What Vaibhav Suryavanshi can learn from a 19-year-old Sachin Tendulkar

Why Vaibhav Suryavanshi must learn to lose before he can truly win

I did a piece on Vaibhav Suryavanshi on Sunday saying he needs to deal with failures better. The gestures weren’t warranted for in sport you will always lose more. While there is no doubting his talent, temperament is as important for a young sportsperson.

A lot of trolls had a lot to say on the piece. While I am used to trolling, the larger point is alarming. These are the people who make these youngsters feel larger than life. They are not. Vaibhav has to be rooted to be able to realise his full potential and I am sure the eco-system around him will help him do so. The BCCI too, I am told, has taken notice and correctives will soon be put in place. It is a need and only then can things be addressed.

When Vaibhav plays the IPL, he is paid top dollar. He is a hugely talented cricketer and is treated as such. So why is it that he will have to be treated as a teenager if he makes a mistake? There can’t be double standards and it is as essential to point things out as it is to celebrate him. The job of the media is to hold up the mirror and that’s what we will continue to do. The problem with us is the moment you are critical or raise a critical point, a section of the trolls will jump on you. That’s when young journalists get upset or scared and let things go. It is indeed tough to deal with abuse and for many the easy way out is to not write critical columns. That’s when we do disservice to the profession. While we celebrate Vaibhav and we will for sure, it is also necessary to point out where he went wrong.

The U-19 world cup is just round the corner. India will need a fully focussed Vaibhav Suryavanshi. Teams will now know that they can get under his skin and try and sledge him as well. That’s where he needs to keep calm. Let me give you a Sachin example. In 1992 Sachin was 19 when he went to Australia. In one of the games, a young Australian cricketer was continuously sledging him. At one point a very calm Sachin called him and said that while a young Tendulkar was already playing for India, the player in question had not yet gone past New South Wales. He should sledge only when he made the Test team. Sachin wasn’t angry and yet the job was done.

Vaibhav, much younger than Sachin, needs to take a leaf out of Sachin’s book. He can’t get angry on the sports field. For that’s when he will lose perspective. He is key to India’s success in the world cup and for him to stay calm and be in control is essential. I am sure he will have learnt from the U-19 Asia Cup. Each one of us make mistakes. And he isn’t any different. To learn and get better is the way ahead. And not let the “Oh you are great brigade get to your head.”