by Abhai Sawkar The 2020 ICC Under-19 World Cup in South Africa has been quite the revelation of precocious youthful talent. Each game was an opportunity in itself for the youngsters to announce themselves on center stage. With 16 teams involved, not only there was a larger scope, but we also had a chance to see some of the brightest stars from the Associate arena. Canada qualified for their fourth consecutive Under-19 World Cup, following a successful, undefeated run in the Americas regional tournament last summer. The squad for this World Cup comprised most of the players that had taken part in the qualifier, and one of them is the left-handed wicketkeeper batsman, Nick Manohar. First things first, it was a memorable and surreal experience for the 19-year-old. Manohar relished the occasion and the hospitality in South Africa. While he had to wait for game time, he was always invigorated to hone his craft before the real deal. Though he didn’t bat in the first game, his moment to savor finally came during the plate playoffs. Against Japan, Manohar opened the batting and scored an impeccable century, which drove his side to a formidable total of 300. That was not only a resolute innings of dexterity and power, but it was also a statement of intent from the left-hander. The patience to re-enter the playing XI paid rich dividends, without a shadow of doubt. “I really enjoyed my time at the U19WC, coming from an associate country the treatment we got was second to none,” said Manohar. “It felt like we were professional athletes, something we don’t get back in Canada. I enjoyed many things such as our practice sessions having net bowlers being able to work on certain things was never really able to have all that. The people in South Africa were very welcoming and made it feel like a second home. Obviously scoring a 100 in the WC was very enjoyable. Some of the key things that I learned was to be patient, I wasn’t given a chance early on to show what I could do, but that did not stop me from working hard everyday in practice and when I finally got my chance I scored a 100 I just let my game do the talking I never complained once and took the opportunity and flew with it.” In addition to the cricket and the pulsating big-tournament atmosphere, the time spent in South Africa was unforgettable for multiple reasons. Starting from the food to a wide array of pastimes and making new friends, there’s no question that it’s checked all the boxes for Manohar. “My stay in South Africa was amazing, I really had a great time and I miss it everyday. Having a great group of guys to be around everyday made it that much more enjoyable. I think we probably had the best liaison so we had a lot of time off away from cricket and he would go out of his way and take us to the mall, or go to the movies. One of my favourite activities would have to be going to Nando’s. I don’t know what it is but the chicken at Nando’s there is amazing and completely different from Canada. At our last hotel it was definitely the nicest and we had a game room, volleyball court, and a ping pong table. We had a lot of fun there. We even played ping pong and FIFA against the Australian team, which was really cool.” During the game against Japan, Manohar went about positively, driving on the up as well as using his feet well against spin. In the latter half of his innings, he had injured his right hand, but backed himself to bravely battle his way through the pain. Manohar already has a fair bit in common with his current favorite wicketkeeper-batsman. Stylish left-hander? Check. Crisp hitter? Check. Agility behind the stumps? Check. While it’s his batting that has stood out more, Manohar cherishes his early progress. He likes to go for it as and when he gets the chance, but at the same time there’s methodical judgment and a step-by-step approach when it comes to pacing his innings. “I’m typically an aggressive batsman and I’m not afraid to play my shots. It doesn’t matter if it’s early on in my innings - if I believe the ball is there in my zone then I will go for it. I just trust my technique and hard work that I have put in. The game against Japan I didn’t want to get overconfident. I treated every ball on its merit and just played my natural game. Sometimes I get in my own head while I’m batting and double mind myself but that day my mind was clear I got injured when I was around 70 runs I pulled a joint in my thumb on my bottom hand so from 70 to 100 I was basically batting with my top hand only. I just thought of the late Kobe Bryant shooting 2 free throws on a torn Achilles and said I can push through. Quinton de Kock is someone I really try to model my game after a lot of people say our game is similar and just getting some of those comparisons is amazing because Quinton is an electrifying batsman, and his keeping is amazing too. Some of the catches he takes are just breathtaking.” Cricket is in Manohar’s blood. Of Guyanese origin, he first learned the game from his father during his early years. By the time he was a preteen, he entered one of the most credited academies in his hometown of Toronto. After years of continued hard work and improvement, Manohar earned his first national U19 cap during last year’s regional qualifiers for the Under-19 World Cup. Team USA were the formidable opponents, and making it over the line to securing a World Cup spot is a prized moment for him. “My dad used to play cricket back in Guyana and a bit in Canada, I was always told stories of me playing cricket with a tennis ball and spoon in my kitchen. That was when I was around 1 or 2 years old. My dad was my first coach. He trained me in the backyard for years until I was 9 and I finally joined an academy. Tranzac Cricket Academy, definitely one of the best clubs in Canada, led by a great coach in Sheriff Boodhoo. My first chance to play for Canada U19s was in the World Cup qualifiers. To qualify we had to win against the USA, Argentina, Cayman Islands, and Bermuda. I didn’t actually play until the Argentina game and that game we bowled them out for around 30. Winning the final game against the USA was definitely one of the most memorable moments, something that will last forever.” Upon returning home from the U19 World Cup, it’s back to business for Manohar. He’s currently a student at Sheridan College as well as a cricketer, too. Dividing time between sport and academics requires concentration and skill. In fact, this has taught Manohar to have a strong sense of discipline very early on. He may have had to compromise his free time, but a lot of items on his plate didn’t seem to perturb him. His readiness to tackle challenging situations at hand have brought about appreciable rewards. Now that he’s created a more-than-favorable first impression at U19 level, the next step for Manohar is to continue towards eventually entering the senior national side. The GT20 and CPL are long-term goals, too, as quite a few Canadian players have benefited from the exposure in both leagues. “Balancing sports and study has always been tough. I was never really able to do all the things a normal teen would do such as go to parties, sleepovers etc. Mainly because my practices were Wednesday thru Sunday. In terms of school work it was quite tough this year because I decided not to take the semester off while I went to South Africa, and I thought it would be a lot easier than it really was. Being over there I never really wanted to do school work but I’m glad I did because I just recently finished all my exams with good marks. Hopefully I’ll be able to crack the senior side as a regular member and then get a GT20 contract and from that my main goal will be to play in the CPL. Only a few Canadian players were able to achieve those things, Nikhil Dutta and Nitish Kumar for example, so following in their footsteps hopefully I can achieve the same thing.” Finally, Manohar lauds the youth cricket program in Ontario, but then again, there’s room for the existing system to be better. Having regular U19 series against a wide spectrum of opponents would be advantageous in the long run. As an associate cricketing country, Canada has its challenges, but providing the necessary backing for the up-and-coming youngsters is a key step to sustaining long-term consistency. As a player having risen through the ranks, Manohar’s feedback is valuable. “Going through the system, most might agree with me when I say it still needs a lot of improvement. Being based in Ontario we have a really good program with the Cricket Council of Ontario, that really grooms the next set of players and you can see who’s got it and who doesn’t. I think Cricket Canada should focus more on the juniors than the seniors because we’re the ones that are going to take Canada back to the senior World Cup. So I think if they were able to fund the juniors and have them tour other places and train it would be really beneficial because most players now have to do those things on their own. Also finding a way to make the players achieve a good income off of cricket in Canada would be huge that way cricket could be the sole focus of the players like it is in the other cricketing nations.” Having qualified for the past four consecutive U19 World Cups, it’s no secret that cricket in Canada is on a steady upward trend. With promising performers like Manohar brimming with confidence and always raring to go, it’s quite an understatement that the future’s in great hands.
2 Comments
Sabita Tiwari
4/28/2020 01:25:29 pm
So proud of my nephew
Reply
Abhai
4/28/2020 05:58:40 pm
Privilege to interview Nick. All the best to him :)
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorsAkseli Pitkänen Archives
September 2020
Categories |