No better way to get things rolling than with a different ball
MIRPUR: Samuel Badree was born in Barrackpore, Trinidad and Tobago, a country of just over a million people. They had qualified for the football World Cup in 2006, which spoke volumes about the popularity, and more importantly the quality, of the game back home. So it wasn’t a surprise when the leg-spinner, No. 2 in the ICC T20 rankings, dodged past three -- showing impeccable control that could leave some of India’s top club footballers wide-eyed -- and set it up for skipper Darren Sammy to tap home.
The West Indies cricketers are serious about their football. They do play their cricket with a lot of passion and celebrate their wins in style but no quarter is given when they flock together for a game of football before the nets. Chris Gayle is an ardent follower of the game, constantly tweeting about English Premier League and La Liga matches, but the big man generally sits out and only lends his voice when the beautiful game unfolds in the middle. IMPROVISED POSTS The bell- shaped fielding nets placed behind stumps for throws act as goalposts, and they are seriously small by football standards. Cones are placed in a five yard semi-circle and players, like in five-a-side football, are not allowed to enter that. Even then, the scores are high. Most players like Dwayne Bravo, Sunil Narine and Lendl Simmons are very comfortable on the ball. All of them have very high sense of position and they enjoy it as much as the security guards do, pulling up chairs to watch them play. Of the six member nations that form the West Indies Cricket Board, two have played the football World Cup finals, Jamaica being the other.
Over the years, football has become an integral part of most cricket teams’ training routine, including India. Except for Australia, Ireland, and sometimes England, who play rugby -- which too serves to improve hand-eye coordination, fitness, and above all team bonding. In fact, the Ireland squad is split into three teams and have their own rugby sevens league during ICC tournament campaigns. They had one during the 2011 50-over World Cup in the subcontinent and even during the Super 10 qualifiers in Chittagong. PERFECT FOR BONDING “Soccer is something the boys really love,” skipper MS Dhoni said after the match on Sunday when asked about the team’s off the field activities. “We play so much cricket all round the year it’s difficult to get the guys to come out and train all the time. Soccer is something they enjoy to get fit,” he said. India of course use wider posts and teams are allowed to score from anywhere. There are long clearances, shifting touchlines depending on who has the ball and it’s a lot more casual compared to West Indies.
R Ashwin credited the beautiful game for the high spirits in dressing room. “The camp is upbeat in terms of having some good football. We enjoy ourselves. You keep playing cricket all your life, so playing soccer gives you leisure time. We’re having a real good atmosphere in the dressing room as well,” he said.