When they came under me, there was no pampering: Abhay Sharma

When player of the tournament in the just-concluded ICC U-19 World Cup, Shubman Gill, ran backwards from mid-off to complete an acrobatic catch to dismiss Pakistan captain Hasan Khan in the semifinal, it was no fluke.

So much planning had gone on into the fielding and catching of the Indian Under-19 team that it had become a habit for players to go after anything that was even a half chance.

The Prithvi Shaw-led triumphant India U-19 team could not be caught for slackness on the field. Their planning towards the World Cup glory began under coach Rahul Dravid and the fielding coach Abhay Sharma about a year-and-a-half ago.

"About 15 months ago, when we had our first India U-19 camp, the boys were raw and were not used to the drills and the kind of intensity. I had a few sessions where I put them right in the corner as far as intensity was concerned and to show them what was required at this standard," Sharma said in this chat with DNA.

"When we started this journey, we had said we wanted to win the World Cup, and winning it was not going to be possible without fielding. These boys are very good batsmen and bowlers. In different states, some of the boys have been pampered and were not pushed hard.

"When they came under me, there was no pampering and we spoke about the standard we were going to start with and not where we are going to reach. It was an eye opener as to what was required from the boys," he added.

Sharma did not care if any of these young boys hurt his finger or had a blood clot when during the fielding drills.

"We were really hard on them. Later on, that had become just a habit for them. They knew what was required of them on the field. It was very nice of Rahul to give me a free hand. He understood what I was working on and I understood what he was aiming for," Sharma, 48 and captain of Railways' first Ranji Trophy winning team in 2001-02, said.

The fruits of all those sweat and blood were all to be seen when Shaw lifted the trophy on February 3 in in Mount Maunganui.

Even greater satisfaction that Sharma derived was when Dravid told him what the other teams felt about India's fielding standards.

"When you plan and the boys implement it, that gives you great satisfaction. Coaches of other teams said to Rahul that they wanted to reach the fielding standards set by India," Sharma said.

The making of successful fielding group

So, what went into the making of a successful fielding unit?

Sharma explained: "When we talk about foreign conditions, we tend to focus more on batting. I knew everyone was going to New Zealand for the first time. The temperature there was going to be different, the sunlight, wind conditions, everything was going to be different. Due to the windy conditions, the ball tends to wobble a lot. When hit parallel to the ground, the ball diverts in direction. We ensured that the boys didn't feel they were in a new place when we landed in New Zealand.

"So, at the preparatory camp in Alur, near Bengaluru, we prepared pitches according to New Zealand conditions. We knew there can be a situation were we get spongy kind of a track in NZ. I told the groundsmen at Alur not to cut grass for 15-20 days. With longer grass, the ball does not travel fast, players would have problems in running.

"In doing fielding sessions in these conditions, the players got used to all those conditions prior to reaching NZ. While one side of the ground was full of grass, another section was watered to facilitate diving and sliding.

"Every minute detail was planned and every session was worked specifically keeping NZ in mind. I knew that in NZ, the ball travelled a lot more from the bat to slips, point and the squarish regions. I used a couple of different balls, used taping on the ball so that it wobbled and also at a height. The ball shoots up very quickly and I was working on cutting down their reaction time while catching and also after diving and releasing the ball. A lot of thought was given to generate specific conditions," he added.

Another key to India's fielding was in Sharma working specifically on fielding positions.

"We used to work on whom to keep where for which overs. That way, we could keep the best fielder at best positions in the crucial moments of the game," he said.

The best fielding moment

Asked what the best fielding moment of the Indian team's campaign was, Sharma did not pick out a sensational catch or a brilliant stumping.

"People talk about catches, stumpings and run outs. For me, as a fielding coach, the fielding moment was during the quarterfinal against Bangladesh. Ishan Porel was injured and so also Riyan Parag. Despite the injuries, they both dived for their catches. Porel was at long on and ran towards deep mid-wicket to try a catch. They put their body on the line. It spoke a lot about the mindset that we had been talking from the preparatory camp. Such attempts have become a habit for them.

"Of course, the ease with which Prithvi Shaw took his catches, Kamlesh Nagarkoti's run outs, Shubman Gill's catch running backwards against Pakistan, they were all results of the high intensity sessions we had so that they became easy in matches," Sharma said.

Keeping Desai flashy, just like MSD

Himself a wicket-keeper in his playing days, Sharma had special sessions with Harvik Desai, who effected three catches and three stumpings in the four matches he had played including the final.

He recalled an interaction with Mahendra Singh Dhoni when he was the fielding coach of the senior India team to Zimbabwe in 2016. Though not as lightning quick as Dhoni in effecting stumpings, Desai was still flashy for this level.

"He (Dhoni) asked me how I worked. I told him I worked on the head position of the wicketkeepers and showed him his own video and the head position. The head position was akin to that of an athlete at the 100m finish line. The reaction time is less. He was convinced.

"Along similar lines, I worked on Harvik. About 1-1/2 years ago, I found out his footwork was slow, the body weight falling on his heel. He struggled on England tour (2017). After showing him a lot of videos as to how to come out of it, we designed a lot of drills. The results were so good that his stumpings were flashy," he said.

With some of the victorious U-19 players already playing for the states in the Vijay Hazare Trophy limited-overs tournament within a week of returning to India, Sharma said there were steps to maintain continuity of what's been imparted to them and that Dravid "would be talking to the concerned people" to ensure there is continuity.

Having been with the U-19 and India 'A' team for a couple of years, and having had a couple of stints with the senior India team including the West Indies tour last year, Sharma said he was feeling like a "complete fielding coach".

Despite all the sacrifices over time, like being away from family on duty as fielding coach including the times when his daughter Smritika wrote her Class 12 exams and was seeking college admission, Sharma looks back at them as worthwhile.

N ZONE

30 No. of catches taken by India in the entire tournament including three each by wicketkeepers Harvik Desai and Aryan Juyal

5 No. of catches Prithvi Shaw took in the entire tournament, the most by an Indian. He is also the joint third for holding most catches in the tournament

SHARMA PICKS HIS BEST FIELDING MOMENT OF WORLD CUP

Asked what the best fielding moment of the Indian team’s campaign was, Sharma did not pick out a sensational catch or a brilliant stumping. “People talk about catches, stumpings and run outs. For me, as a fielding coach, the fielding moment was during the quarterfinal against Bangladesh. Ishan Porel was injured and so also Riyan Parag. Despite the injuries, they both dived for their catches. Porel was at long on and ran towards deep mid-wicket to try a catch. They put their body on the line. It spoke a lot about the mindset that we had been talking from the preparatory camp. Such attempts have become a habit for them. Of course, the ease with which Prithvi Shaw took his catches, Kamlesh Nagarkoti’s run outs, Shubman Gill’s catch running backwards against Pakistan, they were all results of the high intensity sessions we had so that they became easy in matches,” Sharma said.