It has been couple of days since the finale of the U19 World
Cup and all the players are now in comfort of their homes. The last two weeks have been about discovery,
breakthrough, success and a reality check in their young lives. Only a small
percentage will achieve their childhood dreams of representing their country at
the elite level. The skills they have
demonstrated have been privilege to watch, especially considering most of them
have just turned eighteen.
One of the primary reasons for the quality cricket was the standard
of the pitches. It allowed equal opportunity
for the bowlers and batsmen, something that is rarely seen in modern one day
cricket. The bowlers were always in the contest and a wicket could turn the
course of game dramatically. It the terms of runs, it wasn’t “how many” but simply
“how” said one of the senior coaches in the tournament. It made
cricket intriguing rather than the monotonous. .
Favorable bowling conditions also meant flat wicket “bullies”
could be differentiated from the quality batsmen. Suddenly, a wide swinging half volley became a
temptation that needed to be ignored and shot selection became crucial. In many instances the batsmen were asked to resurrect
the innings and then provide the ascendency. Youngsters with poor techniques were exposed
and thoroughly examined. To sum it up it
was “Test cricket” at this level.
The satisfying part was in the difficult conditions there were
some standout performances. Australian
captain, Will Bosisto finished off innings in a manner Michael Hussey would
have been proud off. Baba Aparajith, temperament
and strokes were sublime as a Dravid or Laxman. While Unmukt Chand knock in the final was reminisce
of Dhoni’s in the world cup final. Along with other batsmen, their techniques
and mental game make them standout. Importantly,
the iconic players had based their games to prosper at the longer format.
Their transition to senior cricket depends on displaying
their skills against men and not boys. But there are some promising signs that
the foundation of the batting is still based upon principles of test cricket.
While the batsmen found it tough it was an ideal opportunity
for bowlers to exhibit their skills. Invariably the Indian and Pakistan fast
bowlers relied on swing and accuracy while the Australians, West Indians and
South Africans were hit the deck bowlers. This was not a surprise considering
the physical statures of the bowlers and the pitches there were brought up on.
It was incredible to see bowlers like England’s Topley and
Overton, West Indians – Beaton and Jones bowling at speeds of 140 and 145, swing
bowlers like India’s Sandeep Sharma, a clone of Praveen Kumar, moving the ball
in the air both ways and the bounce generated by Australian bowlers such as
Gurinder Sandhu.
Apart from the new ball the bowlers also had plans for the
death over’s. Young Pakistan bowlers had
already learnt the art of revere swing at tender age. The ‘knuckle’ and split finger slower balls
were common as in the ODI level.
The challenge for the bowlers is to be competitive in their
domestic and club cricket level. Harmeet
Singh was able to deceive batsmen effortlessly at this level but needs to out think
batsmen who have thrived on making runs against spinners. Similarly, a Sandhu
needs to be successful against players above his age who succeed on bouncy
wickets.
Indian coach Bharat Arun summed it up the best when he said “In
terms of cricketing ability and skills most players are up to the standard but
their mental game still need to develop”.
One skill that the young players have mastered at young age
is the fielding. Even the minnows such
as Afghanistan, Nepal, Namibia and others have players who are exceptional
fielders. They have been taught the sliding,
diving, flip back [when the fielder flips the ball back to the player that runs
behind him] and other facets to a level that can match even amongst the best in
the world. There were rarely any sitters that went go down and we did see some
remarkable catches taken. The South
Africans, Australians and New Zealanders still are in their own zone. Although the gap is shrinking, it still exists
and it is filtered through to the senior teams.
Overall, the Under19 World Cup is huge success. The timing
of the tournament was impeccable and it allowed world viewers to set eyes upon
the future starts of the cricketing world.
