Although everyone is in awe of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s spectacular fireworks throughout the last two IPL seasons, it required six years of arduous work to develop the muscle memory for his vast range.
The young batter faced 100 overs while practicing for eight hours every day, according to Manish Ojha, his childhood coach.
After an incredible IPL season in which he emerged as the top scorer with 776 runs at an astounding strike-rate of 237 plus, the most exciting batting prodigy in world cricket at the age of 15 and a half has already been called up by India for the T20I tour of the United Kingdom.
Ojha, who began training Sooryavanshi at his Patna academy when he was eight years old, talked to PTI about his ward’s dedication and the sacrifices made by his parents, Sanjeev and Aarti. In an effort to make their children into “Next Vaibhav,” he also disclosed how parents are now sending their children as young as five to academies.
However, Ojha stressed that it is easier said than done. How many balls has Sooryavanshi faced on average since turning from tennis to hardball at the age of ten? Everyone would be astounded by Ojha’s response.
“See, we don’t count the balls, how many balls he played, but I will give you a minimum estimate, that he played more than 600 balls,” Ojha told PTI during an exclusive interview.
After that, he explained how they divided up the 100 overs during a training session.
“I’ll tell you how. Around 200-300 balls, I used to give throwdowns all by myself. And when I got tired, there were other support staff, they used to help me.
“And when they got tired, there were bowlers from our academy, they used to help them. And sometimes even they got exhausted and if there was time still left, they used to make 2-3 groups, and whatever was told to them, they used to bowl,” Ojha gave a detailed account of his famous ward’s practice.
“It included deliveries during net sessions, the throw downs and sometimes, he used to face the bowling machine. This practice used to start from 7.30 am, and used to go on till 4 pm,” Ojha stated, providing some mind-boggling data regarding his training even though he had been away from pre-teens for a while.
His bat swing and follow through, which produce a lovely arc that guarantees the ball travels far, are discussed by the former cricket players. Ojha thought that after six years of consistent exercise, a muscle memory had been formed.
“So this practice, which Vaibhav did, he did it for a long time, and you are doing the same thing, you are doing it again and again, so your skill set is good, and plus, you are focusing on it, a dedicated resource person, is working with you, and you are following the right technical parameters, so it gives you a positive output, which is happening with Vaibhav,” Ojha explained.
Ojha also thought that Sooryavanshi was raised with excellent morals and that his parents had made their fair share of sacrifices to help him develop into the successful player that he is today.
“See, without the parents’ support, nothing is possible,” Ojha was very straight and to the point.
“I always say, there were many coaches in Bihar, but Sanjeev ji chose me, so I will always be indebted to him. There are many coaches in Bihar and I was not a well-known coach at that time nor did I have much experience in coaching, but he chose me, and that too, just for my training, so it was a matter of respect for me,” Ojha recalled the time when an eight year-old tiny kid came to his academy all the way from Samastipur, a two and half hour one-way drive.
“I was very surprised that a kid from Samastipur will come and play, so for me, it was more than coaching, it was a matter of reputation, that a kid is coming from so far, so I should at least pass on whatever skill set I have,” he said.
Ojha also described how Aarti, the little boy’s mother, would provide lunch for ten to fifteen people before the father-son pair departed for Patna at five in the morning.
“His mother used to get up at 2 am or 2.30 am in the morning and would prepare lunch. Not just for Vaibhav or his father or their driver but also for couple of bowlers who used to come with them. Then there were net bowlers in our academy too.
“Also there were a lot of kids who didn’t get much support from home, so they used to bring lunch for such kids and feed them,” Ojha fondly recalled.
“If good bowlers who got tired, forgot to bring their lunch, they would share Vaibhav’s food. So 10-15 people used to come regularly, and you understand that getting up at 2 am in the morning, and making food for so many people, you have to understand how big a contribution it is,” he added.
After seeing Sooryavanshi’s graph, Ojha claimed that parents are now bringing their children as young as five to his academy.
“Aap 9-10 saal ke bacche ke baat kar rahe ho. In today’s date, parents with kids aged five are coming to the academy. Vaibhav, in a way, has become an inspiration for the parents of the whole of India, he has become an inspiration for the children, has become a role model,” he added.
