SA great Graeme Pollock believes youngsters looking beyond T20 have to get their basics right just like the stalwarts who have shone in the IPL
SA great Graeme Pollock believes youngsters looking beyond T20 have to get their basics right just like the stalwarts who have shone in the IPL
South African great Graeme Pollock does not advocate Twenty20 cricket for budding cricketers. The legendary left-handed batsman believes you have to get your basics right in the longer version of the game before you try your hand at T20.
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Sachin Tendulkar has been in good form for the Mumbai Indians this season. |
He is basically a Test man, but he is not complaining about the 2009 Indian Premier League. What has delighted him in this T20 competition is that the real, class players are the ones who are performing well and not the big bullies. In turn, they are setting the right example as the game is being played the way it should be.
"The guys that are playing normal cricket are coming back into it. All the basics of good batting are being learnt. This is how you can play the game, run it around, ones or twos and then boundaries every now and then. It is not the case of trying to hit everything out of the park," Pollock told MiD DAY.
No need to slog"A lot of good Test players are coming through. They have learnt how to play their game better; they are not trying to slog from the first ball. (Jacques) Kallis is having a good tournament, so is (Rahul) Dravid, so is (Sachin) Tendulkar. All of them are playing within themselves and are not trying to slog every delivery," the legend said.
In the first edition of the IPL played in India on flat wickets, a number of rookies outshone the Test stars.
Proven players like Dravid, Kallis and Kumble struggled to find their bearing. "All good players come out good in the end. There is no doubt about it. It might take a bit of time but good players will sort it out. A good player will never be out of depth in any format of cricket," emphasised Pollock.
Asked to rate his favourite batsmen in the competition, he said: "Sachin is still a great performer. Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist have been good Test and one-day players and they have just continued to excel in T20. It shows that a good Test player can be effective in one-dayers. AB de Villiers has played well. Kallis has played a lot better this season," said Pollock.
Balanced gamesThe widely held view is that people come to watch fours and sixes and in that regard, this tournament has not been a success. But, for Pollock the tournament is still a hit. "The scores haven't been as high this season but we have seen some very good games. As long as it is a fair contest it is good enough. The bowlers are getting a chance as there is something for them at this time of the year and there have been some good bowling performances. It's been an even contest between bat and ball," said Pollock.
His advice to youngsters is to learn the ropes in the longer format of the game and then try their hand at T20. "There is more money in T20 cricket but the true test of the game is Test cricket. It is easier to be a technically good player and adapt to T20 cricket than the other way around. Test cricket is a far more disciplined game, far more technical game."
