Arindam Das, the next Prince of Kolkata?

He is the new wonder-kid on the blocks as far as Bengal cricket is concerned. Arindam Das, according to many, is probably the best thing to have happened to Bengal cricket after Sourav Ganguly. The youngster has already proved his talent in the domestic season. Now he is all set to fly to the Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy at Adelaide in Australia for a stint of coaching. The Cricket Association of Bengal is sponsoring the entire trip.

Das' performance this season looks quite impressive. In 30 innings he played at various levels, Das has scored over 2,000 runs. He has an average of 100-plus in the Under-22 competition and 58.20 in the Cooch Behar Trophy. Nicknamed `Don' by his colleagues the young Das is the first one to blush about it. "The name was given to me when I was three years old. It's not meant to belittle anybody," is his first comment. He has another one to offer after much prompting. "If Sourav Ganguly can make it to the top from Bengal, I am confident that I will also be able to do so. I am not one to crib about practice and other facilities." Das started taking lessons in cricket when he was only six from former Bengal cricketer Pranab Nundy. He is also indebeted to Gopal Bose for giving him valuable batting lessons. As Bose said today, "Cricket is all about three Ts. Talent, Technique and Temperament. He has all the ingredients to don the national colours."

Das would have made his debut in the senior Bengal side this season itself. However his engagements with the Under-19 side in the series against England prevented him from earning his maiden Ranji Trophy cap. However, he has no regrets. "I will get it when the opportunity comes," is his shy reply. He believes that the coaching stint at Australia will benefit him tremendously. "As an opener I will have the chance to play pace bowlers. Here one only gets the chance to play spinners on slow turners. So my confidence against fast bowlers will definitely increase." He also feels that there is not much of a difference in the domestic and international cricket that he has played. "As a batsman my job is to play each ball on its merit. It does not matter whether I am playing at Lord's or at a local cricket ground in Kolkata." The bottom line for him however is hard work. "I can only work hard, score as many runs as possible and then leave the rest to God. My aim at the moment, is just that," he concluded.