Sangakkara, cricket’s articulate ambassador, to lift Abu Dhabi T10’s glamour

By K.R. Nayar

Kumar Sangakkara is not a mere wicket-keeper batsman but a legend whose knowledge of the game is remarkable and has the ability to talk analytically about various aspects of the game. Team Abu Dhabi has rightly appointed him as their mentor for the fourth edition of the Abu Dhabi T10 League. The mere presence of this gentleman cricketer can lift the glamour of this event.

Give Kumar Sangakkara any role and he will sparkle in it. As a batsman, it was always a treat to watch his strokes and consistency. As a wicketkeeper, he was agile. And now as a commentator, he is a delight to hear. Team Abu Dhabi could not have made a better choice than Sangakkara as their mentor to boost their chances in the fourth edition of the Abu Dhabi T10 League commencing from January 28 to February 6 at the Abu Dhabi Zayed Cricket Stadium.

Responding to a query from krbuzz.blogspot.com  on what was needed to be successful in T10 during a virtual interaction with media organised by the Abu Dhabi T10 management, he said: “ The aspect of playing yourself in is not there in T10 cricket.  Ten overs can be longer than everyone thinks, but as in the T20 format, your bowling line-up has to do a lot of work in terms of winning games. Yes, you need to have the runs of the board and the ability to score them, but more often than not sides that have variety and sparks in their bowling line- up usually wins the shorter version.”

Kumar Sangakkara during a virtual interaction with the media 

Sangakkara, who has inspired many young cricketers and is an idol for many youngsters, then spoke about how he sees his role as a mentor. “As a mentor, it is basically about getting players to understand that there is no reward without risk. Calculated risks must be taken, and one needs to have an open and creative mind right from ball one to be able to do well in this T10 format.”

Sangakkara is among the rare cricketers who called it a day from international cricket despite being in top form. He is also a cricketer who adheres to the values of the game and is now serving as the president of the Marylebone Cricket Club for a second term.  Explaining his plans as a mentor, he said: “More often than not players who come here are international stars who are seasoned to everything. They are players who are playing at a high level in terms of domestic cricket or franchise cricket around the world and you also have the young ones who are aspiring cricketers and extremely talented but need a little bit more help in terms of understanding the game, they need little help to understand more about themselves, their abilities, and what is needed in terms of converting that it into performances on the field. So it is a combination of things as different players bring different aspects, perspectives, viewpoints, and abilities to the mix. It’s these dynamics that you have to balance out in terms of the final right combination.”

As a player who has piled up 12,400 runs in Test cricket and 14,234 runs in One Day Internationals, Sangakkara is well aware of  the mindset needed to win any format.  Talking about mindset, he remarked: “Whatever be the team combination, one must have the mindset that is open and creative to be able to grasp what is required of you from ball one. Sometimes it is much easier for a batsman to do the transition rather than for a bowler. A lot of bowlers or a lot of bowling attacks come in with a set preparation and set ideas on how they would execute bowling with the new ball as supposed to bowling with a slightly older ball in the death or through the middle overs. In T10, the balls become quite mixed up in that you can execute death bowling at any time and be creative in your field setting. You need to have that flexibility of mindset, that creativeness of mindset, and that is really what you need to get players to understand.”

The Sri Lankan legend then went on to respond to queries from other media on different aspects of the game. On whether T10 would become a part of the Olympics, he said: “It's been many years since a push for cricket into the Olympics has started. It was included in the Commonwealth Games for a couple of editions, and I think T10 will be another format that might be pushed forward. Whether it is T10 or T20, IT has got to be a format that fits that sweet spot of timing and time limits, and really entertains and engages the Olympic viewer because you're not just talking about the traditional cricket spectator but also opening up a completely new fan markets.”

Kumar Sangakkara piled up runs for Sri Lanka

Sangakkara had a quick answer to whether shorter formats would affect the popularity of Test cricket. “Cricket is for everyone and when I say everyone, it's a large cross-section of people with different likes and dislikes. It's been wonderful to see the way cricket is continuously growing across various formats and feeding that passion and appetite for sports entertainment across the world. The only thing we have to be careful of is that T10 shouldn't be played at the cost of another format; rather it is in some ways beneficial to the longevity of formats like Test cricket. With new shots and attacking captaincy, the shorter versions have done a lot of good and made Test cricket more exciting."
Sangakkara’s observations and his responses to queries are very often like the shots he executed as a batsman, delectable and delightful to the core.