchmarks, eat well, and just be a good human being. The outcome in sports will follow. While relatively little-known in the U.S., cricket is second only to soccer as the world’s most popular sport, with around 2.5 billion fans. The game pits two teams of 11 against each other. Batters score by hitting the ball and racing between two sets of wickets—each comprising three vertical wooden poles with two small spindle-shaped pieces, called bails, resting atop and between them. The rules are complex, but essentially: each batting side faces 120 bowled balls, unless all 10 batters are first dismissed (because the ball is either caught by a fielder or hits the wicket and dislodges a bail). providedNetravalkar (left) with friends at Commencement. Stories You May Like Big Red Men’s Rugby Has a Winning Record—and an Inclusive Spirit Math Major Wins Silver in an Unlikely Sport: Chessboxing “My favorite thing about cricket is that it lets me learn life skills,” Netravalkar says. “As an athlete, you learn that you will fail more than you succeed, and you accept that. I try to judge myself by how much better I get every day, not just by wins or losses.” Netravalkar has emerged as a pivotal member of a U.S. national squad on the rise. Though the team fell just short of the top eight in the 2026 World Cup, its trajectory had begun to shift two years earlier. As an athlete, you learn that you will fail more than you succeed, and you accept that. I try to judge myself by how much better I get every day, not just by wins or losses. World Cups take place biennially, and the U.S. had regularly failed to qualify for the tournament. But in 2024, the nation hosted it. That gave the U.S. an automatic berth—leaving many in the international cricket community questioning whether the squad could hold its own. The question was answered when the U.S. beat Canada in its first game. Then it had to face Pakistan, a finalist in 2022. With Netravalkar bowling, Team USA won the game in a “super over,” a tie-breaker in which both teams get a six-ball inning, and the side with the most runs wins. Alex Davidson / ICC provided Bowling for the U.S. national team, and enjoying a celebratory moment. “Saurabh is world-class,” a teammate said in a video looking back on the now-iconic victory. “I think he’s a very underrated bowler—well, before that tournament he was a very underrated bowler. If there’s anybody I need to trust on our team to hit a certain skill, it’s Saurabh.” The win helped the U.S. finish in the top eight—and made Netravalkar a local celebrity back in Mumbai. As his relatives later told ESPN, news reporters came to their home the morning after the game seeking interviews with them. Said his younger sister Nidhi: “Everybody knows our surname now.” Published April 20, 2026 Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Class Year Email * Save my name, email, and class year in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ Other stories You may like Cornelliana Paws to Remember: When the Bear Mascot Had a Ladyfriend Cornelliana Gothic Castle on the Hill: Fascinating Facts about Risley Hall Alumni Hotelie Wins Poker’s Shiniest Crown