Prasad, Srinath and Munaf: Age-group cricket good, but carries a lot of baggage

While agegroup cricket has often been considered a stepping stone for success in the international arena former India pacers Javagal Srinath Venkatesh Prasad and Munaf Patel offer a counter view on the subjectIn a recent Red Bull Cricket Room podcast the three former speedsters cite their own example to explain how maturity brings in a genuine realisation of onersquos full potentialldquoWhile itrsquos important to give kids a platform at a young age to showcase their talent I took my first step in competitive cricket at the University level I never played U13 U15 U17 or even U 19 cricket Today we have a lot of India cricketers who have emerged from the U19 team but my first big step was different and I think I did quite wellrdquo said Prasad 52 who played 33 Tests and 161 ODIs between 1996 and 2001 claiming 96 and 196 wickets respectivelySrinath currently an ICC match referee couldnrsquot agree more with his former Karnataka and India bowling partner ldquoEven I did not play any representative agegroup cricket when I was young I feel agegroup cricket is good but it also brings with it some heavy baggage If a kid doesnrsquot get picked the next year or in the next agegroup then heshe could start losing confidence I believe as the physical body and the mental maturity of a player is continuously growing the player must wait for the right time for hisher best to emergerdquo explained Srinath 52 who played 67 Tests and 229 ODIs claiming a whopping 236 and 315 wickets respectively between 1991 and 2003ldquoItrsquos important to have a lasting interest and passion for the game because your talent will only emerge at the right time My first agegroup representative cricket was U22 and U23 and then I played Ranji Trophy So it doesnrsquot really take long because once you are at a certain age 21 or 22 you are in a better place to manage disappointments You wonrsquot get disheartened or dejected if you donrsquot perform well because you know how to come back in the next game So my message to aspiring cricketers is to wait for your time to comerdquo added SrinathPatel meanwhile said that itrsquos important for a youth player coming from a small town or village to move to a bigger centre to realise hisher potential ldquoLike Venky and Srinath I too did not play any junior cricket I straightway began with U23 and in the same year I also played Ranji Trophy and immediately got picked for India lsquoArsquo Coming from a small village Ikhar in Gujarat I realised what I could achieve only when I came to Baroda Till then I didnrsquot even know what Ranji Trophy was So I also believe that a certain maturity in age is required for any player to realise hisher potential At this age you know exactly how you are performing and can then adjust things accordingly and cover up for your shortcomings in the next match or opportunity that comes your way At 1718 no player will know how good he or she isrdquo said Patel 38 who played 13 Tests and 70 ODIs claiming 35 and 86 wickets respectively between 2006 and 2011Also Read Selfbelief is key to winning again Lalchand Rajput