Nagpur: A function dedicated to the most revered coach of Indian cricket can’t be complete without anecdotes of days when present day stars were just starry eyed teenagers. The felicitation function of Ramakant Achrekar titled Gaurav Guru Shishyancha, (in honour of the coach and his pupil) held here on Saturday was no different. Sachin Tendulkar and Praveen Amre walked down the memory lane to pay rich tributes to their respected ‘Sir’.
Setting aside the recent controversy, Tendulkar gracefully shared the stage with Vinod Kambli, along with BCCI president Shashank Manohar, who presided over the function organised by the local Thakre Mahavidyalaya & Thakre Arts and Cultural Academy. On the occasion, Achrekar was presented with a purse of Rs 5 lakh.
Speaking at the function, Tendulkar recalled the tapli (slap on the head) from Achrekar that played a major part in moulding his career. “I remember when I was a 12-year-old and used to play for Shardashram junior team. Our senior team reached the final of Harris Shield and I wanted to cheer them. But Sir told me to play a practice match on the same day. “I skipped the match to watch the final which we won. After the match I saw Sir and went to greet him. He asked me how much I scored in the practice match, though he knew I had bunked it. He then gave me a sound tapli on my head. Such was the impact that the tiffin box I was holding fell ten feet away.
“He told me I shouldn’t skip matches to sit beyond the boundary and clap for others. He told me that I should work hard to improve my game so that others come to watch me play and clap for me. I felt bad then. “But now, when I look back, I think, but for that tapli, I wouldn’t have achieved what I have till now.’’
Amre traced Achrekar’s greatness to his sheer commitment. “Sir has dedicated so much for us. Even on the day his only son died he was at the ground for us. And that’s the reason why he has been able to produce cricketers like Sachin,’’ he said.
Manohar compared Achrekar and Tendulkar to Mahabharata’s Dronacharya and Arjun. The board president also mentioned how Achrekar would chide his wards for throwing away their wickets. “I remember the 1992-93 Durban Test where Alan Donald and Brett Schultz reduced India to 38-4 on a bouncy pitch. Amre scored a brilliant century on debut before getting out to a bad shot. That evening, when Amre called up Achrekar, he said, ‘you scored a century, that’s good. But how did you get out?’
“The general opinion remained that Achrekar’s hallmark was not curbing the natural instinct of his wards. When Kambli hit a six off the first ball he faced on his Ranji debut, Dilip Vengsarkar who was at the non-striker end asked him what he was up to? Kambli replied, “I am doing what my coach has taught me to do. If you get a loose ball, hit it, that’s what I have done,” Manohar recalled.
(ToI)
