India’s potential in sports is high, find right people

Too often a discussion on what ails Indian sport tends to devolve into a litany of woes. Yes, there is a lot that’s wrong but I would rather focus on the positives

Too often a discussion on what ails Indian sport tends to devolve into a litany of woes. Yes, there is a lot that’s wrong but I would rather focus on the positives and how we can harness these to unleash our potential as a sporting nation.

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A great plus that we have in our arsenal are the numbers. Over population may have its own set of hassles but when it comes to sport it offers us one of the most diverse and richest gene pools in the world. Let no one say that Indians lack the right genes for sport, we just need to evolve systems which will help us identify them early and then guide them right.

As a former tennis professional I know from experience that the most crucial component in any athlete’s career is his support staff. I had to hire coaches from abroad and at one time was lucky to even get the services of Bjorn Borg’s mentor — (Lennart Bergelin). But it was a major financial drain.

ROPING IN GREATS

It’s not that India does not have the right kind of people, but somehow we have been unable to build a culture that sees our former greats giving back to the next generation.

For instance, in tennis, Ramesh Krishnan is an exceptional brain and took apart players twice his size just by virtue of his court craft. But the nation has been unable to use his services in grooming the next lot of players.

I see this happen across sport. Our federations need to be tweaked in such a manner that there is adequate respect and stature given to former athletes who have the ability to shape the next generation.

Another asset that India has is the diversity of terrain. I see a beach and I think of sand running. I see the mountains and I think of high-altitude training. Our geographical spread allows for an ideal climate to train for all kind of sport. If we build a series of sensibly planned training arenas, our athletes, unlike the majority of Europeans, don’t even have to be forced into a lean season on account of the climate.

SCIENTIFIC DIET

Indian cuisine is a smorgasbord of spices, a fusion of many tastes. If we break it down scientifically and then figure out diet plans for our athletes, they will never face a situation where they are tired of eating the same stuff again and again. See, athletes have to eat a lot on account of the work they do and many a times I had to force down the bland stuff they serve abroad. I suspect many of our boys face the same problem when training abroad. This can be easily altered and may well give us an edge over the others.

Our indigenous systems of yoga and ayurveda need to be explored further to cull out bits that can give our sportsmen an edge. With warrior traditions like kalaripayattu, gatka and many other such martial arts a part of our history across the country, I fail to understand just why Indians are seen as a timid people.

We are not, and while the British may have discouraged these aspects of our culture, I feel it’s about time these were rekindled. There is a belief that Indians don’t like contact sport and that stems from our cocooned upbringing where kids are not exposed to the tumble of wrestling or the hurt of a spill in the playground. The time has come to cull all such notions from our social fabric.

Sport needs to have an inverted pyramid structure – only from the many will the select few emerge. We also have to ensure marks for sport and it has to be integrated into the education system.

I firmly believe that India has the potential to be a great sporting power. We just need to put the right people in the right places to ensure that.

(The writer is a former Davis Cup player and has been in tennis administration for a while.)