Can Prithvi Shaw, once hailed as next Sachin, comeback after IPL auction spurn?
New Delhi: Two days ago, a seemingly relaxed Prithvi Shaw appeared on a YouTube vlog where he spoke about the best ever one-line advice that he had once got from Sachin Tendulkar."Discipline beats talent" was the maestro's terse tip for Shaw, the 25-year-old would tell social media influencer Karan Sonawane on the latter's YouTube channel 'Focussed Indian'.
Ricky Ponting in an interview to 'Cricbuzz' expressed his disappointment on how he had to look at other players after Shaw failed to deliver the goods.
"When you feel like you're not making players better and they're not doing what you need for the team, then you've got to look for other players that can do it for you. So that then comes back to the player.
"With him in particular I've had a lot of chats with him, a lot of conversations to try and make him a better cricketer," Ponting had said.
Ponting's words would give an indication that no one likes schooling players at this level and even players don't like to hear sermons after one point of time.
There are fears that Shaw might go the Vinod Kambli way -- the script is getting eerily similar. Humble background, instant international stardom and then a sharp downward spiral.
Only difference is that in 1990's, the Indian cricket society wasn't as evolved as it is now. Kambli didn't have too many people around him, who could have actually brought him back on track.
In case of Shaw, there is help if he wants to seek out.
He needs to shed weight, score tons of runs but first and foremost, he needs to speak to himself, do a bit of soul searching about what he wants from life? Does he want his career to be confined to a short story or an epic novel? The answer will define the next course of his life.
Prithvi Shaw 2.0 is what Indian cricket would want. He is too good a 'talent' that the establishment cannot afford to lose.
