Vaibhav Suryavanshi a special talent, can serve Indian cricket for long: RR batting coach Rathour
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Jaipur (PTI): Rajasthan Royals batting coach Vikram Rathour termed 'wonder kid' Vaibhav Suryavanshi as a special talent who can serve Indian cricket for a long time if he keeps his focus.
Suryavanshi, on Monday, made a record 38-ball-101 to become IPL's youngest centurion at 14 years and 32 days.
The left-handed Suryavanshi smashed 11 sixes and seven fours in his stunning onslaught against an array of international bowlers including Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar and Afghanistan's Rashid Khan and Karim Janat to hand RR eight-wicket win.
"We have been watching it nets for last few months, we knew what he is capable of and what shots he can play but to do it in front of these kind of crowd and in a situation like this against a really good bowling attack, it was really special and lot of credit to him (Suryavanshi)," Rathour said at the post-match press conference.
"He is a special talent and he has got great downswing if go into technique and that helps him generate this kind of power and today he showed everybody how good he is.
"For a 14-year-old kid to play like this definitely makes him special. We saw him first time four months back when he came for the trials and from that day onwards we knew we have found something special and it was on us to nurture him and bring him to this level."
Rathour feels Suryavanshi can serve Indian cricket for long, provided he continues to work hard.
"Lot of credit to him that he kept his nerves. He has a solid head on his shoulders, he showed great temperament today. Even the couple of games earlier also he showed what he is capable of and today was an extra ordinary innings.
"Exceptional knock, spectacular knock. The kind of power he generates, the kind of position he gets into, cleanly hits the ball.
"Everything is special about that kid and if he keeps going and keeps working hard, he is going to have a long, long career in Indian cricket," he said.
Rathour, however, said it would be unfair on Suryavanshi to compare him with someone like Sachin Tendulkar who made his India debut at the age of 16. "It's too early and it's unfair on the kid to be compared to Sachin Tendulkar. He is a special kid and he is a special talent," said the former India coach.
Rathour believes RR still have an outside chance of qualifying for the play-offs if they win their remaining four games.
"Every season is important but it's a long term vision as well. We picked a young team and looking at the way they played today, I think we have a special team.
"We still have four games to go and if we win all four still I am not sure whether we are in a position to qualify but 14 points can get you to the play-offs sometimes. So fingers crossed," he said.
Gujarat Titans batter Sai Sudharsan too was effusive in his praise for Suryavanshi.
"No credit taken away from Vaibhav the way he batted was tremendous and was fantastic to watch but at the same time we could have reacted well. The way they started the powerplay was brilliant but we could have better plans," Sudharsan said.
"When we finished we felt it was par or may be 10 runs above par. But the way they started and batted showed us we were wrong and we could have also maximised a bit more."
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
