Mumbai: The Indian cricket fraternity on Wednesday mourned the demise of Ramakant Achrekar, the celebrated cricket coach. Former India captain Sachin Tendulkar, one of Achrekar’s “discoveries” was among the first to pay tributes to his mentor.
“Cricket in heaven will be enriched with the presence of Achrekar sir. Like many of his students, I learnt my ABCD of cricket under sir’s guidance. His contribution to my life cannot be captured in words. He built the foundation that I stand on. Last month, I met sir along with some of his students and spent some time together. We shared a laugh as we remembered the old times,” he said.
“Achrekar sir,” he added, “taught us the virtues of playing straight and living straight. Thank you for making us a part of your life and enriching us with your coaching manual. Well played Sir and may you coach more wherever you are.”
Former India bowler, Ajit Agarkar, said, “He was a special man. Many of us got to know Mumbai by riding on his scooter all over the city for playing matches. I remember after Mumbai riots in 1992, the city had come to a complete standstill. But a couple of days after it had quietened a bit, he came home at 5.30 a.m. to fetch me and my parents couldn’t believe it. The whole city is burning and he wants a young kid to ride on a bike, they said but Sir told them nothing doing, practice is a must. Amit Aroskar and I rode on his scooter from Dadar to to PJ Hindu Gymkhana (on Marine Lines). The nets had obviously not started. He made us run, field, fed us breakfast and rode us back home.
Even before my 10th Board exam, he used to take me to practice till the day before the exam started with a promise to my parents that he will send me back “the moment his batting is over. Just look at the list of players who have trained under him and it won’t take more than a minute to realise he was pretty special. Sometimes it’s hard to explain how someone can be that selfless.”
Former India cricketer Chandrakant Pandit said, “Two memories stand out for me. When I was in school, he advised me to change the school and join Shardashram so that he could focus more on me. Must have been 1978, and the parents just didn’t see a point since they were of the firm opinion that “cricket will not give me a job”. Sir came home at 12.30 in the night to convince my parents. My father asked him the same question: “how will he earn money?” Sir put his hand in his pocket and pulled out “a thousand rupees”, handed it over to my father and said “this is his salary for this month”.
“The other is when I got my first coaching assignment when Mumbai appointed me as the Under-19 coach. He told me then “you will carry my legacy forward”. Since that day, I have only been trying to pass on whatever I learnt from Sir.”
For Amol Muzumdar, former Mumbai captain, the news came as a great shock when he was en route from Kolkata to Vijayawada. “I am waiting to board a flight to Mumbai from Hyderabad for Sir’s antyadarshan, the heart is filled with thousands of memories. Two things that come to mind right away are his defining presence. When he used to walk in to Shivaji Park from the Samarth Vyaym Shala side, he used to be a presence and not just our net but all the nets at the Park would get into business mode. The other is when he would sit on the katta behind the Kamath Memorial net and get us lunch. Mutton paav that he would get for all of us would make our day.”
He recalled that his one-liners about cricket and life used to be gold-dust. “I can never forget one sentence. “Game cha apmaan naahi kaaraycha (Never insult the game).” He was a firm believer of justice in cricket.”
Paras Mhambrey, former India cricketer, said, “I was a late-starter, never played in school, so had it not been for him, someone like me with no cricket background or early grooming, would have never been able to be the cricketer I could be. He enforced the discipline, which all of us have been trying to instil in youngsters now.
“Some of his traits were unique. Those days, like most others from middle-class class families, we never had money. He never asked or reminded anyone for paying fees. All he used to tell us is if and when you have the money, you can pay the fees.
“At times people feel his contribution to cricket reflects in those who went on to play for India. More than that, I feel his real contribution lies in the fact that he set hundreds of lives through cricket. You go to a maidan and you will hear a story of how Sir went out of his way and helped someone deserving get a job through cricket. He set them their lives, he touched their hearts and ensured they remained connected with and grounded about cricket all their lives. I don’t think there will be another Ramakant Achrekar in cricket.”
Sameer Dighe, former India cricketer, said, “We have lost a father figure. Whatever we have achieved is because of him. We still remember his strictness and his discipline. He was tough with us but he never showed his emotions when we got successful. We were nobody and he looked after us like a son. I wasn’t in Shardashram but he looked after me so well.
“Since he never said “well done” to any of us, we had to take cues from his gestures to guess that he was happy with someone’s performance. For instance, if he took someone to have chaat opposite Mafatlal or took some of us home to Wadala for dinner, we would know he was happy with our performance.
“He treated everyone the same way. Didn’t matter whether you were the main player or a reserve. He would always say “cricket is a never-ending story, whether you get runs or not.”
Balwinder Sandhu, a 1983 World Cup-team member and Mumbai Ranji coach, said, “I missed my father’s funeral in 1985, I do not know how I will react at my cricketing father’s funeral.
“He saw talent in young players, which is a rare quality, gave us ample opportunities to blossom and most importantly, did not hold on to his trainees. Like young ones of birds fly away from the nest at some point, he allowed talented youngsters groomed by him to develop under other coaches.”
“I consulted Hemu Dalvi even when I was being coached by him, but Achrekar Sir did not stop me. A hard-working coach, he developed players without expecting anything from them, which is a rare quality in a human being. I was off-spinner and he saw fast bowling quality in me and gave me opportunities in his own unique style. For example, in a 50-over match, I was allowed to bowl 20 or more overs. The captain was under instruction from Sir that the young sardar can bowl as long as he does not gets tired, the only condition that I bowl fast, not spin.
“Later on when I became coach (Mumbai and Baroda Ranji Trophy sides), I kept meeting him at every opportunity. He taught me to treat talented youngsters differently. My father, whose support proved vital in early years, took me to Achrekar Sir, who charged ₹50 in those days. We could not afford even that money, never was my father or me asked about pending fees. I do not know how he managed finance to run his coaching career, the lesson remains with me that a youngster with special talent should not be suffering due to money. I try to follow Achrekar Sir’s example. He was suffering for some time, I feel for someone who made the career of so many cricketers, he should not have suffered, but God has his reasons.”
(Inputs from G. Viswanath, Amol Karhadkar, Nandakumar Marar)