I knew he would make it big, says Nair's first coach
By Vivek MV Bengaluru, Dec 20, 2016, DHNS
Even as Karun Nair left many cricketing fans and pundits amazed with his terrific triple century in just his third Test match, childhood coach B Shivananda was hardly surprised by his pupil’s fantastic knock.
Shivananda, the man behind Nair’s transformation from a special talent to a great future prospect for Indian cricket, never doubted the right-hander’s hunger and passion for the game.“Karun scoring big knocks is nothing new to me. He is an extremely fit player and right from standard four, he never complained about being tired, be it while batting in a match or practising at ‘nets’. I am extremely proud of his innings,” said Shivananda.
For somebody who has seen Nair’s progress from close quarters, Shivananda was sure of the youngster making into the national side.
“I spoke to him on Sunday, when he was unbeaten on 70. I told him that he will surely get a huge hundred. I told him that I wanted the ‘not out’ sign mentioned next to his score at the end of the Indian innings and he has done exactly that,” said the coach.
Nair’s association with the game goes way back to 2001 when father Kaladharan Nair enrolled a 10-year-old Karun to the Koramangala Cricket Academy, run by Shivananda. Within a few days of training, Shivananda realised he was dealing with a special talent.
“He showed great promise early on and I decided to put him in tough conditions. One day I made him bat against a senior fast bowler, who had done a lot in the KSCA leagues. The way Nair dealt him in the ‘nets’ and the manner in which he handled the pace impressed me a lot. That was the day I realised he is not an ordinary player,” recollected Shivananda.
Shivananda said he had to make many harsh decisions as a coach with Nair but felt his approach has paid off. “I was a strict coach. Though he was very young, I involved in him long sessions of high and slip catches. There were days when he would cry out of pain. But today, in the Ranji side, he is one of the best fielders,” he said.
Nair’s sensible approach towards failure has helped him overcome low phases in his career, believed Shivananda. “Karun knows what he is capable of and my job was to instill self-belief in him. In his debut Ranji Trophy season (2013-14), he failed in the first two games. I advised him to just play his natural game and he went on to score centuries against Delhi and UP.”
Shivananda hoped for many more great knocks from Nair. “He is a level-headed person. Despite achieving a lot, he still comes to my academy and plays tennis ball cricket with children. I want to see him achieve more at the international stage”.
Shivananda, the man behind Nair’s transformation from a special talent to a great future prospect for Indian cricket, never doubted the right-hander’s hunger and passion for the game.“Karun scoring big knocks is nothing new to me. He is an extremely fit player and right from standard four, he never complained about being tired, be it while batting in a match or practising at ‘nets’. I am extremely proud of his innings,” said Shivananda.
For somebody who has seen Nair’s progress from close quarters, Shivananda was sure of the youngster making into the national side.
“I spoke to him on Sunday, when he was unbeaten on 70. I told him that he will surely get a huge hundred. I told him that I wanted the ‘not out’ sign mentioned next to his score at the end of the Indian innings and he has done exactly that,” said the coach.
Nair’s association with the game goes way back to 2001 when father Kaladharan Nair enrolled a 10-year-old Karun to the Koramangala Cricket Academy, run by Shivananda. Within a few days of training, Shivananda realised he was dealing with a special talent.
“He showed great promise early on and I decided to put him in tough conditions. One day I made him bat against a senior fast bowler, who had done a lot in the KSCA leagues. The way Nair dealt him in the ‘nets’ and the manner in which he handled the pace impressed me a lot. That was the day I realised he is not an ordinary player,” recollected Shivananda.
Shivananda said he had to make many harsh decisions as a coach with Nair but felt his approach has paid off. “I was a strict coach. Though he was very young, I involved in him long sessions of high and slip catches. There were days when he would cry out of pain. But today, in the Ranji side, he is one of the best fielders,” he said.
Nair’s sensible approach towards failure has helped him overcome low phases in his career, believed Shivananda. “Karun knows what he is capable of and my job was to instill self-belief in him. In his debut Ranji Trophy season (2013-14), he failed in the first two games. I advised him to just play his natural game and he went on to score centuries against Delhi and UP.”
Shivananda hoped for many more great knocks from Nair. “He is a level-headed person. Despite achieving a lot, he still comes to my academy and plays tennis ball cricket with children. I want to see him achieve more at the international stage”.
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