‘Three qualities stood out in triumph’

Bharat Arun provided fascinating insight into the preparations of the victorious Indian under-19 team for the World Cup down under.

The coach of the Unmukt Chand-led under-19 side revealed to The Hindu here on Wednesday, “We had a three-day boot camp in Bangalore before we left for Australia and the idea was to take our minds off cricket. We did rappelling, which is descending on a fixed rope in a standing position from a steep cliff.”

Arun added, “We had taken precautions and there was no danger involved. Yet, there was fear among the cricketers. But the players realised that if they followed the right technique, keeping the knees straight and pulling the head back, they could come down safely.”

Cricketing analogy

Then, Arun drew the cricketing analogy from the experience.

“The boys found out that if they stuck to the basics in cricket, like they did in rappelling, they could come through tough situations.”

Arun, a former India paceman, said, “To make a smooth transition from under-19 cricket to being top performers at a higher level, the players must first establish themselves for at least two years in first class cricket. This is very important in a young cricketer’s development,” he said.

Arun attributed the Indian under-19 team’s sensational title triumph on seaming tracks with bounce in Townsville to three qualities — self belief, smooth flow of communication and controlled aggression.

And he believed mental toughness was often an off-shoot of physical fitness. “The boys made sacrifices, trained hard. And if you are strong in body, you will back yourself to survive difficult times on the field,” he said.

Arun dwelt on players who came up with outstanding performances in the tournament. “We all know how talented Unmukt Chand is.

But what stood out was how he managed to inspire his partners at the other end when the going got rough. That was very special for someone so young.”

Arun added, “Aparajith showed the qualities of a genuine all-rounder, bowled his 10 overs of spin and batted capably.

Paceman Ravikant Singh wanted the ball in the end overs and showed great clarity of thought in execution during difficult times. And Smit Patel “kept very well and contributed with the bat.”