'You can never discount experience'

Pune Mirror, August 9, 2008
Suhrid Barua

Hrishikesh Kanitkar's decision to make a move-on (his cricketing association with Maharashtra cricket) may not surprise many but it looked like something waiting to happen. Why? you dig deeper into the stats book and find that the stylish left-handed middle-order batsman belted three half centuries in four innings last Ranji season before the selectors lost 'faith' in him towards the fag end of last season.
Kanitkar has obtained a NOC from the MCA to ply his cricketing skills outside Maharashtra. But you meet him, you can sense the simmering frustration and disappointment at the raw deal meted out to him, but Kanitkar wouldn't go the whole hog. "Who would not be disappointed to get axed after being among the runs. I decided to take everything in my stride, stay positive and move on," the soft-spoken said with a tone tinged with sadness.
Not resting on past laurels may not be the best way forward, but can the huge contribution to State cricket be forced into oblivion in a jiffy? Clearly not! Kanitkar has had his days under the sun while donning the state colours at the Ranji level. He was the top run-getter in the 1996-97 Ranji season (1,000 runs) and was also the leading run-getter in the country. To top it all, it was under Kanitkar's captaincy that Maharastra qualified for the Elite Group in 2003-04.
So how does he assess all the talk of plumbing for youngsters. "I'm fine with that but there has to be a proper balance of youth and experience. Look at the current Indian team, you take out the seniors pros like Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly, Laxman and Zaheer, what kind of line-up the team would have," he asks like an inquisitive child.
Best known for his last-ball boundary victory over Bangladesh in the 1998 Independence Cup in Dhaka, Kanitkar wonders how one can suddenly become a non-performer after a thirteen-year stint with state cricket. "See, if I hadn't perform, I wouldn't have survived for thirteen years. I'm not questioning anybody but that's the way it is."
Averring that experience can never put on the backburner, Kanitkar reckons youngsters should be given time to blossom. "You can't expect them to fire straightway. They need time to find their moorings on the big stage. I've nothing against more opportunities being given to young turks but they should have senior pros to help them whenever required," he says.
The Kanitkar journey has been a roller-coaster one. But what's the next destination? Is joining the ICL bandwagon a likely possibility? "I'm not interested in joining the ICL. I would be looking to join some state side as I want to continue playing Ranji Trophy and prove to myself if not to anybody else that I have a lot of cricket left in me," the 33-year-old oozes confidence.
As a parting shot, Kanitkar had a stern message for his critics. "Be fair when you criticise. If I play a bad shot and get out, I would like to be flayed. Constructive criticism is all I want and nothing else," he added.