TO BE CRICKET OR NOT CRICKET IS THE BIG QUESTION FOR SILIGURI CRICKETERS

Kushal Dasgupta

Day by day cricket coaching centers are mushrooming in Siliguri. However, the overall standard of the players are not being lifted up, Gopal Banerjee, a former cricketer of Siliguri lamented. “I played in university level and played also for Siliguri but my cricket career had not reached the level it could be. I tried hard but, I didn’t get any positive advice or any positive approach from anybody” he added. In North Bengal, any cricket specialist doesn’t want to come. Especially the kind of players who had played Ranji, who had represented Bengal and East Zone at the national level have no interest to come forward. Though the players from other parts get this opportunity, the budding cricket players of North Bengal are always deprived of it. Even if a player with talents also needs some technical advice along with mental supports and motivations to upgrade him for a broader horizon. However, it seems that nobody is left to play that crucial role of mentoring. Exception is always there and that does not establish the truth rather contradicts. Wriddhiman Saha is a natural talent. His father had also left no stone unturned to make sure so that, Wriddhi can reach the height. But, what if a player does not have any kind of infrastructure or support system from family? How will he climb up the tough ladder of sports career? Sometimes experts from Kolkata come for two-three days and once they go back; the junior players are again left with their daily lives of dejection. Most of the young players of this region have a monetary problem which doesn’t permit them to shift to Kolkata to stay there for proper guidance. Moreover, they are far away from having a proper channel to get closure to the big shots of Bengal Cricket. In this context, just setting up coaching centers will not help much. Today the budding players of Siliguri and entire North Bengal need a proper infrastructure comprised of both tangible and intangible resources. And we all know that it will not happen overnight. So, sports associations of this region have to step forward with long-term strategy to cope up the situation.

Edited By Pradiptamay Saha (TNI Siliguri)
Photo: R. Subrata (TNI Siliguri)