MSD: Mentor, Margdarshak, Wise Teacher Cricket

Helmet, cap, turntable with headgear and greeting Thala MSD, new / old emperor, Indian cricket HRH. Less than two years after leaving, he has returned, an ordinary man from Ranch who quickly rose to dominate Indian cricket, became a Bahubali.

Now MSD Bahubali has switched roles and has margdarshak, teacher, instructor, more specifically, as Jay Shah announced.

This role unites him through the ages. The mentor, as the useful WhatsApp thread explains, dates back to Homers ’8th century BC. To the epic Odyssey, where it is the teacher hired by Odysseus for his son Telemachus when the hero was away from the Trojan War while fighting and could not keep up with the boys ’homework.

In sports, timing is critical, and meeting MSD so close to Teachers ’Day in September is nice.

In this way, MSD is also like the new Buddha, the supreme teacher of legendary serenity.

Even in times of severe stress, MSD kept his shape and nothing creeped through the bat and pillow to break his defense.

Like the Buddha, MSD has given up, it is not affected by worldly temptations or social media.

He gave up test cricket after ten magical 100 matches. He relinquished his position as skipper as captain in 331 matches at the time of enlightenment in the middle of the series in Australia. Like the Buddha, who did not tell his wife and child until he left home permanently, MSD did not tell anyone of his decision, not even coach Ravi Shastri until he announced it.

A quick glance at his timeline reveals that MSD is plowing a lonely path. He ignores noise-ignored calls (ask VVS Laxman) and is a unique celebrity who decides to stay covered. She lives in her private world with family and pets Sam, Lily, Gabbar and Zoya. Other celebrities are generously spread on social media, but not on MSD. If superstar Aamir Khan is lonely, MSD is almost invisible.

Sometimes MSD’s absence becomes a problem, for example when he rejects cricket. After the last World Cup in July 2019, MSD disappeared, refused to play and did not appear on his Jharkhand Ranji team. He emerged because of a rusty IPL and then disappeared again, but emerged again in Dubai. During these breaks, he was found waving a carefree racket on a golf course and doing organic farming with a tractor.

Long absences from cricket raise difficult questions: Is this disrespect for sport or intelligent workload management to conserve physical and mental energy?

The debate is academic as MSD is back in the middle of the Indian World Cup war room. Does MSD support less time-tested speech in this second shift? Experience shows that his team meetings at CSK are short and he is not particularly excited about technology, videos or information. His style is minimal administration and maximum action.

MSD is a genius who can speak without saying a word. When the Indian Special Forces logo on his gloves caused outrage, MSD remained muted and took a century without playing shots.

The same very left strategy may not work this time. First, he is a mentor, but the Indian team members are not quite as young or inexperienced as Telemachus. On the contrary, the Indian dressing room is more of a Rajya Sabha than a Lok Sabha with a wealth of experience. MSD, including five IPL team captains, sits at different angles (six if you also count R Ashwin) and the management team has so much expertise that they can set up a T20 network learning center like team sponsors Byjus. The Indian think tank looks well populated, but one cynic after the Manchester mess pointed out that MSD is an added protection for all Covid / non-Covid emergencies.

TULE illnesses are valued as a man’s leadership skills are tested while maintaining a delicate balance between the captain, coach and mentor. The TULE role is not to keep temperatures low or put out fires, as he has a say in team selection and strategy, stroke orders and bowling matches. Will Shastri then take it back? Will King Kohli hand over the area?

Those who are considering fireworks, friction and the battles between the Indian cricket trimurt will be disappointed. For players, India is always a priority, and MSD comes with a tricolor wrapped around strong shoulders.

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