Dubai. Aravinda De Silva was an entertainer. The way he played cricket was to enthrall the fans. His hooks, cut shorts and delectable drives were a treat to watch making many wonder how could such a short man at 5 ft 4 inch tall play such strokes.
During an exclusive interview with Gulf News after the launch of his Future Legends Cricket Academy in Dubai he revealed the tale behind his success and his views on the game. For cricket fans, Aravinda is a legend who played a pivotal role in Sri Lanka become the world champions but whom does he consider as a legend? Aravinda after naming Viv Richards as his greatest hero went on to narrate an interesting tale. “My hero was always Viv Richards. I was impressed with the arrogance with which he went out to the field and the way he played some of the most fearsome fast bowlers. He was such a great competitor. So when I went to Australia as an 18 year old boy, we played against West Indies and we were flying from Sydney to Tasmania. I always wanted to talk to Viv but frankly I was scared to approach him because of the kind of arrogance he shows on the field. However during the flight I saw him walk towards the toilet in back of the aircraft and I mustered all my courage and went and stood near the toilet, waiting for him to come out. As and soon as he came out, I told him I want to have a word with him as I had adored him. All I wanted to know was the way he played the game. That day I realised what an unassuming man he was as he talked to me freely and won my heart. Another person I consider as a legend is Imran Khan as a leader, the way he took on some of the greatest teams and the kind of belief he had in himself showed me how a leader should be to achieve success. They are two greatest cricketers I admired.”
Cricket fans around the world have admired Aravinda too for his aggressiveness and were amazed by his ability to play powerful shots despite being short in stature. When asked whether he believes short people make better batsmen as players like him Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar were equally short, Aravinda said: “If you look at history there must be something to it but if you look at Sir Gary Sobers he was not a short person. I feel at the end of the day, it all depends on hand-eye co-ordination, which probably is the key to batting.”
Aravinda is now on a mission to groom youngsters and thereby reward the game that has given him a lot. “To help youngsters I started a talent search project called Aravinda de Silva Cricket Foundation in Sri Lanka. Then we called it Aravinda de Silva Cricket Pathway. After about three years, Coca Cola came along and renamed it Coca Cola Pathway. Now I want to move on and help cricketers around the world. I realised that Dubai was one place where we could start it from and it was far more easier to do it in a place like Dubai than any other location though cricket is very popular in Sri Lanka, India or Pakistan,” said Aravinda, who has scored 6361 runs in Test cricket with 20 centuries and 9284 runs in One Day Internationals with 11 centuries.
“It is important to have structured programmes like in Australia. That is the kind of thing that we want to do. Not to be a run of the mill academy. We want to take it to other GCC countries too where we feel there is a huge interest,” he added.
Aravinda through instances from his life revealed on the changing face of coaching. “During my playing days we were never told to hook. Today coaches encourage to go and play it; they tell you do what is best for you. One of the reasons for my success was that I never listened to the no part. I would go out and enjoy my game and do what I can do best. Every time I got blamed or criticised it never worried me. Now if u look at the way the game is played you’ve got to be aggressive. Look at Viv, he was ten years ahead of his time as he played the same kind of cricket that we play now. That’s what made him a great player.”
Aravinda is favourable to change and strongly believes that cricket has to adapt to the changing times. So when asked about the day-night cricket and pink ball, he said: “The game is evolving and they are trying new things. Even coaching has to be done to make it interesting, not like doing routine things. Change is always good and especially when something (like Test Cricket) is dying it is better to give it a better life and hopefully it will work. The nice thing is atleast they are trying.”
To a query on the changing face of World Cup from the time he played, Aravinda said: “It has changed a lot mainly because the rules keep changing. The players have to adapt to the rules which are being implemented from time to time. Games revolve around rules and so you have to develop players being able to cope with it.”
Aravinda is hopeful that Sri Lanka will return as a power again. “There is so much of talent in Sri Lanka. It is all about how you nurture those talents. They just need to harness it properly,” he said.
Aravinda is not bothered about the controversies that are attempting to disparage the image of cricket. “Cricket is such a loved game especially in the sub continent. I am sure it will rise above all these controversies but we need proper people at the top and that is what is going to trickle all the way down. If that happens I am sure the game will be successful.”
