“Cricket is like oxygen for me” – Sachin Tendulkar

 Cricket, the second most popular sport in the world, is believed to have started in south-east England in the 16th century. I am from India, a country where cricket is regarded as a religion.  Although hockey is the national sport of India, cricket in India is like football in Brazil. India is a diverse country, and it is known for having many different religions and communities. But if you want to see excitement, passion, and patriotism all at once, then you should be in India during a cricket match. The love for the game is so much, that people watch the game from the first, till the last ball. I have been a big fan of sports since I was very young, but cricket was the game that stood out the most. I have been playing cricket for almost a decade, and for me, it is not just another sport, it’s my passion. As I grew up, I started to take cricket more seriously and decided to take coaching. I wasn’t a natural batsman, and I came to the realization that batting is not just about hard-hitting, its about technique. I had taken coaching at various clubs, but to be honest, I never learned the correct technique. I came to the realization that if I wanted to improve my game, I had to continue to learn more. That is why I decided to take coaching here in Sri Lanka, at the Sanath Jayasuriya cricket academy. I take classes outside of school two times a week, for two hours each day. Even though I had to miss a week because of a fever, I do my best to attend all sessions. The great thing about the coaching here is that they focus on all three aspects of the game.

Batting:

Even though I am not the best at batting, I really enjoy it. Since I never really learned how to bat correctly, I am working on the different shots and techniques to improve. For me, it was harder to play shots on the offside than legside, therefore I am practicing shots like square cut and the cover drive. Over the past few months, I feel a lot more confident in my ability to drive the ball, so I’m practicing the pull shot and the sweep/reverse sweep. To be honest, it was very hard in the beginning because I used to get tired very quickly, but over the course of the last few weeks, I feel better.

 

Bowling

Personally, bowling is the best part of the game. I started off playing as a fast bowler but then switched to leg-spin. I always wanted to be able to bowl like Shane Warne, who I think is one of the best bowlers in the history of the game. In coaching, I am working not only on my line and length but I also bowl a little bit of off-spin here and there. Highly skilled leg spinners are able to bowl various types of deliveries, that is why I’m also trying to bowl the googly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am really grateful to my friend who helped me join the academy as I had the chance to develop my abilities and learn various different techniques used in cricket. Every session I learn something new, and I am always excited to play some cricket.