Cricketing characters #3: Napoleon Einstein

Is it a glut stretch or a pose?

Napoleon Einstein is probably destined to answer questions about the origin of his name for the rest of life. I first came across his name in about 2007/08 when he broke into the India team for the under-19 World Cup in Malaysia. It instantly caught my eye. I mean, how could it not?! He's called Napoleon Einstein!

Instantly questions need to be answered. Why Napoleon? Why Einstein? Why Napoleon and Einstein together? What on earth was going through the minds of his parents?

It's easy to make fun I guess, but the more I read about him, the more it makes sense, and the more likeable he becomes. Purely by walking onto a cricket field he enriches the eccentric tapestry of the game further. If you're going through life with such an unorthodox name, the sport of cricket will of course welcome you with open arms. And that's why he deserves a place in my Cricketing Characters series.

The sad fact for the man himself, is that there isn't a great deal to read about. He has played a few List A games in India for Tamil Nadu. On debut he scored 92 opening the batting in a stand of 203 with current Indian Test opening batsman Murali Vijay against Kerala in the 2006 Ranji Trophy. A second opportunity arose a month later against Assam, but his score of 1 was enough to see him out of List A cricket. He has played several games for Chemplast in the BCCI corporate trophy over the last few years however. The BCCI corporate trophy is an annual competition preceeding the Ranji Trophy, and acts as a high profile starter to the Indian domestic league. The BCCI invites 12 of the country's largest corporations to compete and India's star players are expected to turn out. The aim is to encourage employment opportunities for cricketers in the country, with a rather progressive eye towards looking after its players that come from poorer backgrounds if their dreams of cricketing success do not materialise. Against an Air India XI in 2010 he score a century for Chemplast coming in at number 3 against a strong bowling attack that included India international stars RP Singh and Dhawal Kulkarni. He has never repeated that success however, with just the 1 more half century in the past 4 seasons. He made a brief comeback to the Tamil Nadu side with a solitary T20 performance versus Hyderabad in 2014, scoring 19.

The Under 19 World Cup in Malaysia in 2008 was perhaps Napoleon's greatest triumph as he came away with a winner's medal (despite only playing in 1 game). His reward was to be was drafted into the Chennai Super Kings squad for the IPL in 2008, but he did not get a chance to showcase his talents on India's biggest stage. He was not retained for the 2009 season.

So that's about all there is to talk about in a career that perhaps was never destined to live up to the potential of his ridiculously powerful name. The thought of his name being in lights on the biggest cricketing stages is still a gloriously exciting prospect. Just imagine what the TMS team would make of it. Hearing Blowers introduce him as he walks out to bat would probably be enough to make me weep. He's still only 26 so perhaps I can live in hope for a little while longer.

As for the name itself, Napoleon has provided an insight:  "My grandfather was a scientist. He wrote a letter to Albert Einstein and even got a reply from him. I've got no idea [what the letter was about] even though I've read it. My mother was a physics graduate and she teaches Physics in one of the schools. So I'm Einstein. Napoleon is my father's name." 

"We don't believe in God. In our family, we're rationalists. Other people are named Krishna and Ram after Gods, so we were named Einstein and Napoleon after great people."

I love this last quote. As a rationalist myself, there's something very endearing about the statement that Napoleon's parents have made. It must've been quite clear to them that the name they chose for their son would bring him attention. Although India isn't as religiously conservative as neighbouring cricketing nations such as Pakistan or Bangladesh, it is conceivable that this open statement to rationalism would've brought some consternation in some circles.

Maybe I'm overplaying it slightly to suggest he is a walking philosophical statement, but it seems unjust to dismiss him as just a slightly silly footnote in the annals of cricket. Yes, most people will laugh at his name. Yes, most will agree that I wouldn't be writing about him if it wasn't for his name. His minor fame is testament to a game that celebrates such eccentric anomalies, and I love his story more for that. But it is worth remembering that he is man who's family have aimed high for him. Living up to his namesakes will certainly prove challenging, but the fact that they follow him will certainly mean that he'll be remembered warmly by cricket fans the world over.