India is the main cricket factory of the world these days. The country seems to produce talented players one after another like an assembly line of a well established manufacturing company that mass produces world class goods. The teenaged boys of team India established their dominance in the world under 19 cricket championship with an emphatic victory over England in the final. It was India’s fifth triumph in the under 19 section and highlighted the immense talent that exists within Indian shores.
In fact India’s performance throughout the tournament was remarkable for its consistency. In the league stage India topped Group B. Then India defeated Bangladesh in the quarter final, Australia in the semi final and finally England in the final. From start to finish India looked like a champion team.
One feels that the boys have a great future. It may be recalled that several players who had represented India at the under 19 level on earlier occasions rose to become the best cricketers in India when they became seniors. They include players such as Yuvraj Singh, Mohammed Kaif, Harbhajan Singh, Veerender Sehwag, Irfan Pathan, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Shetty, Virat Kohli and several others. The present lot also has the potential to emulate their predecessors.
From Andhra, the boy whose prowess captured the imagination of cricket lovers was Shaik Rasheed from Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, who was the vice captain of the side. In fact there were two players from neighbouring states, namely Rasheed from Andhra and N. Rishith Reddy from Telangana (Hyderabad) who were part of the triumphant team.
Rasheed was about seven years old when he watched India lift the World Cup in 2011 and it left a lasting impression on his young mind. Often it is these boyhood memories that inspire us to achieve big things in life and so it was with Rasheed. His dreams came true in the final against England, when he was joint top scorer for India with a solid knock of 50. His half century came off 84 balls and contained six boundaries.
Rasheed and Nishant Sandhu steadied the Indian innings and helped India to overtake England for the loss of only six wickets. Earlier, in the semi finals it was Rasheed’s splendid knock of 94 that enabled India to defeat the strong team from Australia.
So what makes young Rasheed special? This youngster clearly demonstrated a maturity and authority that was exceptional for a player in his age group. When he batted, his approach was as if a vastly more experienced and calm tempered batter was at the crease.
Rasheed is now a second year Intermediate student in Reddy College in Narsaraopet. Initially his father Shaik Baleesha Valli used to live in Hyderabad but later moved to Guntur. As a youngster he was coached by Mr. J. Krishna Rao, head coach at the Andhra Cricket Association’s cricket academy at Mangalagiri near Vijayawada.
“The first time I saw him playing was in 2012 when he was vying for selection in the academy. He was very young then and at that age we cannot judge boys by their technique but only by potential. We felt that he had the potential so we picked him for the academy. Our assessment proved correct because in the following years he was the top scorer in the under 14, then under 16 and finally under 19 category also,” said Mr. Rao.
When asked what are the strong points of Rasheed’s batting, Mr Rao stated that the younster’s capacity to stay in the middle and not give away his wicket through carelessness and his perfect shot selection were his biggest assets.
“Where further improvement is concerned, I would say that there is no end to improvement and learning. Even a batter like Virat Kohli will want to improve further. Rasheed must adopt the right mental approach. The key to advancement in any sport is mindset and professional behaviour. The whole thing is a big package. It includes work ethic, game awareness and temperament. These things must be always in the mind of any player who wants to succeed. Many a budding career has gone off the track because of a wrong mental approach. I hope Rasheed will succeed,” said Rao.
Rasheed told siasat.com that V.V.S. Laxman constantly monitored the team’s progress and inspired the boys with his pep talks over video calls before the matches. Many other coaches and support staff also played a role in pushing the Indian team to victory. When some of the players tested positive for COVID, they were scared that they would not be able to play. However, they did get the clearances after a week and took part in the games. The BCCI did not take any chances and sent out five replacement players.
Among them was N. Rishith Reddy who took up cricket after watching his father and uncle playing in corporate cricket events. Rishith who was a student of Oakridge International School developed into a fine bowler but later also became proficient with the bat after being guided by his coach L. Raju. He is now looking forward to a more successful role as a cricketer in the Ranji trophy championship. After that, with hard work, both the boys can graduate into the Indian senior team. Cricket fans in Hyderabad and Andhra will certainly hope that these two youngsters will do well and have a bright future in the sport.
This post was last modified on February 11, 2022 9:51 pm