NEWS
Follow UsHead of the National Cricket Academy (NCA), VVS Laxman stated that the U19 World Cup win was ‘very special’ due to the lack of match practice the team had to deal with heading into the competition.
The Covid pandemic disrupted age-level cricket big time, meaning the U19 players entered the World Cup with little to no cricket under their belt in the past two years. But that mattered little for the Yash Dhull-led Indian side, who finished the tournament unbeaten by comprehensively winning each of their six matches.
According to Laxman, who was with the Indian Under 19 side in the Caribbean, the absence of cricket at the youth level makes the World Cup win ‘very special’.
"I think the BCCI has to be complimented for the number of matches. the number of tournaments each age group level player gets to play, whether it's under-16, whether it's under-19, under-23. But unfortunately, over the last two years, because of COVID. They didn't play any tournament and that's why I think this tournament win is very special,” Laxman told the host broadcaster after the final.
Laxman heaped praise on the selection committee and the coaching staff, and lauded the resilience shown by the players after having to deal with a curve ball in the middle of the tournament. As many as six Indian players tested positive for Covid-19 in the middle of the tournament, but the team, despite the adversity, did not wilt as they continued being dominant irrespective of the personnel.
"Firstly huge congratulations to the selection committee. It was a new selection committee and quite challenging for them to identify this group. After that, the coaching staff with Hrishikesh as the head coach, Sai Raj, Munish, and all the support staff, the way they got this group together, they worked really hard, won the Asia Cup and the preparation for this World Cup was fantastic.
“But in the middle of this tournament, we all know what happened to the boys. To test positive [for Covid] but show the kind of resilience and positive attitude was exemplary.”
The 47-year-old, however, was also quick to point out that the World Cup victory is just the beginning of the journey for the players involved, with the competition, in his opinion, merely being a step in their development as players and individuals.
“It's important but this is just a learning process and just the start of their journey. Everyone in this group understands that. This is about development as players and as a person and it's great to see how they've developed and evolved over the last couple of months but this is just the start of their journey as a cricketer."