NEW DELHI: Life after retirement is one of the biggest anxieties facing professional sportsmen the world over. In India, with youngsters today being encouraged to take up sport as a career, and the simultaneous drying up of public sector employment, the drop-out rates, particularly in cricket, continue to remain high.
The budding cricketers in the 17-21 age-group would be worried about life beyond the ropes if you fail to succeed.
Understanding this uncertainty and seeking a more holistic development of young cricketers, the Indian cricket board (BCCI) is mulling a concept where it would play a facilitator for cricketers to get jobs outside the sport. The idea was first mooted by former India captain Rahul Dravid at a recent meeting with board officials, where he emphasized the need to enhance life skills of young cricketers outside of the sport. With the cut-throat competition prevalent in cricket today, the thoughtful former batsman recognized that emerging players have very little time to focus on their education, with a lucrative sport and the promise of riches often proving a mirage.
Dravid has been in charge of the India U-19 and A’ teams for over three years now, making him a voice closest to such realities. And recognizing the immediacy of his suggestions, the National Cricket Academy (NCA) COO Tufan Ghosh and the board officials are working on a structure to give this idea on imparting life education a shape.
The officials are seeking out placement agencies and other firms to help in training young cricketers and offering them alternate career options if they struggle to continue with the game. “Dravid and the other coaches here had pointed out the need to start such a process. We are working towards formulating a structure before it is sent to the higher authorities in BCCI to get things going,” Ghosh told TOI.
Rahul Dravid bats for alternate careers for young cricketers
