Former Indian players going to Australia for coaching course
It is difficult for many cricketers to break away completely from the game once their playing days are over
Partab Ramchand
08-Apr-2000
It is difficult for many cricketers to break away completely from the
game once their playing days are over. Fortunately though there are
many ways in which they can keep in close touch with cricket. Some go
into administration, others became TV commentators and still others
take up coaching. And now with the International Cricket Council
determined to globalise the game, the door is open for former
cricketers to coach in countries where cricket is still in its
infancy. Why, only recently we heard the news about Mohinder Amarnath
going to Morocco to coach and popularise the game there. Even in
countries like Kenya and Bangladesh, cricket gained firmer root
following famous cricketers taking up coaching assignments there.
Next week, four former Indian cricketers will be in Melbourne to
attend the Level 3 coaching course, conducted by the Australian
Cricket Academy. They will be among 40 others - all former Test
players from other countries - who will attend the week long
course. Former Indian pace bowler TA Sekhar underwent the course a
couple of years ago and readily acknowledges that the stint made him a
better coach. Sekhar of course is already the chief coach at the MRF
Pace Foundation in Chennai.
This year the four attending the course are WV Raman, Ashok Malhotra,
Madan Lal and Roger Binny. Malhotra and Madan Lal are already running
academies in Calcutta and New Delhi while Binny is set to take over as
coach of the National Academy, to be inaugurated at Bangalore on May
1. Raman, who retired from first class cricket last year, is
undergoing the course as a useful exercise. After all, it may come in
handy if a former Test player is required to coach and popularise the
game in some country where interest is still in the embryonic stage.