Chennai, (Samajweekly) Chennai Super Kings batter Ruturaj Gaikwad interacted with students at the Super Kings Academy and passed on invaluable inputs to them regarding their future and skill development, here on Tuesday
The 25-year-old, who is in the city for India A’s one-day series against New Zealand A, advised students to enjoy their present and learn with each passing day.
“Enjoy your time here, enjoy your experience. Try and learn every day. Enjoy your company. This is what creates a great place for you in the coming 15-20 years. Cricket-wise, there will always be ups and downs, there will be failures, there will be good times, but it is important to stay neutral, and learn to enjoy the process,” Gaikwad was quoted as saying in a release.
“Don’t stay away from your studies. It is always good to have a backup. I would encourage everyone to keep up their studies,” he added.
The CSK opener also spoke about the mindset, which is required for adjusting to different formats of the game.
“As you grow, it is really important to change your mindset towards every format. Each format requires a different kind of mindset,” he said.
“T20 format requires being expressive, one- day requires some kind of risk and some kind of patience, red ball requires a lot of patience and hard work to go through a lot of challenging moments. You really need to keep up with your mindset,” he added.
Recalling his early days, Gaikwad mentioned his wish to see big players play live, adding that he did not have enough facilities back then.
“There were times when I was sitting in your place and there were players and ex-players coming, and I was looking forward to seeing them live — Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Dilip Vengsarkar… It feels special to be here, and I hope everyone will be dreaming to play higher level cricket as well,” the right-handed batter said.
“You guys have got a special place to practice. Growing up I did not have enough facilities like what you are having. So, I think everyone has got a really great facility and it is obviously in the great hands of CSK,” he added.
The CSK cricketer also revealed that cover drive is his favourite shot.
“Cover drive, because Sachin Tendulkar used to play the cover drive a lot and I always wanted to replicate that. Since then, I’ve loved playing the cover drive,” he said.
Notably, Super Kings Academy is a coaching centre for boys and girls with centres in Chennai and Salem.
