Paul Valthaty's Indian Premier League showing for King's XI Punjab makes one wonder what stopped the selectors from picking him for mumbai in first-class cricket
Paul Valthaty's Indian Premier League showing for King'su00a0XI Punjab makes one wonder what stopped the selectors from picking him for mumbai in first-class cricket
An average Mumbai cricket lover knows the names of talented young cricketers in the city. Isn't it an irony then that they ask 'Paul who,' after Paul Valthaty's exploits in the Indian Premier League?
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It's said a player has to have three Ds - dedication, devotion and discipline ufffd but one may say he has to have three Ts ufffd talent, temperament and tenacity ufffd as well.
What Valthaty possessed was alphabet T till a Bangladeshi bowler on an under-prepared pitch in Auckland hit his eye through the visor of his helmet in an Under-19 World Cup match in 2002.
Sighting the ball
One could see a small hole in his right eyelid. He did start playing after eight months, but could sight the ball properly only two years later when he was 22!
The two vital years that he lost began to haunt him. Healing process of a soft area takes time. Valthaty was reconciled to the fact that no matter what he did, it would take time to heal. But the followers of the game didn't know the gravity of his injury, nor did anyone think of enquiring about his recovery.
He was part of Dilip Vengsarkar's academy for a decade and played only for Fort Vijay club from the age of 16 till last season. At both places, he was encouraged by his teammates, especially during those two years.
The technical brilliance backed by unflinching temperament that Valthaty showed in the last week and a half vindicates Vengsarkar's judgment about his class. The former India captain was instrumental in picking Valthaty for the Under-19 World Cup though the latter hadn't performed in trial matches.
Why hasn't Valthaty played Ranji Trophy for Mumbai needs to be explained by the selectors. The point is, if only performance and not talent is the criteria, do we need experienced paid selectors? Surely a group of statisticians can select the team.
The principle of Mumbai batsmanship is to grind the opposition and aim for a three-digit score. But when a genuine strokeplayer keeps timing the ball like Sandeep Patil used to do, a question is asked, whether he will survive against quality opposition. And that's how Patil missed the 1979 World Cup.
Valthaty presents a good case study. Should he conform to the principle of Mumbai batsmanship or play his natural game? Did Sanath Jayasuriya and Virender Sehwag change their approach to batting when they were picked? No. They entertained cricket lovers.
The best compliment to Valthaty was paid by Bishan Singh Bedi, who said, "He isu00a0 technically a very organised player, who knows what he is doing. He gets into a position that allows him to play his shots. He plays on the merit of the ball and backs his instinct and that to me is very important."
Tiger Pataudi, who also suffered an eye injury, touches on the psychological aspect. "There were several moments when I was about to give up because I kept getting out for no apparent reason. Nobody with an eye injury would have batted the way young Valthaty did," said Pataudi.
Valthaty fought hard and never ever thought of giving up the game he loved most. This season, despite being second highest scorer for Mumbai in the West Zone T20 league, Valthaty was dropped for the knockout round!
It's time the men whou00a0u00a0u00a0u00a0 matter got their thought process right. Vijay Manjrekar once said: "If we give undue importance to performance and not talent, Mumbai will produce first- class batsmen of second-class bowling in a third-class tournament."
Once talent is identified, it's the grooming process that matters. Sadly, that process in Mumbai cricket is missing.
Apart from being a cricket writer, Makarand Waingankar is involved in cricket development. He was chief coordinator of the Bombay Cricket Association-Mafatlal Bowling Scheme spearheaded by Frank Tyson in the early 1990s. Later, he was involved in the BCCI's Talent Resource Development scheme.
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