New Zealand’s rising all-rounder Rachin
Ravindra said he picked up cricket naturally because of his father’s love for
it.
Ravindra emerged as one of the biggest
stars of the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, ending as the
fourth-highest run-getter with 578 runs in 10 matches at an average of 106.44,
with three centuries and two fifties.
In an interview with ESPNCricinfo,
Rachin said, “Dad played club cricket, he watched a lot of cricket, played it
on PlayStation as well. It was always on around the house all the time.
Naturally, I picked it up. Mum and Dad would always throw me plastic balls. I
always wanted to bat or bowl. It accumulated to where I am today.
They never forced me to play cricket at
all. It happened naturally. I really enjoyed playing cricket with my mates. I
enjoyed going to the nets every day, hitting and bowling balls. I guess that’s
how it happened.”
Rachin recalled that spin-bowling
all-rounder Daniel Vettori was his hero growing up.
“I tried to model my action around him.
He was an unbelievable bowler. The amount of drop he got, his consistency. I definitely
love watching him bowl.
“I got to catch up with both sides of my
family. It was nice to connect with them after a little while. It was a little
feeling of home in a different country. I get to see them when I do go to
India,” said the all-rounder.
On ending up as the fourth-highest
run-maker in the World Cup, Rachin said that he is grateful to play matches in
the World Cup and that seeing his name among world-class cricketers is cool.
“Honestly though, it is not the complete
reason why I play cricket. It is nice but not necessary that I play for
personal accolades. You play to push the team forward. Whatever results come as
part of the process and journey is a bonus,” added the all-rounder.
About his conversations with skipper
Kane Williamson, Rachin remarked, “There was not anything too crazy. Kane is
such a good leader. He does what he speaks. He acts what he speaks. Even when
he was not playing, his leadership was huge. The message from the team
environment was to do your own processes. Trust the process.
A lot of the time in cricket, the
results can be very up and down. You control what you can control – how you
prepare and how you go about it ball after ball. Whatever the result is, you
can sit back and say: I gave it my best.”
He added, “His left-arm spin-bowling
knowledge is through the roof. He is a world-class bowler. You see the amount
of revs he gets on the ball. The beauty of it all is that he is this calm guy
who does not go up or down at all. He goes about his work, bowls the right
ball, makes for a very cool idol to aspire to.”
Rachin said his life has not really
changed post-World Cup.
“I am still the same. I am Rachin. I
enjoy the time with my teammates and family. Hopefully, nothing really changes
that. I get a little bit more attention from people. They ask for photos and
signatures. I have more presence online, or whatever it is. I think it is bound
to happen when you have a few good games,” he added.
About his family’s reaction, the
all-rounder said, “Like everyone close to me, he was very happy, very proud.
Dad seems to keep it very level. He keeps his cards close to his chest. Mum was
very happy. You can feel the love and support from everyone. My big friend
group watched every game. They talked about it in the group chat, which was
really cool. I would read it at the end of the game. It made me feel the love
of my good mates, my support from my family. It is special when you are playing
a World Cup.”
On the possibility of getting an Indian
Premier League (IPL) deal in the 2023 auction, Rachin said that “life and
cricket have no guarantees” and his current focus is the series against
Bangladesh.
ANI
