Cricketer Praveen Kumar starts new innings as Samajwadi Party politician

Lucknow: Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, cricketer Praveen Kumar joined the Samajwadi Party (SP), on Sunday.

"I have met CM and decided to join the party. I will do whatever is possible for the party," he told reporters after meeting CM Akhilesh Yadav, who is also state president of SP.

Asked whether he would contest the state assembly polls, Kumar said, "I am a kid in this field. As of now I will try to learn it (politics)."

Heaping praise on Yadav, Kumar, who hails from Meerut, said, he has done a lot for sportsmen and big stadiums are under construction at Lucknow and Saifai.

Besides sports, the right-arm medium-pace bowler said, the chief minister has done a lot of work for all round development of the state.

Kumar, who plays for Uttar Pradesh cricket team in first class cricket, has been a part of the Indian cricket team in six Test matches and 68 ODI's, where he has to his credit, 27 and 77 wickets respectively.