He is fuelled by the words of that great explorer Mike Horn — “Never give up.”
Rajagopal Sathish has often stared into long stretches of darkness but seldom lost belief. He has undergone four knee surgeries in the last eight years; on each occasion he spent three to eight months away from the game.
Yet, his quintessential smile remains. And, yes, he fights back. “I have learnt to live life by the moment. Never look too far ahead,” said the 33-year-old new captain of the Tamil Nadu one-day team in a conversation with The Hindu here on Tuesday.
Sathish’s message to his men is simple — “Express yourself and give hundred per cent. At the end of the day, you should have nothing left in the tank.”
A fearless batsman, an outstanding all-round fielder and a handy seam bowler, Sathish has been a match-winner for Jolly Rovers and Chemplast over the years. He is quick of feet and brave of heart.
Sathish has sparkled in first class cricket (1674 runs in 34 matches at 36.39) and in the one-dayers (968 runs in 45 matches at 38.72) without enduring. This bundle of talent has, on occasions, been let down by shot selection.
“I’ve had time to reflect on my cricket in the period I was away from the game.
“I think I am a more mature batsman now,” he said.
“It has been a career of ups and downs,” admitted Sathish. He seldom got a consistent run with the Tamil Nadu side after his debut in 2000, as he joined ICL, played for Assam, turned out for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, switched to King’s XI Punjab and now finds himself captaining the Tamil Nadu team in the Subbiah Pillai Trophy.
That he is battle scarred is masked by his lively personality; Sathish is the sort who can lift spirits in the dressing room. There is a tough side to him too — “My message to the Tamil Nadu team is that we are here in it to win the all-India one-day tournament.” he said.
Sathish’s chemistry with coach W.V. Raman is right. “Raman sir is extremely knowledgeable. There is so much we can all learn from him. I must also thank the TNCA for showing so much faith in me. It’s a great honour to lead your home state,” he said.
The Tamil Nadu probables had two varied camps in Wayanad and Mumbai ahead of the season to experience different conditions. “In Wayanad we focussed on physical fitness and had nets too. The weather was quite cold. In Mumbai we had nets on pitches with some pace and bounce in the CCI,” revealed Sathish.
When asked about his vibrant, acrobatic fielding, Sathish said, “When others see a couple of fielders throwing themselves at the ball, it creates a certain bonding in the side.”
Sourav Ganguly is Sathish’s favourite captain.
“I like his attitude. He takes bold decisions.” And he marvelled at maestro Sachin Tendulkar’s “sincerity, discipline and focus,” when playing for Mumbai Indians.
While he will not be short of inspiration, the days ahead will be challenging for this affable cricketer from Tiruchi.
