Play it safe against Covid-19 like I did against fast bowlers, Gavaskar tells Raja

Dubai - Raja said there was no one better than Gavaskar, who excelled against fast bowlers, from the cricketing world to speak on how to beat coronavirus

Likening the Covid-19 pandemic to a bouncer from a fast bowler, former Pakistan captain and celebrated commentator Ramiz Raja urged people to learn from the legendary Indian opening batsman Sunil Gavaskar on how to stay away from the clutches of the deadly disease.
The diminutive Gavaskar was famous for netrualising the threat of the fast bowlers by leaving the bouncers with ease.
And now Raja, while hosting his old on-field rival on his YouTube channel, Ramiz Speaks, said there was no one better than Gavaskar from the cricketing world to speak on how to beat coronavirus.
"Sunny bhai, the way you played the deadly fast bowlers, you are in a great position to tell us what the world should do to stop the spread of the deadly disease because everyone is talking about social distancing," Ramiz said.
Gavaskar, who remarkably hit 13 centuries against the legendary West Indian fast bowling attack, opened up on the global crisis which has brought the sporting world to a standstill.
"Of course, the world is going through a tough time. All sporting events have been cancelled or postponed. In fact, if you ask me, having sports or not having sports is a very small matter compared to the threat to the life the world is facing now," Gavaskar said.
"It's important to be careful and maintain social distancing. And since you talk about opening the batting and facing fast bowlers, yes, when you are an opening batsman, you have to be careful because the ball is new and it swings a lot.
"You begin to score runs when the bowlers get tired after the opening spells. So I am not talking about Virender Sehwag, I am talking about my own game," said Gavaskar.
But Gavaskar admitted that the Covid-19 is a much bigger threat than the fast bowlers he faced.
"This (Covid-19) is an invisible enemy. If you are batting, you know what the fast bowlers or the spinners will do to get you out, so you play accordingly," he said.
"But this Covid-19 is a big challenge because you can't see it. So you have to be extremely careful in terms of maintaining social distancing."
The former India captain then spoke about the toughest fast bowlers he faced.
"The spells from Imran (Khan) in the 1982 India-Pakistan series were tough. Even Sarfaraz (Nawaz) was great. They were bowling reverse swing. We didn't know much about it then. It was very tough to face the old ball as Imran took 40 wickets in 6 Test matches," he said.
"Then it was very testing against Richard Hadlee in New Zealand because of his combination of swing and speed.
"Of course, every Test against the West Indies was a new challenge those days. But I think the toughest was Hadlee in the three Test series in 1981."
Raja then asked Gavaskar about the secret to his success against the great West Indies fast bowlers.
"They were so strong and our teams used to get thrashed in the West Indies. When you land in the West Indies, even the immigration officers would taunt you that their fast bowlers were going to thrash you again. So that worked as a motivation for me to do well against their bowlers," he said.
And the opening batsmen, Gavaskar says, will never succeed if they don't have a good temperament.
"Temperament is the most important thing because this is what separates men from the boys. Of course, technique is important, but temperament is paramount," he said, once again reminding us of the mental discipline that is needed now to combat Covid-19.
rituraj@khaleejtimes.com