October harvest for Raghuvanshi after September camp in Chennai
Mumbai opener follows up his two Under-23 double-centuries earlier this month with a century against Haryana in the latest round of the Ranji Trophy
It has been an October to remember for Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who has hammered two double-centuries and a century in the month. Following up on his 203 for Rest of India Under-23 against Tamil Nadu (from October 1 to 4) and 201 for Mumbai Under-23 against Bengal (from October 12 to 15), the young Mumbai opener struck a Ranji Trophy century (114) against Haryana on Monday (October 26). The latest effort should address his doubts about his own red-ball game.
With a reputation as a white-ball specialist, Raghuvanshi had, admittedly, struggled in the multi-day format, as was evident from his underwhelming performances in the KSCA tournament in September. “Within me, there were some doubts. It’s a very natural thing. Unless I was able to prove it to myself, I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to do it or not,” said the 22-year-old Mumbai opener after scoring his maiden century in the Ranji Trophy.
But the October harvest did not come easy. Before the Under-23 matches, he attended a short camp in Chennai under the supervision of his mentor, Abhishek Nayar. Chennai was chosen because his Under-23 matches were scheduled to be played there, and the master and pupil worked hard on his red-ball technique.
“After the KSCA Trophy, he was quite confused about his style of play and what he wanted to achieve in this format. So we sat down and made a plan before he got picked for the Rest of India Under-23 team. We sort of curated a plan as to what tactics and intent we wanted to carry forward. We also had a short campaign in Chennai before that. So that was sort of the start,” Nayar, a former India all-rounder and former India assistant coach, tells Cricbuzz. “So that’s when we put together the plan and started preparing. We had a good four-or-five-day camp in Chennai.”
Raghuvanshi plays for Kolkata Knight Riders for whom Nayar is the head coach. And he acknowledged his coach’s contribution. “I had a conversation with my coach, Abhishek sir, and I was making it a huge thing in my head that maybe I don’t have the skills to play red-ball. I asked him what I was doing wrong and if I was not disciplined enough. The only thing he told me was ‘at the end of the day, it’s cricket.’”
The problem, identified by Nayar - who is regarded in cricket circles as a coach with a contemporary grasp of the game - was that Raghuvanshi had become too defensive in red-ball cricket, leaving or blocking deliveries rather than hitting them, which would otherwise be his strengths.
“Multiple things,” Nayar explains Raghuvanshi’s problems. “One is, when you play red-ball cricket, you want to play it as red-ball cricket. You want to leave a lot more balls. But I think his game is naturally aggressive, and whenever he can maintain that, it becomes easier for him to defend or leave the ball as well. It’s easier said than done because you need to practise a certain way to feel that you can overcome it. Practice is the key to all of this. The suggestion is one part of it, but practising that way is the key.
“Just because it’s red-ball cricket, you need not always block, defend or leave the ball. The suggestion was that if a ball needs to be hit, you need to hit it. But you have to figure out which ball to hit based on the conditions and start practising for those conditions. So you use different types of balls and practise on different kinds of pitches. You challenge yourself to hit a ball that needs to go for a boundary, and you hit that boundary. You don’t forcefully defend it.”
Raghuvanshi seemed to have finally found his calling in the red-ball format. His 118 came at an impressive strike rate of 63, with 13 fours and a six. He also raised a 208-run partnership with Mumbai No 3 Musheer Khan, who helped himself with a century of his own (109), as the home side ended the day at a strong 290 for three at the BKC ground.
With Yashasvi Jaiswal away on national duty in New Zealand and vice-captain Ayush Mhatre out with an injury virtually for the season – both openers incidentally – Raghuvanshi’s position in the Mumbai team, which is otherwise difficult to break into, looks secure for the season.
“Well, I think it should do something. You hope that this translates into people actually recognising the fact that he is a terrific player. Like a lot of kids who have got opportunities, hopefully he gets one too. As I always say, you need to play the game for the right reasons, which is the love of the game. The rest looks after itself,” Nayar says.
