We've not done any magic: Hanumant Singh

Hanumant Singh is a contented man after the successful graduation of the inaugural batch of trainees from the National Cricket Academy. Here the NCA Director gives an insider's view of the five month programme and its multiple areas of focus. Hanumant believes the most important contribution of the Academy was to develop the physical fitness and athleticism of the boys which in turn has had a domino effect on all other facets of their game. He is confident that in the very near future the Academy will have a definite impact on the competitive levels of the Indian team. Here are some excerpts from the conversation.

Well, I can't answer that. Only the Board officials can answer it. But now that it's come up, I'm glad. It is never too late. Earlier we had national coaches who used to conduct camps at national level for the various age groups. I suppose that was serving the purpose. We've had good products coming out of that, people like Kapil Dev, Roger Binny and many others. So it wasn't as if nothing was being done. But now the game has developed a great deal scientifically. A lot of new ideas have emerged. It was the need of the hour to modernise our thinking of the game. We could not carry on playing the game as it was played in the times of our forefathers. So I'm glad it's come up finally.

Each day had different schedules sent by Rodney Marsh from Adelaide. They were very, very good. Sometimes we used to start with yoga, sometimes with stretching exercises, running skills and sometimes at the gym. Our practice was kept basically for the afternoon. But later on we realised that it used to rain late in the day. So then we decided that mornings were better and the other things used to take place in the afternoon. There were three net sessions and three weight training sessions every week. We had endurance training - running for a certain length of time irrespective of how much distance you cover. Each one used to have his own speed. Twice a week, we'd do fielding practice alone. Then we used to have twice, later made only once a week, sports psychology lectures and lectures on dieting - knowing what to eat, when to eat, how to eat. Then in the evenings for relaxation, the boys did swimming and hydrotherapy. In between we'd find time for video analysis. We'd show each player their videos and discuss their strong points and the areas which needed strengthening. So this is how a typical day would normally go.

No, I think in certain facilities we are already ahead of them. We've got better facilities than they have. They don't have a place of their own as yet, you see. The ACA is functioning at various places. The practice is in one place, gym is at another, sports psychology is elsewhere. So that way we're much better off. Once the Board comes up with its own Academy, it'll be even better. That way the facilities at the KSCA are wonderful. Mr. Brijesh Patel has done a tremendous job of it. The indoor practice facilities are also fantastic. Perhaps not as quick as the Australian ones but even so they're bouncier than our own wickets. They're fairly pacey, very good facilities in fact.

Well, from day one it was known that it'll have to be duplicated but you have to start somewhere. You're also going to have zonal academies, so in case the venue shifts from Bangalore, it can still be used as a zonal academy. In the near future, I'm sure indoor facilities are going to come up in most of the states who are progressive in their thinking, who are financially well off. Finance is not a big problem, our associations are quite rich. The Board can subsidise that.

You see, all these things come in automatically with physical fitness and development of athleticism. This is my conviction after the experience I've had at the NCA thanks to the programmes introduced by Australia. The stronger you are physically, the stronger you are mentally. The mental strength is going to improve, the competitiveness is going to improve, the aggression is going to improve with athleticism, with fitness. If you saw the performance of the boys in the Buchi Babu tournament, qualitatively the NCA team did not possess any great players. They're all U-19 players except for a few. But they outdid everyone else. We've not done any magic. It's just that their fitness levels have gone up, their athleticism has gone up. So it makes them more competitive. In the very near future, I don't think we'll be victims of the sort of thing that has been going on for years where we've been cowed down by our opponents.

Yes, the wickets, both outdoor and indoor, which developed a little too late for the first batch but the second batch had a taste of it, are good and bouncy. Even the wickets on which we played our practice matches had a lot of life. On the cement, concrete pitch, we'd stretch out a mat and practice things like hooking and cutting. That's one area which Rod Marsh felt needed to be strengthened. In Australia all our boys decided against hooking. By that, we literally played into their hands because they kept on bowling short and that was it. We could never release the pressure building up. You need to hook once in a while here and there although on the law of averages it's not a percentage shot. But you need to put pressure back on the opponents. So that's another very specific practice we carried out - hooking, pulling, and cutting.

No, I think the programmes introduced by the Australian consultant Rodney Marsh were very good. Perhaps we'll introduce some more new ideas. The only change that might come is that players in future will be better prepared. Now that the new lot which came for three weeks towards the end have been introduced to the programme, they know what to expect. The first batch came to Bangalore not knowing what to expect, you see. When they learnt it's going to be four months long, I think they were mentally feeling homesick from day one. But new ideas will emerge.

Well, I think we have quite a few people in India who are quite savvy with the new developing ideas. The only point I feel is that our boys, even now, after fifty years of independence seem to respond more readily to a foreign coach than they do to our own people. It's not that our own people lack ideas. We've not had a foreign coach, so let's find out. It has proven successful elsewhere, like in Sri Lanka. Let's see now what happens in our case.

It's still in the process of being finalised. But sometime in February, March, April, we expect the NCA team to tour Australia and perhaps New Zealand. So negotiations are on, let's see what comes out of it. But there is a provision that the NCA team must go every year to some place or the other. It could be to Sri Lanka, South Africa, England wherever. England is very expensive, so I don't know what'll happen of that. Australia for example is even going to Bangladesh because they want to give experience to their players about playing conditions in the subcontinent.

It's not such a big problem, changing from the conventional form of the game to one-day cricket. The problem is getting them to understand the techniques of the normal game. I think it's a much better idea if the boys are developed in the conventional form of the game because it's much easier to improvise thereafter. But if you start thinking of improvising earlier on, then you come up with shots like Vinayak Mane (an NCA product) played in the Irani Trophy. He's such a good player, technically sound. But in the first over of a spinner, he hit him third ball for six, wanted to repeat it and was stumped. Maybe the boys should have a little taste of one-day cricket at U-19 level. But then they're playing it locally. They're playing far too much one-day cricket. It's not that they're deprived of it.

Some of the coaches might have to do a little talent scouting, going and watching some matches. The NCA committee has decided to entrust some of the former Test and one-day players who've taken to umpiring to assist us in scouting for talent. They'll be watching from very close quarters so any talent that they come across, they have been requested to get back to us and let us have their opinion.

Oh yes, it is by far the most satisfying. It's something which has been of interest to me from the very beginning. I've been a student of the game and will continue to be so. Even in my playing days it always gave me immense pleasure to pass on something I knew of or had been told by some distinguished player of the past. Not all your wards are responsive or able to put into practice what you tell them. But some people are and when you see the benefits of it, then it gives you tremendous satisfaction.