Ramakant Achrekar's Top 5 students who made it big
Ramakant AchrekarA student is only as good as their teacher. The old axiom says that if all fails, do what your teacher once told you. Even in the sport of cricket, it holds firm. On the special occasion of Teacher’s day, we take a minute to honour one of the most successful teachers to have graced the game – Padma Shri Ramakant Achrekar.Born in Maharashtra, Achrekar quickly found out that he was not cut out for playing the game. After a few initial failures, he moved on to a higher aspect of the game – coaching. In 1964, Achrekar sir began coaching with full zest, determined to bring about India’s future heroes, and he has never looked back.Basing his centre at Shivaji Park, Achrekar sir began a gruelling coaching session that was determined to bring out the very best in his students and the results have been there to see. He was awarded the Dronacharya Award for his services to cricket, as well as the prestigious Padma Shri.The best way that a teacher can be remembered is by remembering their students. So without much further ado, let us delve into five of Achrekar sir’s best pupils:
#1 Vinod Kambli
In the words of Ramakant Achrekar himself, Vinod Kambli’s attitude is his own enemy. Kambli’s aggressive batting and flashy lifestyle brought him onto cricket’s centre stage at a very young age. Partnering with Sachin Tendulkar, Kambli burst into prominence when they put on a 664-run partnership together at the age of 16. If Tendulkar was the watchful type, Kambli was anything but. He loved to go after the deliveries and bat with flamboyance.
Kambli was thrust into the Indian Test team in 1993 and impressed immediately. He scored consecutive double hundreds and then followed it up with another impressive century. An innings later, he scored another century, making it 4 totals of 100 or above in 5 innings. He also became the only cricketer to score three consecutive centuries against three different teams in three different countries.
Though he wasn’t as impressive in the ODIs, he still had two tons to his name. While his partner broke every record there was, Kambli’s life began to go in a downward spiral. A fondness for alcohol and disciplinary problems began as Kambli slowly started to go out of favour. Ramakant Achrekar watched sadly as his precious student became a nobody, and he played what turned out to be his last Test in 1995. He was never picked after 2000, and he retired soon after.
If Kambli’s coach would have been disappointed at anything, it would not have been Kambli’s eviction from the team, but his indifference to the game. Kambli would forever be Achrekar sir’s biggest what-if.