In his third game of the 2015-16 Ranji Trophy season, Mithun Manhas completed 8000 Ranji Trophy runs to join the trio of Wasim Jaffer, Amol Muzumdar and Hrishikesh Kanitkar who are the only ones to have achieved the feat before him. The milestone was achieved in Jammu & Kashmirās match against Tripura. Having played for Delhi since his debut in 1997, the veteran cricketer joined the state of his birth ahead of his 19th Ranji Trophy season as a professional, coach and captain.
A classical middle-order batsman, he was Delhiās go-to man for the better part his domestic career and from the ongoing season, J &K will be benefitting from his vast experience and cricketing acumen. Looking back on his long and illustrious career, Manhas spoke about the evolution of the game and the Indian domestic circuit in an interview with BCCI.TV.
Excerpts:
What difference do you see when you compare the first five years of your career to the last five?
Everything has become faster, everything is scrutinised. You have to evolve as a player. You canāt just sit and relax now with the cameras and video analysis putting you under constant scrutiny. You have to keep improving otherwise you canāt keep up with the pace of the cricket being played all round. Traveling aspects have also changed. The younger generation are smarter than what we were at that point of time. They know what they want and how they would like to go about it. They are very specific and very focused and dedicated. Times have changed and so have the players.
How has batting evolved over the years on the domestic circuit?
A decade back a score of 200-250 odd runs was probably a match-winning total, but now you see that even a score of 300-plus is not considered a par score. It has certainly evolved not only at the international level but also at the domestic level. Lot of the domestic players are playing in the IPL and that adds to their confidence which they carry it into the domestic circuit. Every state wants to win the game now while earlier they would stay there and participate but now the story is different. They want to win games and make a name for themselves.
What do you make of the quality of bowling attacks and how has it evolved?
The game has become too fast, not only in batting and bowling but also in the fielding department. Every team is trying to save 20-30 runs, which they do and that makes a difference between winning or losing. The bowlers have become fitter. They can bowl long spells in the domestic circuit because they now understand the importance of fitness. They train with international trainers in the IPL and are much more knowledgeable now. They know a lot more about their own bodies.
With modern cricket asking for flexibility in roles, how does that impact a batsman when he is asked to bat at different positions?
It is all about the mindset actually. Itās not that a coach comes and tells you, that now you are going to bat at No 3 or 4. They come and they tell you and they prepare you. They give you the time to prepare yourselves which I think thatās fair enough.
What are the challenges of batting in the middle-order?
There are a lot of challenges. If someone gets out early then you are in early. Then you need to stay there, save the wicket, build a partnership and later on you can capitalise on it. If you come in to bat at no.5 or 6 then it becomes a different story all together. Itās all about how you prepare yourself mentally. You also practice and work on opening the innings when the new ball bowlers are bowling and at times ask your bowlers to bowl with the old ball. This helps you to give you a feel of batting at no 5 and 6. You got to prepare yourself physically, technically and mentally as well.
How did you prepare?
We were lucky to have good seniors. When I was playing, a lot of my mates who were playing at the international level like Virender Sehwag, Ashish Nehra, Gautam Gambhir were quite helpful. I used to talk with them about what is required to improve my game and all the mental aspects of the game. Now you have video analysts and you keep watching videos of how the bowlers are going to bowl at you and prepare accordingly for a game. You can practice in the off season and correct your mistakes and thatās how I used to prepare myself.
How do players bridge the gap while moving to international level from the domestic level?
Now players are slightly more prepared because of the IPL. It has been going on for eight years and everyone has got a feel of how to prepare themselves for the international stage, what is required to perform at that level. When we started playing in the IPL, the first year was a bit tricky because we did not know what to expect and what the coaches were expecting from us. But then the coaches were very co-operative. They used to talk to us and guide us to make sure that they got the best out of you. There are other support staff and paraphernalia to help you as well.
The IPL has given players a platform which has an international feel. You see a big crowd in the stadium, so you donāt get bogged down nowadays. Earlier, before the IPL it was a different story because at domestic circuit you hardly had any crowd coming to see your game.
How different is it to lead a team like Delhi in comparison to leading Jammu & Kashmir?
It is different and difficult. When I left J&K there werenāt enough opportunities. So I migrated to Delhi to play cricket and do whatever I wanted to do at that time. Then cricket took over and I started playing for Delhi and now coming back again to J & K, there is a huge gap. They play at what we earlier called a plate level and we (in Delhi) never played cricket at that level. The approach is different. The way they think is different so you just need to change that. With time we should be able to do that because they have good talent. They have got good fast bowlers and talented batsmen. It is just that they donāt have the exposure. They donāt play the number of games that I was used to while playing for Delhi or like the players do in the other states. So once they play those games and they have the kind of match experience it would certainly make a lot of difference.
Can you elaborate on your role in J & K?
I have come here as a professional plus the head coach and the captain. I have been offered a contract for three years. Since I come from the same place, I understand the language, I am a senior and I studied here (it helps). Basically they wanted someone who can understand and guide the youngsters, talk to them, motivate them and prepare them for the games. And thatās what I have been doing though itās just been just a short while. Now the team is gelling well. After a rough start we have done well in the last two games. The boys are opening up and they discuss what they feel and they are not afraid to express themselves and thatās what I want.
So what does the role of coaching and mentoring entail?
When you are playing at the first-class level, you donāt have to coach players as such because they know the basics of the game. Itās just about how you prepare them mentally. You just have to give them confidence that they are the ones who got to play. There are a few small technical holes which I try to correct at times, but I donāt interfere with their technique much because that needs to be done in the off-season which we will be doing after this season is over. Itās more about reminding them that these are the mistakes which might get you out so try and not do those mistakes. You need to talk to them about how to play in a certain session and the difficulties you are going to face. There are small things but very important things that have a big impact which I am trying to do.
How do you look back on your journey in domestic cricket?
It all started way back in 1997 when I started playing for Delhi. The game has received a boost even from the monetary point of view. The BCCI has a huge role to play in it. Players are insured now and lot of people have got employment. I think the BCCI has done a phenomenal job with the introduction of IPL which has given a lot of players from the domestic circuit to share the same platform as international players. Even the officials have received tremendous exposure.
What is your advice to youngsters?
Go out there and enjoy yourself, whatever has to come will come. Keep working on improving your game. Donāt wait till you get to play for India. Improve your game and then go and play for India so you donāt have to come back and grind at the domestic circuit again.
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First-Class Career Batting and Fielding
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M
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I
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NO
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Runs
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HS
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Ave
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100
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50
|
Ct
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St
|
|
|
151
|
234
|
31
|
9357
|
205*
|
46.09
|
26
|
47
|
104
|
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
First-Class Career Bowling
|
Balls
|
Mdns
|
Runs
|
Wkts
|
BB
|
Ave
|
5wI
|
10wM
|
SRate
|
Econ
|
|
|
3642
|
101
|
1832
|
40
|
15-3
|
45.8
|
0
|
0
|
91.05
|
3.01
|
