In this episode of 'Free Hit', a series of exclusive video interviews with players, officials and TV pundits from the Indian Premier League, Boria Majumdar chats with former India wicket-keeper and TV pundit Deep Dasgupta.
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
#IPL2020 #cricket #sports
See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos
Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km
#IPL2020 #cricket #sports
Category
đź—ž
NewsTranscript
00:00Are you scared? I mean, with all these 13 cases from the CSK team, what you are hearing around you, you will be in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, are you scared?
00:10Or like every other league, EPL, La Liga, Serie A, every league at the start had a hiccup.
00:17Hello and welcome to another episode of Free Hit with me, Borea Majumdar here on Gulf News.
00:28And today my guest is someone who is almost family.
00:32I mean, he and I talk every day.
00:34We discuss every possible critical issue under the sun as if we are the problem solvers of this world in a sense.
00:40And IPL is more different.
00:42More importantly, he is one of India's leading commentators who will be in the UAE.
00:47You will hear him regularly as part of the host broadcaster's commentary.
00:52Former India wicket-keeper, currently one of India's leading voices.
00:55Welcome on the show, Deep Das Gupta.
00:56Thank you so much.
00:57And flattered, Borea, again, as usual, every time you are there introducing me.
01:02Deep, are you scared?
01:04I mean, with all these 13 cases from the CSK team, what you are hearing around you, you will be in Dubai,
01:11Abu Dhabi.
01:12Are you scared or like every other league, EPL, La Liga, Serie A, every league at the start had a hiccup.
01:20You enter into your bio bubble, things ease out, things fall in place.
01:23So this is one more of such because the world has learned to deal with the virus.
01:27What's your take?
01:28Well, I'm not scared, to be honest, because I think we've gone beyond that stage now.
01:32I think, yeah, the first month or so, it was scary.
01:35But I think now we've all realized that life has to go on.
01:38And yes, we will have to be very, very careful, very cautious and take precautions accordingly.
01:43I won't term it as being scared.
01:46But yeah, cautious, definitely, yes.
01:48Do you think this might impact the Chennai Super Kings in any way?
01:51I mean, for me, there is still a hell lot of time left.
01:54And these are all, you know, strong people.
01:57I mean, they are athletes.
01:59You can expect and assume that they will all be okay.
02:01And I don't actually see this impacting Chennai Super Kings going ahead in the tournament.
02:08What about you?
02:08Neither do I.
02:09Because, see, end of the day, it's been quite rough on everyone.
02:13I mean, nobody out there, apart from people who are playing CPL and international cricket before coming to IPL.
02:18I mean, no one has actually played cricket for the last four, five months.
02:21So in terms of preparation-wise, I think everyone's on the same platform, except barring the few that I mentioned.
02:27And looking at CPL, if you look at the side which has been unbeaten so far and kind of unbeatable,
02:34it's the most experienced side, which is the Trinbago.
02:37Their experience, I mean, if you look at their experience, got a 2,400-plus game experience in that dugout.
02:45That's how I look at CSK as well.
02:47I think experience will play a huge part, which CSK has enough of it in that dressing room.
02:52But I think Suresh Raina kind of not being part of the CSK this year, that will have a bigger effect than the 13 people who have been found positive.
03:01What about MS Dhoni?
03:02We are reading in the newspapers, etc.
03:04How important does MS Dhoni's role become in this problem?
03:08And how are you looking at that, Deep?
03:10I mean, how important is MS Dhoni and how do you think he will deal with this?
03:14I'm sure he will find a way.
03:15I mean, that's what he's done all his career.
03:18He's found a way to the solution.
03:21And his ways are unique.
03:23So that's what it is.
03:25And as far as CSK is concerned, listen, CSK stands for what MS Dhoni stands for.
03:31I mean, CSK, it's his baby, it's his child.
03:34I think he will find a way.
03:36He will, again, like I said, has been such an important part of CSK.
03:41And he's been kind of CSK himself.
03:43He will always be an important part of CSK, especially more this year.
03:46Because this year is going to be very, very different from the other years, where, as I mentioned, I mean, from preparation perspective.
03:53So you have to be mentally extremely strong this season to get the best out of people or to get the best out of yourself.
03:59And from that perspective, I think we know how good MSD is, as far as getting 100% out of the players.
04:06Do you think this will give other teams a bit of an advantage, Deep, going into the start of the competition, that they will have more practice time?
04:13They've had a relatively hiccup-free preparation compared to the Chennai Super Kings, etc.?
04:18Well, yes, that would be an advantage, but very marginal, I would say.
04:21I mean, obviously, I'm in two, three days extra practice.
04:24It's like sitting for an exam, right?
04:26On the day of exams, you'd always think, maybe another couple of days and I would have been better prepared.
04:30It's like that. Preparation is never enough.
04:32Even if you are 100%, you'll always have that back of your head, you know, maybe another couple of days.
04:36So yes, that would be some kind of an advantage, extra few days of practice, no two ways about it.
04:43But that's where I think also experience will play a huge role.
04:46And if you look at that CSK side, one thing that they really, really have is experience there.
04:50And I think that's going to be the key as far as CSK is concerned.
04:52Virat Kohli was sort of giving this interview and he said that even after five months, six months, when he went into the nets,
04:59he was more than happy with the way the ball flowed.
05:02Your thoughts on that? I mean, that photograph of his cover drive looked literally perfect, right?
05:07So, your thoughts on what Virat said and how challenging you thought this might be, but the way it has shaped up?
05:14It is going to be challenging. But you've got to start with baby steps, right?
05:17It is actually kind of restarting or putting, I mean, you know, pressing the reset button.
05:23Because you can't straightaway be 100%. So, you know, every day would be, you know, kind of, you start with baby steps.
05:29As Virat mentioned in that interview itself that, you know, he actually timed it better than he actually thought.
05:35I believe Kale Rahul has mentioned somewhere that he was actually scared. Will he be able to bat or not?
05:40You will have those apprehensions. But over a period of time, maybe let's say five, seven days.
05:44Because all these guys have had enough miles under their belt. They've been there, they've done it.
05:48It's just that when you put yourself back into those situations, everything comes back.
05:53When you're not there, you have those apprehensions. But once you're there, you know how things are done.
05:58You've done it all your life. It's just a matter of a week, five days, you know, getting into the nets, hitting or bowling or whatever.
06:03And people should be fine.
06:05If I ask you about this move to the Emirates, will you say that this will help teams that have better spinners?
06:11Because the nature of the wickets, the conditions that you will get on offer, will this sort of come as an advantage to a CSK or a Delhi with, you know, more quality spinners, number of spinners, etc.
06:23Your thoughts on that?
06:24I would completely agree with you on that. There are certain surfaces. For example, Abu Dhabi, there is one strip which has good bounce.
06:31But let's not forget, we're talking about 50-plus games, three venues, right? Every venue is going to have 21 games.
06:40I think, especially Abu Dhabi and Dubai will have 21 games. And 21 games, you can very well imagine how the pitches will behave in the second half or the business end of the tournament.
06:50They will be tired. There is no doubt about it. They will be tired. And that's where, you know, advantage to the spinners comes in.
06:56As you mentioned, teams like CSK, Delhi will have… Because they have more spinning options.
07:02And especially CSK, I mean, they kind of depend on their spinners to a great extent.
07:07Not just bowlers, even batters. I mean, if you look at teams with batsmen who are better against spinners, we'll again have that advantage.
07:15There are certain players who are always in sort of more the cynosure of attention, Deep, going into a competition.
07:21What about Akhil Rahul? He's eyeing a test comeback. What about Shreya Shire, who's eyeing a middle-order place in the test squad?
07:28Going forward, you know, India goes to Australia straight after the IPL. How are you looking at some of these players and the challenges they are facing?
07:36As you mentioned, people like Shreya Shire, Akhil Rahul, they've got a point to prove here. I know we are talking about different format.
07:43We are talking about red-ball cricket while we are talking about T20 right now. But the thing is, a person in form is a person in form, irrespective of which format he's playing.
07:51I mean, runs are runs. It will be a good indicator, I mean, what kind of form these all players are.
07:57I mean, starting from KL to Shreya, to everyone for that matter. You know, Ajinkya, all these players.
08:02I mean, you'll have a fair idea of what kind of form they are in. Because that's the only cricket he's going to play before the Australia series.
08:09So, for the selectors, this is what they have. Performances of these players in T20, in IPL.
08:15And also, I mean, to a great extent, how they are looking. Not necessarily always the quantum or the number of runs somebody scores or wickets they have taken.
08:24But also, how they've looked doing that. So, I think that is also going to be important.
08:28Final couple of questions before I let you go deep. One is a personal one. Because this commentary will be very different challenge for you yourself.
08:35How are you looking at this?
08:36Like all the cricketers are. I mean, you know, before you step onto the field, you're apprehensive. You're like, oh my god, I haven't done this for a while.
08:43How it is going to be, this whole social distancing thing. You know, we generally used to share the same mind.
08:49So, obviously, that will not happen. So, there'll be a few changes in the whole process.
08:55That's going to be interesting. And yeah, a little apprehensive in the sense because I haven't done commentary on the venue in a while.
09:01Like the players, I mean, the first day is going to be a little… I'm sure, I mean, we've done enough of this.
09:06So, maybe first stint or maybe couple of stints and then you're back to normal.
09:11And the final one, I mean, IPL, good for cricket. Because, you know, from a fraternity perspective, we need sport back.
09:17We've seen some European leagues, some form of cricket. But this tournament will galvanize the Indian sporting world like none before.
09:24Your thoughts on the IPL happening?
09:27It's great news, right? And we've discussed this before, Gaurav. I think it will be very myopic to look at IPL just from the cricketer's perspective or just from a sporting perspective.
09:37And also from a cricket or IPL perspective. Just look at it from a sporting event.
09:43So, technically, this is the restart of sporting events. Starting with IPL, starting with cricket.
09:49I'm sure other sports will follow suit and soon we'll have other sporting events in India.
09:54And that's what it is all about. I mean, because we can't be looking at sports just from a sporting perspective.
10:00A lot of people's livelihood depend on it. It's an economic event. I mean, after IPL, there will be ISL, the football league.
10:08It's not just about the cricketers. The amount of money which is spent in IPL, only 50%. At max, 60% goes to cricketers or ex-cricketers in terms of commentators and all.
10:19The rest of it, and I would say maybe even more than 50%, goes on to the other industries like the airline industry, the hospitality industry, the event industry, or even the broadcasting industry.
10:29So, I think we've got to look at all sporting events from a very economic perspective and not just a mere sporting event.
10:38Absolutely correct, Deep. I'll let it go at that. I mean, all I will say is, it's been a pleasure as usual.
10:43I mean, there's so much to talk about with you as always. We will reconnect on Free Hit on Gulf News once again when you're in the midst of commentary.
10:51And hopefully, it will be a good start and a good stint for you. Wish you all the best. Wish the IPL all the best and have a great one. Thank you.
10:58Thank you so much.