Garry Sobers talks about batting innovations and what T20 does to young players
Interview by Nagraj Gollapudi19-May-2015What effect has the Caribbean Premier League had on West Indies cricket?
It has helped in certain areas. It has given a lot of people an opportunity to play at that level against or with some of the top players in the world. It is a good innovation for West Indies cricket because not only does it bring new players in but it also goes into various islands so that people in those places can see cricket. And it is bringing people back through the turnstiles who one day might start coming in for Test cricket too.What has been the impact of T20 at large on West Indies players?
You will find in most countries here, the selectors from various islands will try to keep the young and upcoming player from T20 until he develops his skills at the top level and then he can handle both. We are trying to build Test players for the future. And you can’t build Test players through T20, not if they are in the age group of 19-21. We don’t really want to start pushing them into T20 where they have to face five or six overs and they know they have to get on with it and they have to play all different kinds of shots, and then hold their technique for the level of Test cricket.You might have one or two players who at a young age can adapt themselves to both first-class and T20, but you can’t expose them until you know that they are capable. You have to play them in the four-day games and see how they play, and then you will have an idea whether they can do it in both formats. At the present moment you want to build Test players because we need them in the West Indies. You just can’t take the youngsters that have that ability and stick them into the CPL, where every ball you have to probably hit a boundary. So [the CPL] does help in the sense that it gives a youngster an opportunity to watch the cricket and see how players play -you do have cricketers like Kallis, Tendulkar and those players who developed through Test cricket but can go into T20 and still play that class of cricket that they played in Test matches and still score quickly. So it helps in those categories.
“If you are going to raise youngsters for Test cricket that don’t have the experience, you can’t stick them into T20. You’ve got to teach them first how to play Test cricket”
Do you enjoy watching T20 cricket?
I enjoy watching it because it comes at the right time, especially when it is being played in India, South Africa or Australia. I can lie down in bed and look at it. As a cricketer you see some shots played in T20 that you do admire, but that is why you don’t want too many youngsters to get into it because they might start trying all these different kinds of things without being developed in the game to be able to do them. They might try them and that might take away their natural flair. But you have players of experience who play at the level of Test cricket but can improvise to play these kinds of shots. And it is nice to see some of them being played. But sometimes some of them go overboard, go beyond. The odd one here and there is fine but some of them want to play every ball in the same way – a reverse sweep, up over the top, flick it up over their head.Do you think you would have enjoyed playing T20?
I enjoyed playing any type of cricket. Didn’t matter what type it was because I did not want to change my game. My game was built on one type of cricket: if there was a ball to hit, you hit it, whether it was Test matches, whatever it was. But T20 gives you freer choice because you only have a limited amount of overs and there are certain times I want to change my game and play as I normally wouldn’t play.What shots have you been impressed by?
There are a plenty of shots that I have been amazed by, but a lot of these shots are played because you have worn an iron mask. Take away the protection and let me see if they play them. Don’t forget that the past players did not have any protection. So they probably would not have played shots like trying to flick the ball over their head, because if they mistimed it, it would be trouble. But with the helmet on, the face guard and all that, you can now afford to play all those kinds of shots. Now you have no real problem. No real fear.As a fan, which shot you would pick?
The reverse sweep can be most effective. I don’t think the ordinary player or players who are just learning the game, they want to do it. There are some who are capable enough of executing it. It is a good shot, the reverse sweep, because you can keep it on the ground. You don’t have to hit it in the air, and it has got to be well timed. That is one of the shots I would recommend. But all the other ones like flicking over the head are a bit far-fetched.What about the switch hit?
The switch hit – I never believed in that because you are changing the position completely. I don’t think you should be allowed to change from left-handed to right-handed. You get a bowler that is bowling round the wicket and all of a sudden he doesn’t tell the umpire he is bowling over the wicket. So what you are going to do with him – you are going to call it a no-ball? The same way you have the switch hit, where I can turn from right to left and there is no call or no stopping him.”A lot of these shots are played because you have worn an iron mask. Take away the protection and let me see if they play them”•AFPYou set a field for a right-handed batsman. So what happens if he turns around and you have three fielders behind? And you are only allowed two men behind square, so you have two slips and a backward point for a left-hander and he turns around to a right-hander. Now you have three men behind square. So what are you going to do then? So think about it: when he changed the position, he has changed the field position.How do you redress the balance of the situation in favour of the bowler?
Well, that is the rules. They set the rules. But it is a different game completely to what it used to be. It is a modern game, because when you tell a bowler that he can only bowl two bouncers an over and he can only bowl with two men behind square, and yet the batsman can do all these different things with his helmet, arm guards, pads… You limit me [bowler] but you don’t limit the batsman. So it is a one-sided game – that is my view. That is my belief.What advice would you give to young bowlers these days?
If I am talking to a youngster, I coach him what I feel is best for him to bowl, how to hold the ball, how to bowl certain things and how to bowl to certain batsmen, how to position himself. I never talk to them about the rules.How heavy was your bat?
Two pounds two. I don’t know what today’s batsmen use and how much they weigh. I know what they look like. I can see how thick they are. Some people say they are 2.10, 2.12, three pounds.You spoke about how the CPL has had a positive impact in terms of bringing fans back to grounds. In terms of leadership, have West Indies players like Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Denesh Ramdin grown into able leaders?
You must remember they first played Test cricket [except Pollard] and they were not too bad at Test cricket. I don’t think they would have learned a lot from IPL or whatever T20 they have played. They can only learn a lot of bad habits from it and take those into Test cricket. If you are going to raise youngsters for Test cricket that don’t have the experience, you can’t stick them into T20. You’ve got to teach them first how to play Test cricket and when they’re good enough for Test cricket and if they want to play both formats then they can.