As Albert Camus put it: “You cannot create experience. You must undergo it.”
I have long believed that the best way to learn how to play cricket is
to play a lot of it. As I watch the under-19 tri-series between India,
Australia and New Zealand, currently underway in Darwin, I am even more
convinced.
The gulf in experience between the Indian players and the Australian and
New Zealand lads here seems as wide as the geographical distance
between South Asia and Australasia. It will only get bigger unless we
can replicate what India is doing.
Simply put, young cricketers in India play more cricket than their
antipodean peers. At the youth level, India is years ahead of countries
like Australia and New Zealand because they play so much more cricket.
Also, young athletes in Australasia have multiple sports vying
aggressively for their participation and involvement.
To compound the disparity, cricket has a monopoly on the best talent in
India, and has hundreds of thousands of players to choose from.
What keeps Australia competitive is its proud cricketing history and a highly developed combative instinct.
At the youth level, the deficit in experience is swinging the pendulum further towards the sub-continent.
The young cricketer in India has access to better equipment than ever
before and the BCCI is investing dramatically more resources at the
youth level, than previously.
Better coaches, more support staff, increased competitions and pay for
playing, all add up to a very attractive environment for young
cricketers in India. Those who get through to the national u-19 team
have almost experienced the life of a professional cricketer from the
age of 14 or 15.
Those who survive the rigours are hardened young cricketers by the time they play in a youth World Cup.
Current Indian u-19 player, Sarfaraz Khan, for instance, has a score of
439, four scores of 300-plus and six scores of 200-plus to his name
already, and is only 15 years of age! He trains and plays cricket nearly
every day.
The Australian boys, by comparison, come out of school cricket having played a few hours a week, for a few months of the year.
Cricket clashes with the most important academic years of their young
lives, and in some cases it may even be their second or third sport at
school.
The chance to score 400 in a single game just does not exist because games here do not last long enough.
Widening gap
Resources for young Australian cricketers are adequate, without being
exceptional. Much of the drive for their career development must come
from the individual and a supportive family environment.
The State Associations in Australia do an excellent job of identifying the best young talent.
They are then exposed at national championships at u-17 and u-19 levels.
From there, the best will go on to a four-day u-18 talent camp from
which the u-19 national squad is selected.
It is from this point that the previous lack of playing time is
compensated for, with training camps and the odd series — such as the
one underway in Darwin — to prepare them for the Youth World Cup.
Whilst Australia is doing this very well, I expect that what India is
doing, at this level, will leave its competitors in their wake.
However, the biggest challenge for Indian cricket is to get better at
converting junior cricketers into international representatives at the
senior level. Currently less than one in four makes the grade — which is
far too few.
One of the reasons for not achieving a higher conversion rate must be indifference.
This indifference is not punished because there are so many Indian
youngsters playing the game and with myriad competition, others,
including those who mature later, come along and fill the gaps.
Australian cricket does not have any such luxury. Once they have
identified a promising youngster they must be very efficient with their
conversion rate to senior ranks.
Recent results suggest that Australia does this quite well with bowlers,
but have not been as successful in transitioning young batsmen.
James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, all
recent graduates from the youth programme, have made their mark on the
international stage.
There are great challenges for all countries to keep producing talent,
but the one lesson that we can all learn from India is that the best way
to do it is to play as much competitive cricket as possible at the
youth level.
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