BANGALORE: It has been quite a ‘homecoming’ for Daljit Singh, one of India’s knowledgeable groundsman. Daljit Singh is the chairman of the BCCI’s grounds and wickets committee and is best known these days as longtime curator of Mohali Stadium.
But, on Monday he was in the City overseeing further work on the ‘B’ ground at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. And, it took him back 20 years to when he was an integral part of cricket in these parts.
Daljit coached Karnataka for four seasons from 1989, bringing in the likes of Javagal Srinath, Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble. For two years during that time, he took charge of the national U-16 and U-19 teams. Those six-week camps were, in some respects, a precursor to today’s National Cricket Academy for which the 67 year-old is full of praise. “The way it has come along with Dav, Chapman, Close … it’s come a long way with the coaching, rehab and the application of modern techniques,” said Daljit on NCA.
The trip has also given Daljit a chance to catch up with Arati Jagannath. The local curator was his assistant at those junior camps when they taught the finer points to the likes of VVS Laxman and Vijaya Dahiya. The pair was deep in conversation as an excavator began digging up the outfield as part of the final stage of renovation, which costs Rs 20 lakh. The project, which has been underwritten by the BCCI, began in June last year with construction of six new turf wickets and two poles of floodlights.
So far this year, 12 practice wickets on the northern side of the ground have been renovated, and the centre wicket re-laid, with two extra tracks added.
“The ‘B’ ground was below par. But that should all change in the next six to eight weeks,” said Daljit.
Over that period, the old soil from the outfield will be removed to a depth of six inches, and irrigation pipes and popup sprinklers laid. They will be covered with two inches of coarse sand and red sandy loam mixed with fine sand and bio-fertiliser. Bermuda hybrid grass seed, similar to that being used at the Commonwealth Games venues in New Delhi, will then be sown.
In addition, the centre wicket area will be top-dressed and the soil tested for content and PH value. Daljit is confident of an excellent outcome. “Give it one monsoon and it will properly settle. Pitches need maturing,” he added.
It will be yet another feather in the cap of a man who has given a lifetime of service to the game he loves.
Daljit played 87 first-class matches for four states from 1961 to 1979, and captained Bihar (now Jharkhand) for eight seasons.
The hard-working wicketkeeper took 157 catches and made 68 stumpings, and scored 3,964 runs, which included seven centuries.
He even made a comeback to coaching Punjab two years ago when Intikhab Alam was unable to return for his third season. But his passion now is curating and he has been on the BCCI’s panel since its inception in 1997. The Committee will hold a seminar at Mohali on March 9 and 10 to ensure the best possible surfaces at the nine IPL venues.
