"Be natural, keep it simple": India head coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar ahead of U-19 WC final against Australia
Feb 10, 2024
Benoni [South Africa], February 10 : India head coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar has urged his team to be natural and keep things simple as they prepare to face Australia in the final of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup at Willowmoore Park on Sunday.
"It keeps you honest (close finishes in big matches). It was a great match. South Africa challenged us all the way and were really good. Just be natural, keep it simple," he said in a video posted by ICC. India overcame the challenge from South Africa in a close contest.
"So as coaches, it comes down to sharing our experiences on how to handle certain situations because we have done it more often than them. They are still coming up in terms of experience. It is also about utilizing and considering their experience, what they have done on these pitches against good oppositions. The combination of both does the trick usually. They know how to bat, bowl, field, are really good at it. They have all the attacking strokes. It is just about getting them to know what is the right decision, to handle certain situation or pitches. It is more mental and about decision-making," Kanitkar added.
The former cricketer asserted that coaches will try to keep player's emotions in control as much as possible.
"They will get overwhelmed. But it is expected from both the teams. Both are of same age, have played a similar kind of cricket. They will go through all those emotions. We will try to keep them in control and calm as much as possible. Once the preparation is done, you just need to have faith in them and let them do what they want to," the 49-year-old stated.
Kanikar spoke about the mental abilities of the Indian players and how they have matured in that aspect as the tournament progressed.
"First thing is how far they have come in terms of their mental abilities, in terms of assessing what needs to be done when, what lengths to be bowled, what fields to have, when to attack or not with the bat. What sort of mind games, it is a department they have matured a lot," Kanitkar said.
India and Australia Squad for Under-19 Cricket World Cup final:
India: Arshin Kulkarni, Adarsh Singh, Rudra Mayur Patel, Sachin Dhas, Priyanshu Moliya, Musheer Khan, Uday Saharan (captain), Aravelly Avanish Rao, Saumy Kumar Pandey, Murugan Abhishek, Innesh Mahajan, Dhanush Gowda, Aaradhya Shukla, Raj Limbani, Naman Tiwari.
Australia: Hugh Weibgen (captain), Lachlan Aitken, Charlie Anderson, Harkirat Bajwa, Mahli Beardman, Tom Campbell, Harry Dixon, Ryan Hicks, Sam Konstas, Rafael MacMillan, Aidan O'Connor, Harjas Singh, Tom Straker, Callum Vidler, Ollie Peake.
