Saba Karim, former national selector and cricketer, joined NewsX India A-List for an exclusive conversation. Saba has been vocal about his views on various cricketing aspects and shared insights and expertise regarding the sport with us.
Talking about how 2020 and the pandemic have been for him and how things were for the cricketing world, he said, “2020 for me as well as for cricketers and cricket, in general, was a tough year because of so much uncertainty. Initially, if you recall March 2020, we were going through our domestic season when it all happened. We had to cancel two or three tournaments and everyone felt sorry for the girls who were prepped up to play these tournaments but that’s the way it turned out. Happily, the Women’s World Cup took place in Australia then the Indian team managed to play the Test series in New Zealand. And all this happened after they came back to India so we didn’t have any problems in terms of managing their safety regulations. But the entire summer that included the IPL had to be postponed. It was eventually played in October. So cricket has had a tough time.”
“We somehow tried to engage them through our online discussions and online monitoring, in terms of their fitness, nutrition, and growth. India is a large country, hence there were different regulations for different states. One had to be specific so that the players can understand and whenever they get an opportunity to go out and practice they were able to do so but fortunately, players could figure out that these are challenging times and had loads of patience to work on this. Thankfully things have changed now and it’s good to see cricket being played, not only in India but all over the world. It is opening up,” added Saba.
He wears many hats from playing cricket for India at the highest level, managing cricket, being a cricket expert, and talking about it on television. Opening up about which stint he has enjoyed the most, Saba said, “Nothing can be greater than playing for India. I think everybody would say the same. It’s a crazy feeling when you play for your country and step onto the field with your colleagues. You want to do well whenever you go out and play for your country. You know the entire dressing room atmosphere and the team spirit. The kind of high you get after a winning experience you possibly cannot compare it with any other activity you do the rest of your life. The other experiences also have been quite rewarding. My stint with BCCI was an exciting phase. I was General Manager, Cricket Operations for three years. There are some new systems and processes we brought in to spur the growth of cricket in India and it was beneficial not only for cricketers but also for some of the remote parts of the country where we were able to build infrastructure. This has been a pleasant and happy experience.”
He shared some memorable moments on the field with us, “The most memorable moment was when I made my debut for the Indian team for an India vs South Africa match in 1997 I played my first One Day International. The second biggest moment came when I played a Test match for India which was Bangladesh’s inaugural Test match. In all those moments one tends to be nostalgic but those are cherishable moments.”
Talking about has wicketkeeping changed now keeping in mind how the level of athleticism and fitness has evolved more specifically after the advent of the IPL, and whether the competition is cutthroat now, Saba said, “The basics haven’t changed and remains the same. The role of a wicketkeeper has evolved. One expects a wicketkeeper to score some handy runs which are good for the game, the team, and the individual as you need to develop your game in terms of wicketkeeping skill but also batting skill. I’ve always maintained wicketkeeper is more or less an all-rounder now so you complement each other’s skills. If you happen to be a very good wicketkeeper that will rub onto your batting skills and vice versa. If you’re scoring runs in your batting that confidence will help to improve your wicketkeeping. That is the chain which I have noticed and is crucial for the progress of the game.”
Coming to fitness levels, he said, “It has gone off to a different dimension altogether. It’s about how quickly you recover. That is the biggest game I’ve noticed in modern-day cricketers. It is not about your fitness level but fitness level is judged by how quickly you recover after playing a game, after a very intense session, after playing a T20 game or a One Day game or a Test match. That has become crucial and the new essences are the fitness trainers that are with all the national teams now. Now fitness levels are judged more on recovery and less on the number of 100 meters you run or the number of tests you do. It’s more important to recover quickly and all these tests are designed to help you to recover as soon as possible.”
The Indian team on the backfoot has been portrayed as an underdog and then they come out with mammoth victories and that’s exactly what happened in Australia as well. India was perhaps pivoted in the same space in 1983 as well. Nobody gave us a chance against the mighty West Indies in 2007 but India eventually went on to win it, added Saba.
Expressing his views on the current Indian team as a whole, he said, “The game has changed immensely now and India has grown as a cricketing nation. It is good to see that the Indian team has done very well in Australia this time but this was expected. We had to win as there is so much talent and potential coming through. This is the time for India to progress on these lines regularly.”