‘Need to make players feel secure in team for good show’
LUCKNOW: Young Akshdeep Nath has been in the scheme of things of Uttar Pradesh cricket for the last many years, and he knows well how important it is to let a player feel secure in the team to get the best out of him.
Uttar Pradesh cricket, especially senior teams, have been lacking this sense of security and that is the reason why the team has not been performing well despite being one of the best batting sides in domestic cricket.
But Nath, the new captain of Ranji Trophy team, doesn’t want this feeling of insecurity prevail anymore among the players this season. He has been advocating for longer stint to players to test their caliber.
“Insecurity among players has been a trend in UP. I want this system to be changed. We need to trust our players and give them a chance to showcase their ability,” Nath said on Tuesday.
“Many of our cricketers scored plenty of runs or took wickets in junior cricket but they could hardly do well in senior cricket when they graduate to that level as they were always felt insecure about their place in the team.”
“Consistency is the only thing which we lack. Neither the batting order nor bowling is certain as some players get six overs in the first match and get just two in the second game,” he said, adding, “There are plenty of energetic youngsters, including Shivam Mavi and Priyam Garg, are in the team. We need to cultivate them into a winning combination.”
Nath, who performed well for UP in junior cricket too, besides being the vice-captain of the India Under-12 team which won the ICC Youth World Cup in 2012, said that longer stint in the team to a player would be the key to success this time. “We need to experiment with one set of players in at least 3-4 matches. Only one or two performances should not be the criteria to judge a player,” said Nath, who has so far scored almost 3,000 runs in all form of the game.
He accepted that there were plenty of errors and wrong judgments last season which pushed the team down the ladder. “We played good cricket but every time there was some small error or wrong judgment, it ruined our chances,” he added.
“We need to be more active in the last part of the game, especially on the third and fourth
BUT NATH, THE NEW CAPTAIN OF RANJI TROPHY TEAM, DOESN’T WANT THIS FEELING OF INSECURITY PREVAIL ANYMORE AMONG THE PLAYERS THIS SEASON. HE HAS BEEN ADVOCATING FOR LONGER STINT TO PLAYERS TO TEST THEIR CALIBER
day. We should learn the art of finishing the match. In innings cricket you should be more technical and patient,” Nath said.
His ability to bring changes will be closely watched when Uttar Pradesh begin their Ranji Trophy campaign on December 1 with their match against Goa at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.