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Anuj Dal encourages Futures Awards applications after own 2019 success.
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Derbyshire man Anuj Dal has urged his fellow PCA members to apply for the 2020 PCA Futures Awards, after his own success in the early part of this year has led to the expansion of his coaching business and more.
Dal, 23, applied for a Futures Award (formerly Scholarship Award) in December 2018, following a meeting with Personal Development Manager Charlie Mulraine, who encouraged him to seek investment for his coaching company.
After his initial application was accepted, Dal travelled to Edgbaston along with other Futures Awards candidates to persuade five members of the PCA hierarchy to grant him funds to use for investment.
An impressive showing on the day meant that Dal claimed the award in the ‘Newcomer’ category alongside current teammate Harvey Hosein. Since then, the England U19 man has used the £1,000 prize to increase the resources and outreach of his coaching company, Purpose Cricket Coaching (PCC), which he set up in 2017.
“Applying for a Futures Award was a pretty rigorous process, to be honest. It’s quite daunting being stood there in front of five pretty major members of the PCA,” Dal recalls.
“My presentation skills have always been there but it’s a pretty nerve wracking moment when you’ve got these people critiquing your skills.
“However, it was a brilliant process for me, given that a couple of months before the presentation I didn’t even know that the awards existed. I was very proud to have beaten some of the other guys there who have done incredible work.
“Applying was also a very simple process. You just have to upload your CV, answer a few questions regarding your experience and what you’d do with the money and apply through the PCA website.
“It’s a no-brainer to apply for the Futures Awards. You’ve got nothing to lose from it if you’re unsuccessful in the application process.
“It just opens up so many avenues that, once you’ve finished playing, you can always go down. It makes that transition into a future career just so much easier.”
Expanding on the improvements he has been able to make to PCC with his £1,000 prize money, Dal explains that not only has he been able to invest in more equipment, but also in the visibility and professionalism of his operation.
“The prize money allowed me to invest back into my coaching company, which was just brilliant. It meant I could buy a lot of new equipment which then opened up so many different avenues for the business,” he says.
“I also spent a bit on doing a promotional campaign so I hired a videographer to come to a few of my sessions and put together a really nice resource for the website.
“From that, we’ve seen a big increase in the numbers of people coming to us for coaching. We’ve got to the stage where it’s almost too big for myself to look after.”
Following a busy summer combining appearing for Derbyshire with expanding his business, Dal remains keen to keep one eye on the future. As such, he has organised winter work experience for himself with St James’s Place (SJP), one of the largest companies in the UK wealth management sector.
“I’m doing a work placement shadowing one of SJP’s financial advisors in their Nottingham practice. He’s just taking me through everything that I’ll need to have in place to join there once I’ve finished playing.
“Playing cricket is the job that you dream of, but you never really know how long your career is going to last.
“The aim is to play cricket for as long as I can but having this ready in waiting for me once I finish takes a massive weight off my shoulders. It allows me to enjoy my cricket that much more.”
