DNA Web Exclusive: 'He became a man way too early for his age,' Coach Prashant narrates his Prithvi Shaw story

Facing the first ball of the innings might be a superstition, but it also showed the arrival of an ambitious cricketer. He was not just a teenager, who was living his dream, he was an 18-year-old on a mission. Prithvi Shaw is no new face; he is quite well-known in the cricketing circle, especially in Mumbai, a cricket-crazy city that has witnessed the growth of this young talented boy. 

Shaw became India's 293rd Test cricketer on Thursday when he walked out to open for his country against West Indies at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot. 

Debuts come with various feelings including being nervous. Shaw turned out to be different as he faced the first ball on his Test debut.

Not only that, the 18-year-old lived up to all the hype about his talent when he became India's youngest centurion on debut. He smashed a 99-ball hundred and became the 15th Indian to reach the three-digit figures on Test debut.

While he would have left a lot of people awestruck with his performance for a debutant, people who have watched him evolve from a school cricketer to an international cricketer were not surprised by that sight. 

Speaking to DNA, Shaw's MIG Cricket Club's coach Prashant Shetty said when Shaw scored his first 25-30 runs with an ease, he knew the youngster was going to go big. 

"I was glued to the TV since the beginning but then I had to go to the club when Shaw had touched his 60-run mark. Anyway, I was pretty sure he’ll make it big when I watched him get his first 25-30 runs. He has got that habit of converting his starts, you know. Once he gets a good start, he always goes big. He hardly gets out in 40s or 50s. Yes, he has problems with getting that kind of starts but when he gets one, he converts it," a proud coach, Prashant said. 

He went on to add that since Shaw had been in a good touch, scored runs in Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy and for India A as well and in addition to his form, the pitch was plastered too, Shaw was expected to carry on with the momentum.

Asked if he was surprised about Shaw getting picked for India at such a young age, Prashant immediately denied it. 

"He has scored runs everywhere - First-Class, List A and T20s. Practically speaking, Shaw had played against international bowlers before, as a part of for India A. He played against the likes of Chris Woakes and Sam Curran earlier this year in England. A year before that he played against New Zealand's international bowlers including Trent Bolt for India A and has performed consistently in all those games and selectors certainly were keeping a track of the same," he added.

How MIG Academy made a difference in Shaw's career

Shaw's cricket journey took off when an eight-year-old Shaw moved from Virar to Vakola, joined the Rizvi Springfield School and trained at MIG Cricket Club Academy where Prashant is also a coach. 

He still visits the academy whenever he needs to discuss his game with Prashant. Prior to the India A tour of England in June, Shaw trained for about a week or so at the MIG Academy, the place which has a huge role in his cricketing career. 

One of the best things the academy coaches like Prashant did with Shaw was they made him bat against Division-A bowlers, in order to train him for the big league way too early in his career. 

"MIG has supported Shaw a lot in his career so far. He used to practice for several hours there, be it at U-12, 14, 16 or U-18 level and in one year’s time he had begun to train for the A-team. We had good 25-26-year-old bowlers bowling at him and I think that also made a lot of difference. At an age of 9, he was practising against 6-feet bowlers. There were bowlers bowling at a different pace and since he played them easily, his confidence level went up," Prashant recollected. 

When asked if he wanted Shaw to alter something in his game, Coach Prashant said, "There has been a lot of talk about his initial moment, backfoot, even the commentators have brought that up during the recent games, including the IPL. But, this knock showed how well he has worked on that bit. He just needs to adjust according to the format considering how often it changes."

Shaw's grassroots coach complimenting him further said that the teenager is a quick learner and he had had a smooth transition from one format to another. 

"He is a quick learner and very intelligent and that is why he has adjusted so well in the T20 format. The transition is smooth. Hence, he has been getting runs across formats and this quality of adaption will help him in the long run."

'He can do well in Australia'

Talking further about Shaw's ability to adapt according to the demand of the conditions, Prashant added, "Even Sachin Tendulkar has pointed out that Shaw can adapt, he can adjust his game and that is a quality every cricketer should have. 

Now if you see his record, he has scored plenty of runs across formats – in India's domestic tournaments, in tricky English conditions, he even won the World Cup in the 50-over format and these achievements speak volumes of his adapting quality. There is talent, no doubt, but to adjust and adapt according to the demand of the conditions is what makes him special.

Which is why there is hope that he can do well in Australia, he has the backfoot game. I think he can do well there," he said. 

When asked if he thinks Shaw will make the cut to Virat Kohli's World Cup 2019 plan, Prashant said, "Definitely. Kohli is a new age captain. I feel the way Virat likes to dominate, Shaw also belongs to the same wing so I feel, he’ll back him. The way Shaw has been performing over the last couple of years, scoring runs almost everywhere, he just deserves to be backed up."

'Became a man way too early for his age'

Talking further about Shaw's century on debut, Prashant said that Shaw's tough past has made him stronger, more mature for his age and he knows how to rise to the occasion. 

"He has matured a lot. He knows how to rise to the occasion, he knows it's his debut innings and he has to create an impression because of the amount of competition for a place in the team. He adjusts his game accordingly well, the maturity was the key factor you know, I could see that had made a lot of difference in his game," Prashant said.

Shaw, who lost his mother when he was just four years old, had just one option that could help him give a good life to his father, who had lost his job back then and that was cricket.

"He always knew he had to succeed in cricket because he never had a backup option. He had to succeed in cricket. Moreover, there were immense expectations and pressure from his father, who had just one dream - watch his son play for India some day.

These things have made him a man way too early for his age. His journey for fulfiling his father's dream has begun, in fact, it began a couple of years ago. He wants to do well now and he knows he has to capitalise on every given opportunity as those are limited these days considering the amount of competition in the game of cricket," he added. 

The knock of 134 off 154 was just a trailer of what Prithvi Shaw is capable of doing with the willow. He was spotted when he was hardly four or five years old and at such a tender age, he gave away glimpses of being a potential Test cricketer. 

A little over a decade, the young boy of Virar is living his dream. These sights are of fairytales but we all know, Shaw's is no fairytale. He has conquered quite a lot for an 18-year-old in his life so far. Prashant and others who have been a part of Shaw's journey are confident, this boy will "go big."