Differently-abled cricketers long for a level-playing field

It is around 5 p.m. and A Shanmugam excuses himself when this reporter calls him. He is at work – this time at a wedding function where he thumps drums for a living. Otherwise, he accompanies his father who plays the parai (a kind of drum) at funerals. Cricket is Shanmugam’s first love and knows Sachin Tendulkar’s records like the back of his hand.

Born with his left arm ending just below the elbow, those in disability sports, consider him an all-rounder. He can hit a ball really long. With the ball, he is quite nippy off the pitch. For the first T20 PhysicalDisabilityWorld CricketSeries held in England in 2019, Shanmugam was among the 30 shortlisted Indian players.

Though his peers think there is not a thing that this 29-year-old, who has a diploma in teacher’s training, cannot do on the cricket field, the sad fact that he is leading a hand-to-mouth existence, remains.

Cricket for the physically challenged is yet to gain prominence in the country, so getting a job or making a livelihood with this sport is a distant dream for many players like Shanmugam.

Tamil Nadu Para Cricket Association for Disabled, affiliated to Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and Physically Challenged Cricket Association of India, has brought many such players under its banner hoping to showcase their talent.

Cricket is life

The team coach and manager, M Mukunthan, a polio-affected sports player, is himself struggling to meet ends. After his cool drinks outlet on the Marina Beach suffered extensive damage during the rains, Mukunthan has dedicated himself full-time to building the team.

More than 80 disabled players, in the age group of 18 and 40, from various districts including Madurai, Vellore, Tirchy and Tiruchengode, have enrolled with the association. They come from small towns working as daily wage earners or are into farming. They dabble in athletics, volleyball and other sports but cricket is their first love.

Getting to practise at the nets is a luxury so they play gully cricket and their daily routine becomes a training drill.

Giving them a level-playing field is not easy.

“We request able-bodied cricket teams at colleges to play with disabled players and that’s how I select players for tournaments,” says Mukunthan. At every competitive match, at least three players are new faces.

He says there is no dearth of talent but these players don’t get any help.

Bringing players together at one space is another challenge. “We usually practice as a team only a day before the tournament, that’s because we don’t have the means to fund the accommodation, food and travel expense of the players,” says Mukunthan.

A majority of them are dedicated to the sport. Shanmugam, for instance, goes bus-hopping to have a go at the nets that is 20 km from his small village in Kancheepuram. Anthony, team captain who hails from Arakkonam, has tied a ball to a banyan tree next to his house for knocking and shot practice.

Gully cricket

As most of the players juggle work and love for cricket, getting them to spare a month or two exclusively for training before a tournament is not easy.

V Hari commutes daily from Chengalpattu to Chennai where he works with a packing company. “My boss knows I play competitive cricket but there’s little support I get. I take off from work and there’s no wages, so it is tough to meet ends at home,” says Hari, whose highest high jump record stands at 175 metres.

P. Victor also shares a similar tale. The joy of playing well in a tournament is overshadowed by the fear of losing the job when he returns. Victor works as a two-wheeler collection agent in Thiruvallur and has a family of three to feed, including two children.

His employer has already warned him that he will have to quit if he takes leave often for cricket. “Last year, I played in three tournaments held in Varanasi, Kolkata and Haryana and only in the former did I get permission. Other two were loss of pay,” says Victor who scored 99 not out in the HAP Cup 2021 organised by BCCI.

The prize money from these tournaments is paltry.

Recently, the team won third place at the Andhra Tanuku South Zone Cricket tournament, competing with five teams.

“We received ₹ 7000 as prize money but the expenses that I incurred towards buying jerseys and travel tickets were way higher than that,” says Mukunthan, who won bronze in athletics at the 11th Paralympic Games in Malaysia and is also a medal winner in table tennis.

With groups running differently-abled cricket joining hands to form Differently Abled Cricket Council of India, Mukunthan’s team is hoping to play in recognised national and international tournaments.

“We are not playing just for the prize money but to make a point that we are in no way less talented than others,” adds Mukunthan.

Help from school in Chennai

Recently, the management of the CSI School for the Deaf in Santhome came as a saviour for players of the Tamil Nadu Para Cricket Association for the Disabled, offering them a space for practice. It was the Tamil Nadu Federation for the Differently-Abled that facilitated this process, talking to the management. So, 16 players got to assemble a few days before the South Zone Cricket Tournament at Tanaku in Andhra Pradesh began on January 27. The players used the opportunity to practise as a unit. Their accommodation and food were also taken care of.

“This is first time in three years since the Association was formed that we got such a help and it makes a huge difference,” says M Mukunthan, secretary of Tamil Nadu Para Cricket Association for Disabled and manager for the team.

As players are from different districts, meeting at a common venue for practice is a challenge unless someone comes forward to offer food and lodging. “Apart from the motivational talks that we do through video calls, every player is expected to find ways to practise at his town/home,” says Mukunthan. The practice sessions before the match are helpful in analysing the players and the new skills that each one has picked up as a bowler and batter.

Mukunthan says each of his players have huge potential and will do well with some hand-holding and support.

“We want individuals or organisations to come forward to pay for the travel expense of these players,” says Mukunthan.

S Karpagam, a member of Tamil Nadu Federation for Differently Abled, says the Federation is bringing coaches in various sports together to train many such disabled players. “We have sought permission from CSI School that these cricketers use the space whenever they need to practise. In March, we are organising an event to help these players find jobs,” says Karpagam, adding that they want other organisations working for the differently-abled to join the Federation.

Mukunthan can be contacted at 9841702338 and Karpagam at 9094686187