CHENNAI: In September-end, the Board of Control for Cricket in India was yet to put together a team for the Under-19 World Cup.
Racing against time and limited matches, the selection committee led by S Sharath put together a team that brought home its fifth Under-19 World Cup title on Sunday, defeating England in the final.
In an exclusive interview with TNIE, Sharath reveals how his team which includes Pathik Patel, Ranadeb Bose, Kishan Mohan and Harvinder Singh Sodhi built a title-winning unit.
Excerpts...
A World Cup title to show. How does it feel?
It is not an easy victory by any means. As you know the last couple of years have been extremely hard on everyone because of the pandemic, and the team has given something to smile about by winning Asia Cup and World Cup.
I need to thank the BCCI for appointing me and the team and getting the job done. They gave us everything we asked. Be it secretary Jay Shah or president Sourav Ganguly, they gave the team whatever preparation the team wanted.
It was not an easy thing to do. Because of the pandemic, we couldn’t play one entire season and had very little time and few matches to prepare. We had to build a new team in three months and it took a lot of effort from all of us – selectors, coaches, NCA. We had to be on the same page to get the right combination.
Where do you think you got it right?
We had multi-dimensional players. The crucial roles played by the lower-order No 7, 8, 9 (make us) feel good because we wanted bowlers who could bat. It actually tilted the games in our favour.
Even though we had a strong batting line-up, the lower-order stepped up whenever the team needed it. That is the beauty of this team. We looked and picked multi-dimensional players because they are always precious.
You had about three months to put together a team. How did you go about it?
It was an enormous task given the talent pool we have. In the initial stages, Rahul Dravid (who was then the head of NCA) suggested having six teams for the Challenger. It was an excellent idea because we could see a bigger pool of players and that really helped us.
Then we had to get a lot of material from the NCA and stuff before narrowing the pool further. Then we had a tri-series in Kolkata (India A, India B and Bangladesh) which we lost very badly. It helped us to know our weaknesses and plug the holes. That tournament was an eye-opener for us. We mixed our teams so that neither of the teams was weak.
We found where we stood and it also helped us identify a few talents. Then we had a 10-day camp at the NCA where the boys played different situations. It was also the period where Hrishikesh Kanitar, Sairaj Bahutle took over.
We had internal meetings through which we covered our bases for the World Cup. And (VVS) Laxman was a big factor. Once he took over, he took over very seriously and helped us work on various combinations. And finally, we put together a good team which could fight till the last ball.
Dinesh Bana wasn’t the first-choice wicket-keeper for Haryana. But he was the first-choice with India. How did it happen?
Bana was not keeping for Haryana because they had someone else. But what we observed about Bana was he was playing these important cameos at No 6 & 7 for Haryana who were the Vinoo Mankad champions. He was getting 30-ball 60, 40-ball 70 and he looked a fantastic team man.
In the Challenger Series, we had the opportunity to give him wicket-keeping gloves also. In that, he got 170 off 120 balls and that is when we thought we could use him in the finisher’s role.
And we also had this gut feeling. Haryana had won the title and his confidence will be high because he would have seen a lot of situations in this short period. Same with Maharashtra players. So we targeted players from those teams and we got five-five players from those two teams to the World Cup.
Even Nishant Sindhu, he is just 17, but is an exceptional talent. He had captained Haryana to the title, so he knew how to take responsibility. He made important contributions with bat and ball. These multi-dimensional players made this possible and justified our selection was right.
How did you narrow down on Yash Dhull as captain? In the beginning, Rasheed was seen as captain material?
We have to give a lot of credit to captain Yash Dhull. On the field, he captained brilliantly and the manner he spoke to each and everyone stood out. Also the coaches, they had numerous one-on-one situations to understand the players. We had to build confidence and prepare them for the bubble-life.
But at the end of the day, players mix with players which is why Yash should be credited for keeping the morale up in these tough times. Coming from a state like Delhi, where they play a lot of limited-overs matches, it helped we identified a good and smart captain. With the game he had. Rasheed was probably our best batter, but Yash was a good in communicating and read the game well.
Some of the all-rounders seem to be exciting prospects already. Do you see them making the big jump soon?
Definitely. It is also important and pertinent that they do well for their respective state teams in the Ranji Trophy. There is no parallel like going through the hard grinds of domestic cricket.
They needed to be nurtured well and we have a good system in place. I expect some of them would be playing the Ranji Trophy. At least 10-11 from this squad are ready for Ranji Trophy.
Do see think a couple of them are ready to be fast-tracked?
I wouldn’t say straight away because the competition is immense. But they have it in them. Bawa is an outstanding talent. (A) very reserved guy, I would say. He doesn’t give the impression of a fast bowler like Rajvardhan Hangargekar, but Bawa and Ravikumar are silent, skillful operators. They are good thinking bowlers.
Ravi brings the ball back into the right-hander. In the matches we played, Ravi didn’t pick up too many wickets, but batters found it difficult to play. He was very restrictive with the new ball and none of the batters were able to dominate him.
And Bawa was exceptional in all departments. Be it with the bat or ball or on the field, he was fully committed and gave his all. Hangargekar is a bit aggressive, but I expect him to learn. Once he gets his direction right, he is not far away from playing big cricket.
At the World Cup, few players were down with Covid. Did it unsettle the team?
Naturally, as a team, you do feel it is an unwanted distraction. But we were actually prepared in terms of back-ups. You will be caught off-guard only if there is no Plan B. But we had certain players in our mind, who would ensure this team stays strong on the field. The reserve players we sent had good performances even in the Cooch Behar Trophy. So there was no panic from our end.
What has impressed you the most about this campaign?
More than the trophy, they have faced so many hurdles. We are talking about a team that still has players who are below 18. They have not stepped out anywhere for two years and suddenly they are made to live in a bubble with so many restrictions around without their parents for months.
It is totally new to them because they have missed out on so many things – be it studies or cricket – and suddenly you are unleashing them in a restricted environment. And you want them to be playing well too. It is not easy one bit to perform this well and go the entire World Cup unbeaten.