Vaas warns, drops bombshell

Driven away by political backstabbing the ex-paceman says Sri Lanka is not keeping pace with modern demands:

by Allaam Ousman

DUBAI Former Sri Lanka cricketer Chaminda Vaas has called for an overhaul of coaching techniques in the country to keep pace with changes in the modern day game while stressing on the importance of fitness.

Sri Lanka’s pace spearhead for a long time, 41-year-old Vaas certainly looks as fit he was during his active playing days.

“As a fast bowler you have to always maintain your fitness. That’s one thing I always take seriously and I still do my same routines every day,” said Vaas, a tireless workhorse for Sri Lanka and oneof only four bowlers to reach the milestone of 400 ODI wickets with two hat-tricks.

However, his emphasis on fitness and attempts to change the system, may have hurt a few egos despite his best intentions when serving as Sri Lanka’s bowling coach for two years.

“I always wanted to be a part of Sri Lanka cricket but there are lot of politics. It’s not easy to do a proper job there. There are so many interferences,” said Vaas who has taken flight to offer his services outside the country.

“I want to try my hand in a different capacity. I want to get involved with a global community,” said Vaas who will be based in Sharjah from January as head coach of the Vaas Victoria Cricket Academy.

“I was involved with New Zealand and Sri Lanka .I always take up new challenges and try to do the best. Over the years what I learnt from cricket I will put it into practice and help budding cricketers develop into good cricketers,” said Vaas who even got the chance to captain his country against Australia in an ODI at the WACA.

“I always love to give my services for Sri Lanka if there is a structure. I would love to work there and do the right thing for Sri Lanka cricket,” said Vaas who felt some of the coaching methods were outdated.

“There are coaches who have been there for 10 or 15 years. Same old training methods are used every day but the game keeps changing every year. You need to have plans and new ideas. We have to move on and implement those ideas with the new generation,” said Vaas while urging youngsters to grab the opportunities that come their way.

“It’s a transition period for Sri Lanka cricket. There are so many talented youngsters who have to grab the chances to fill Mahela (Jayawardene) and (Kumar) Sangakkara’s shoes, and they have to perform,” he said reiterating the need for a structured plan to fill the vacuum caused by the departures of these legends.

“There are a lot of talented youngsters who are capable. But the problem is lack of experience. They need to be given exposure and do the right thing for players. When they play international level we have to motivate them and get the best out of them,” said Vaas arguably the greatest fast bowler to come out of Sri Lanka.

He proudly recalls how Sri Lanka won Test matches in England and young fast bowlers were unearthed during his tenure.

“You got to groom them properly. We have coaches who have been working for so many years. They have been trained in that way but there are so many new methods. We have to follow those things,” said Vaas who made his mark in the County Circuit for Middlesex, Northamptonshire and Worcestershire.

His message to aspiring cricketers was clear - there are no short cuts to success. “It’s fitness as well to be mentally strong if you want to be a great bowler. When I was young, I always give 100 per cent for fitness. It is the key for players to show their skills and to play longer,” said Vaas who made his first-class debut at age 16.

“I always concentrate on fitness because we have to be physically fit enough to go along with the mental side. Number one is fitness,” reiterated Vaas who was no stranger to bending his back on unresponsive tracks.

Vaas also felt bowlers should be managed properly once they are identified at an early age.

“We need to have a short term and long term plan for bowlers. We have to look after them properly, even the nutrition part. Taking care of them is very essential nowadays because so much cricket is being played,” reiterated Vaas who was against the splitting of captaincy for different formats.

“This is one thing I don’t agree. You may have different captains but Angelo (Mathews) is a young cricketer who has a lot of cricket knowledge. I think he can handle all the formats, including one-day and-T20 and he is capable to do so. I always wanted one captain for all formats,” he said.