Hardworking and patient for his chance, Vidarbha's Akshay Wadkar continues to grind it out
There comes a time when a generational talent bursts onto the scene, grabs their opportunity with multiple match-winning performances, and stitches up a spot in the national setup for good. So much so that his compatriots might wonder if they'd have been better off playing in a different era.
You wouldn't blame wicketkeepers in India for feeling the same way now with Rishabh Pant establishing himself as the first-choice gloveman in Test cricket. While his absence from the game over the last year and a bit has opened up opportunities for the others in the pecking order, nobody has nailed down a spot for good.
KS Bharat's long toil on the domestic circuit saw him get that much coveted Test cap at last but the trials and tribulations of international cricket got the better of him. Ishan Kishan was then tried out before he took a sabbatical from the sport. And now, the opportunity has been passed onto Dhruv Jurel even as KL Rahul donned the gloves for a couple of games in South Africa.
Jurel and Upendra Yadav of the Railways have been in and around the India A setup. Alongside Kishan, you'd think they are the options the selectors ought to turn to as Pant's understudies in time to come.
Away from all the limelight though, a silently efficient wicketkeeper-batter continues to bat for his dream. A glance at his numbers - 2937 in 48 first-class matches at an average of 51.52 with 16 fifties and eight hundreds, plus tidy wicketkeeping to go with - and it is rather incredible that he is yet to play for India A.
Does Vidarbha's Akshay Wadkar count himself unfortunate on that front then?
"I can't say I’ve been unlucky or unfortunate. Maybe my performance may not have been as good as it should have been in the eyes of the selectors. I think that I should have performed better compared to the other keepers and then perhaps I will come in the selectors’ radar," he said in an exclusive conversation with Sportskeeda.
A teenage Wadkar played first professional game for Vidarbha in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2012-13. It was in red-ball cricket though that he would make a name for himself, making his bow in the Ranji Trophy season of 2017-18.
While he didn't get to bat against Goa, a fairytale debut season coincided with glory in equal proportion for Vidarbha, as they clinched their maiden Ranji Trophy title against all odds. Wadkar got to bat six times in the tournament, tallying 308 runs at an average of 61.60, saving his best for the summit clash against Delhi where he stroked his way to his maiden first-class ton to pave the way for a historic win.
A regular run in the team was inevitable. The 2018-19 season came by with more runs in the Ranji Trophy for Wadkar. This time, he compiled 725 runs from 11 matches at an average of 60.41 with three hundreds and two fifties to his credit. Oh, it correlated with Vidarbha's successful title defense as well.
Surely, India A was a formality?
Except, it has yet to come to fruition to date. While Wadkar states that he hasn't been communicated anything by the selection panel - which has witnessed a change in the last few years - he opens up on close observance of his game and domestic cricket in general vouching for his credentials and that he ought to have been closer to higher honors.
"Yeah you always feel that way. My batting position has always been the same. Last year, I played at number 5 and this year at number 6. Two years ago I batted at 5. There is no major difference batting at 5 or 6. But what’s important is how many runs you score consistently and in difficult situations. I think the selectors will be seeing this and I feel I will be there somewhere in their radar. I hope I get the reward for the runs that I am scoring soon," he elaborated.
On captaincy and a fellow wicketkeeping friend in the setup
Now 29, Wadkar was handed the responsibility of leading Vidarbha at the start of the ongoing Ranji Trophy season. Things have progressed successfully to that end with the team finishing atop Group A with 33 points and qualifying for the knockouts.
He may not have scored a hundred but with 431 runs at an average of 43.10, he has made his presence felt like he often does, scoring six crucial half-centuries along the way with a best of 90 against Maharashtra. His last five outings have seen him notch up five fifties on the trot before that streak was halted with a second innings 38 against Haryana.
Speaking of the responsibility of captaincy and whether that has changed his approach with the bat, Wadkar said:
"When you come in as a youngster, you don't have that much responsibility. And when you become a senior, when you become a captain, then you have the responsibility that if you have played 30-40 Ranji Trophy matches and if you are out in the middle, then you should either be able to wade through a difficult situation or win that match. Extra maturity comes into play. When you are new, you are not mature, but when you are experienced so you have to play a little more cautiously plus decided when you have to take risks and when not to. So there are a lot of things."
"But as far as captaincy is concerned, you may be a captain but at the crease you are still a batter. Captaincy is only on the field. While batting, you have to play as a batter. If you are an opener, then you have to leave the ball. If you are a middle-order batter, then you have to score runs and save your wicket. There are only different situations and you have to play according to those situations. As you play more and get experience, you read the game better," he added.
At Vidarbha, Wadkar has rubbed shoulders with another wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma, who is now a bona fide starter in the IPL for the Punjab Kings while also having represented India in T20Is.
Talking about that rapport with Jitesh and how they've often taken turns with the gloves depending on the format, Wadkar detailed what their conversations are like.
"We are very good friends first and then players. We’ve never spoken about who will keep wickets in which match, we just see what the team needs. If the team needs my batting more and a reduced workload on my keeping then I give the gloves to him. If the team requires his batting more then I ask him to bat alone and I’ll don the gloves," he elaborated.
"It’s a mutual responsibility and we’ve never had a dispute on whether I should keep wickets or he should. Or why I am not getting it to keep or he isn’t. We always have good coordination and communication. If there are two wicketkeepers in one team, the main thing is ego which we don’t have at all," Wadkar continued.
"He has played for India but has no ego. He’s very down to earth. He tells me ‘yaar tujhe jaisa lagta hai tu waisa kar. Tu captain hai, joh decision lega woh sab sahi hoga’ (you do whatever you feel is right. You are the captain, whatever decision you take it will be correct). Because of that even I get confidence that this guy has played at the top level, he has played international cricket and the IPL and yet he says that. You realize they are thinking for the team, not for themselves. And that is what makes a player grow higher up the ladder," he added.
"This is the trend now" - Akshay Wadkar on the IPL factor behind selection
There is a notion amongst conjecture that the spotlight of the IPL plays a massive part in the player getting selected for the Indian setup. When asked about his thoughts on the same, Wadkar opined that it was the case although he does believe that first-class performances are also given due weightage.
"Actually, this is the trend right now. Overall whatever selections you see be it in one-dayers, Tests or T20, majority of the basis happen via white ball cricket. But I think the selectors see their performance in first-class cricket too. I think maybe the selectors feel that if they are playing international fast bowlers and hitting well off them then they can compete against good fast bowlers in Test cricket too. So maybe that’s why there are quite a few selections via the IPL. But the Ranji Trophy is also given the same weightage as T20," Wadkar explained.
The way the game has evolved with time, there has been a paradigm shift in preference towards a batter-keeper ahead of a keeper-batter - a trend that Australian great Adam Gilchrist revolutionized before it became mainstream.
What are Wadkar's thoughts on this?
"I believe that if you are playing Test cricket in India, then you are the keeper-batter first and if you are playing outside India, then you are the batter-keeper first," Wadkar said. "Because in India, wicket-keeping requires a lot of skill, fitness and concentration. Because the way the ball spins and the way our international spinners (Ravichandran) Ashwin and Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) bowl, their revolutions are so fast that after the ball pitches you have very little time to react. So I think that if you are playing in India, then you are the keeper-batter first, not a batter-keeper."
True to that notion, Wadkar stresses on everyday refining of his reflexes and skills of the 'thankless job' of wicketkeeping.
"Wicket-keeping is entirely a game of skill. How good is your eyesight to spinners, how good are your reflexes. And reflexes get better only when you continue to sharpen your skill daily. With batting you still manage but as a wicket-keeper we have to sharpen our skills every day. If there’s a misfield it may cost runs. But if the ball comes the keeper’s way it is bound to be a catch. And if you miss the catch and the batter makes a hundred, then the keeper gets blamed. A wicket-keeper’s job is thankless so you have to keep working on your fitness and skill day in, day out," Wadkar stated.
Experiences with fellow wicketkeepers and the road ahead
When Vidarbha defied all odds to complete the 'dual double' of the Ranji Trophy and the Irani Cup, a certain Chandrakant Pandit was the man who heralded the team as head coach.
Often deemed a hard taskmaster, Chandu sir as he is fondly called has developed an uncanny reputation for flipping the fortunes around of lesser-fancied outfits. He achieved the same with Madhya Pradesh, who went on to win the Ranji Trophy a couple of years ago.
Wadkar narrated Pandit's stress on discipline as his major point of focus during his tenure with Vidarbha.
"When we won in 2017-18, I made the XI after about 80 percent of the tournament was done. That’s when my journey began. Chandu sir's only motive was ‘keep the boys disciplined and they will do the rest on their own’", Wadkar said.
"If you maintain discipline with your diet, then good food will give you good health. If you are in good health, then you will obviously be able to deliver well on the ground. If you bat with discipline, then you can leave the ball for a long time. Likewise with the ball, how consistently can you bowl in one spot. In first-class cricket, you need discipline and accuracy alone. He was firm on that," he added.
Elaborating further on Pandit's staunch belief in discipline, Wadkar stated:
"If you had to leave at 7:30, then you must leave at 7:30. Even if it was 7:31, he used to fine you. This discipline is what he wanted to inculcate in us. He said this is the only mantra for success and nothing apart from this. You practice and hit the gym every day but the most difficult thing is that you wake up at the same time every day. After doing it for two to three days, we feel that we can do it easily."
"He used to keep us relaxed too. Like keeping us in a good hotel, not letting us pick up the bags, bringing the trolley, he used to manage all that. Par ground pe woh humko poora ragaad ke lete the (he used to make us work hard on the ground). He used to tell us that our job is to play on the field and he won’t leave us there but elsewhere, he would give us 100 percent relaxation. Because of that, we also felt that from within that sir is doing so much for us, we also have to repay those efforts of sir and for the association," he added.
From sharing the dressing room with a former India wicketkeeper in Pandit, Wadkar bumped into another such gentleman who goes by the name of MS Dhoni when Vidarbha were in Ranchi for their Ranji Trophy clash against Jharkhand earlier this month.
"It was an experience like none other," he beamed when asked about the interaction. "We went to Ranchi for our Ranji Trophy match versus Jharkhand. He used to come there. He used to come often to play lawn tennis and maintain his fitness. He used to come every day. He used to play lawn tennis for 1-1.5 hours and then hit the gym. It was his routine. Dhoni bhaiyya was talking freely and frankly with everyone. I went to the gym where there was an aged sweeper. He was also greeting him with saluted hands. I thought this man is a millionaire and he is behaving like this. He has no ego that he is a big millionaire."
Of course, Wadkar left no stone unturned in picking Dhoni's brains.
"We met only on the last day. He also shared a lot of experiences. I asked him what will I have to do if I want to play for India? He said, if I am scoring a hundred and my current competitor is also scoring a hundred, think of why they should consider you. Think how you will convert 100 into 150, or 150 into 200. Then you will be selected," he revealed.
"He said if you think that you missed out because you have to work upon something, you will get up the next minute and start working on that. If you think that you deserve to be selected, you will meet four people, two will say good things about you, two will say bad things about you. Then you will spoil a couple of months thinking of that alone and fall behind by one or two months. His mindset was very clear," Wadkar added.
The India dream remains alive for Wadkar. But right now, there's something more important on his bucket list to tick off - a third Ranji Trophy title for Vidarbha, who are set to host Karnataka in the quarterfinal beginning Friday, February 23.
With the team in good spirits and a host of performers putting their hands up, Wadkar is confident of his team's chances.
"Recently, Karun Nair made a hundred. Before that Dhruv Shorey scored a hundred and prior to that, Atharva Taide scored one. All the batters are in form. There’s a new lad, Yash Rathod. He too made an 82 against Rajasthan recently. Every player is in his zone and in good form. You have to deliver what you have and not worry about the result. The result won't come your way thinking about the result. We will focus on the process and what is in our hand. If we bat, bowl and field well, we will get returns automatically," he stated.
Glory for Vidarbha in the ongoing Ranji Trophy could just be the pivoting point in Wadkar's career too. Nothing like a title triumph as captain either to remind the selectors that he's meant for bigger things.