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Bahrain’s High-Performance Cricket Academy (HPCAB) has been bringing home laurels at the GCC Cup and the pink-ball two-day tournament in the UAE, finishing runners-up and showcasing the kingdom’s cricket talent on a regional stage.
Last week, the team, led by captain Vishwaesh Gurumurthy, took on the experienced Young Talents Cricket Academy Golty (YTCAG) in the final of the pink-ball two-day tournament. The final was a draw but the YTCAG were declared winners based on their first-innings lead of 15 runs.
“It was a euphoric experience to play in the longer format and we were able to adapt to situations extremely well,” 14-year-old Vishwaesh said, after the match.
“We always played T20s and 30-over tournaments but playing in the longer format was an eye-opener and helped us understand the game better. We realised that hitting the ball hard is not that important, batting consistently by finding the gaps is more vital.
“Similarly, while bowling, consistency is more important than bowling short and sharp and to just finish the spell.”
In the final against YTCAG, the Bahrain team put up 129 runs in 45 overs during their first innings. YTCAG’s batsmen responded with 144 in 62.5 overs in their first innings.
In the second, HPCA scored 172 runs for six wickets in 31 overs, with YTCAG responding with 50 runs in 11 overs before action was called for the day.
The Bahrain-based team had a stellar streak in the tournament, bringing home the Man of the Match award in each of the five games they played. Shashank Shukla, Rishabh Ramesh, Sakthivel, Vishwaesh, and Sai Sarthak were recognised as the best players in the HPCAB’s five matches, while the team also nabbed the Best Bowler, Best Fielder and the Most Valuable Player awards.
The top three bowlers of the tournament were also from HPCA – Shukla, Sarthak and skipper Vishwaesh.
Team captain Vishwaesh has been meteorically rising in Bahrain’s fledgling cricket scene, and hopes to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) one day, while making a name on the international stage.
Starting at the age of 10, the Grade 9 student at St Christopher’s hopes to be a fast bowler at par with legendary pacer Waqar Younis, who spent some of his early days in the UAE.
He is currently being trained by renowned fast bowling coach T A Sekar, who used to play on the Indian team and is currently president of the Mumbai Indians cricket club.
“The last two years have been a big journey for Vishwaesh,” the young buck’s father added.
“He learned a number of skills from a bowling perspective because this was the first time we heard from someone that for fast bowling you don’t generate speed by using your bowling arm.
“Sekar taught him that his control, pace and athleticism should actually be on his non-bowling arm.
“Last year, we again went to India and spent two to three months at Sekar’s house and he would take us to his terrace and give bowling sessions. This really helped him a lot.”
Vishwaesh is also blitzing towards his dream as he is moving to Wellington School in Somerset, UK and will be trained by Stefan Jones, bowling consultant of Rajasthan Royals.
Jones is a renowned coach and trainer who has worked with top Indian fast bowlers like Ishant Sharma, Varun Aaron and Jaydev Unadkat.
Reporting contributed by KR Nayar.
