Today meet young cricket champion Junaid Dawood. Many congratulations to him on his triple victory as he has just matriculated, and taken part in the very prestigious Cricket SA’s 2015 Coca-Cola Khaya Majola U19 week (16-20 December 2015) and was selected for SA Schools. Proudly a Rondebosch Boys’ student, a young man of much wisdom and dedication and definitely one to watch for his future career in SA Cricket. He has this to say about himself: “I see myself as a down to earth, competitive guy who loves cricket and who gives 100% effort whenever it is required”. All the very best for the new and exciting chapter in your life as you enter the world beyond school.
Athlete: Bio / Stats |
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| Name & Surname | Junaid Dawood |
| Nick Name | Jammers |
| Date of birth | 2 October 1996 |
| Place of birth | Cape Town |
| Current City | Cape Town |
| Height | 1.85 m |
| Weight | 70 kg |
| Shoe Size | 10 |
| Favorite City | London |
| Favorite Song/ type of music | Magic by Coldplay ( or anything mellow ) |
| Favorite Movie | Django Unchained and Interstellar |
| School & Grade | Grade 12 at Rondebosch Boys’ |
| Twitter and Instagram names, facebook name | Instagram – junaid.d
Twitter – @OfficialJD_96 Facebook – Junaid Dawood |
| Parents Names, siblings
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Ebrahim , Mariam , Fuzail, Mustapha , Muntaha |
Photo Credits:
Andre Ross
INTERVIEW:
Q: You are passionate and doing so well in your Cricket tell me a little bit about how you started in Cricket and your journey in the Cricket arena up to now?
My journey in cricket started from the young age of 6. My friends from around the neighborhood would meet up every afternoon to play a game of cricket in the road. The older boys even painted crease lines on the tar to make it more realistic. From there on I took a keen interest and basically fell in love with the sport. Attending a prominent cricketing school such as Rondebosch Boys’ gave me the platform to showcase what I have on offer and in grade 9 I made my 1st XI debut. I was then selected for the WP u19A cricket team in my grade 11 year which was a big honor.
Q: What is the highest accolade that you have achieved in Cricket and what is your greatest personal accomplishment?
My highest accolade was attending the South African u19 National camp earlier this year. My greatest personal achievement was taking 8 wickets for 7 runs in 9 overs against Wynberg Boys High School earlier this year.
Q: What do you do to relax?
During my spare time I enjoy watching a movie or reading a book outside if the suns out. I also enjoy listening to mellow music.
Q: What is your personal favourite motivational quote?
It is better to live for one day as a lion than for 1000 years as a sheep.
Q: When an athlete hits some “hard / difficult patch in their sports career, what goes through your mind at that time? What advice can you give other young athletes in this regard?
When an athlete goes through bad patches, he/she will begin to doubt themselves. This can be dangerous as doubt creates a downward spiral in performance. I use music to get my headspace clear and I also remind myself of all my good performances to trigger happier memories and to give me self-confidence. This has helped me get over bad performances or patches and could be helpful for other athletes.
Q: In your opinion, how do you define success in life / how do you define a successful person?
I define a successful person as being happy and content with life. And also a person who can put a smile on people’s faces and impact their lives positively.
Q: What’s your WHY ? Why do you do what you do? Also, looking into the future, what type of influence do you see yourself having on SA’s and our continent’s youth? / what example would you like to set for the one’s coming after you?
I do what I do because it gives me great pleasure to be on a cricket field and achieve my goals and to see my hard work pay off. Obviously it doesn’t always come off but that’s the nature of sport and that’s why we play sport – to keep testing our limits. In the future I would like to show the youth that humility and hard work are key ingredients to becoming a successful athlete. I wasn’t always the most talented cricketer but through hard work and dedication I was able to keep my feet on the ground and achieve many of my goals.
Q: What is your message of encouragement to South African/ African youth and our nation?
My message of encouragement to the youth of South Africa is that whether you want to become a successful athlete, businessman or leader you need to have self-confidence. If you can believe in your ability then you can achieve anything you put your mind to.
Thank you so much for taking this interview. We would like to wish you all the best for your journey ahead. We look forward to following you as you go from strength to strength. Blessings!
