Sunil Gavaskar gives a curious reason for never coaching the Indian team
Former Indian captain and batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has given a curious explanation for never coaching the national side.
He revealed on Sunday that he's a 'terrible watcher' of the sport and can't spectate a game from the sidelines for long periods, a trait that goes against the job of a coach.
Sunil Gavaskar, one of the best openers to have ever played the game, is also a venerable name in broadcasting circles and known for speaking straight from his shoulder.
Still, the closest he got to coaching the Indian team was when he was appointed advisor during the home series against Australia in 2004.
Gavaskar recalled how during his playing days, he used to prefer reading or writing over watching complete games. He said this ensured that he 'never even thought about' taking up coaching.
"I’ve been a terrible watcher of cricket, even when I was playing the game. If I got out, I would be watching the match very intermittently. I would watch for a while, then go inside the change room or read something or reply to letters, etc., and then come out and watch again. So, I wasn’t the ball-by-ball watcher, like, say, GR, Vishwanath is. GRV or my uncle Madhav Mantri was a complete ball by ball watcher. And if you want to be a coach or a selector, you’ve got to be a ball-by-ball watcher. And therefore, I never even thought about it… being a coach,” Gavaskar said on The Analyst YouTube channel.
Sunil Gavaskar featured in 125 Tests for India, scoring a spectacular 10122 runs including 34 tons at an average of 51.12. He also collected over 3000 runs in ODIs at 35.13.
I’ve had cricketers coming up to me for advice: Sunil Gavaskar
However, not coaching the team never kept Sunil Gavaskar away from helping the new generation of Indian cricketers.
He admitted that most of India's best batters - Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman - approached him for advice during their playing days.
“Having said that, I’ve had people coming up to me. Not the current lot, but say Sachin, Rahul Dravid, Ganguly, Sehwag and Laxman. So I’ve been very happy to exchange notes with them… whatever my observations are. So yes, I’ve been able to maybe help them somewhere down the line, but on a full-time basis, that’s not something I can do.”
Sunil Gavaskar will now be seen commentating on the World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and New Zealand from June 18.