‘I can see many U-19 players making it to Team India’
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Virat is tremendous and his style of batting, especially when he clobbers a four or a six, excites me. I always want the man to bat on whenever India is playing. ALVIN KALLICHARRAN, West Indies legend
LUCKNOW: Caribbean cricket legend Alvin Isaac Kallicharran, who played for West Indies from 1972 to 1981 and scored over 4,000 runs in 66 Tests, heaped praise on the India colts who won the ICC U-19 World Cup in New Zealand last week beating Australia by eight wickets in the final.
“I could see a few matches of the Indian boys, including the final, and I am really impressed with the showing of next-gen cricketers,” he said. “The youngsters have set a tone for the future and I can see many of them makingit to Team India in future.
“Shubman Gill in batting, and young seamers like Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi impressed me a lot. I pray for their success in the future,” said Kallicharran, who was known for his elegant batting.
For the cricket legend, India captain Virat Kohli is a complete cricketer capable of scripting history. The 68-year-old former West Indies skipper never misses the opportunity to watch Kohli play. When the India skipper scored one more ODI century against South Africa in Cape Town, the man was watching him on TV during his 2-day stay in Pilibhit.
“Virat is tremendous and his style of batting, especially when he clobbers a four or a six, excites me. I always want the man to bat on whenever India is playing,” said Kallicharran over phone.
“I find him a complete cricketer who has a super natural talent. The way Kohli is batting, he will be scripting history,” said Kallicharran, soon after distributing prizes at the Inderjeet Singh Memorial State Cricket Tournament in Pilibhit on Thursday. In the final, Meerut defeated Rampur XI by five wickets.
GREAT FUTURE
A key member of the Word Cupwinning West Indies team in 1975 and 1979, Kallicharran had his highest score (187) against India in the 1978-79 tours. He sounded worried for West Indies cricket.
“Things aren’t good. But I believe, West Indies cricket is progressing and very much hopeful and that soon the Caribbean would again be dictating terms at the world level,” he said. “We have good bowlers as well as batsmen. What we need is consistency in the team’s performance. It’s going through its building process and soon we will see positive results.”