The batsman who caught my eye in Townsville -- and this was well before he scored a dashing century in the final -- was Unmukt Chand, the Indian captain
He really shouldn’t have been playing at that level, as the best way for a young player to improve quickly is to challenge him against strong opposition.u00a0
Playing against men as soon as is feasible for a player’s skill level is the best way to achieve this end.
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Unmukt Chand
Unmukt Chand looked technically efficient and wholly capable of taking an attack apart, the two most important ingredients when looking for a potential class batsman. He also appeared to have a temperament that wouldn’t allow these qualities to be diminished by stronger opposition. It won’t surprise to see him playing for India very soon.
It’s interesting for me to see a young batsman and wonder what the future holds. It’s a risky business making predictions on these batsmen because of the two factors I mentioned earlier; you don’t know what is in a player’s head and heart.
I recall seeing a young kid (probably under five years) on a ground in India after an international match had been completed. It was probably around the late nineties. This kid was playing balls delivered under arm by his father and the thing that impressed me was he picked the length. When the ball was short he played back; if it was full he came forward. This is quite a remarkable (and rare) quality in a kid so young and when he completed the picture with technically good shots I couldn’t help thinking; “Here is the next Sachin Tendulkar.”
I wish I’d found out the kid’s name because I would love to know if he went on to make a name for himself with his obvious talent. Who knows it may have been Chand as the timeline is about right.u00a0
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