NEW DELHI: India U19 men’s head coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar revealed that it was VVS Laxman, the head of BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE), who made it possible for the team to witness Day 2 of the ongoing Edgbaston Test, where India skipper Shubman Gill delivered a career-best masterclass of 269.During the second day’s play, the entire India U19 squad — led by promising Mumbai batter Ayush Mhatre — along with Kanitkar and other support staff, were spotted watching the match live from the stands. Kanitkar, a former India batter himself, emphasised that watching a full day of red-ball cricket live served as invaluable exposure for the young players — especially in terms of learning how to construct an innings in the longest format.“VVS Laxman was instrumental in arranging this. He was the one who actually said that it would be a good thing to go and watch this game. It’s definitely a special occasion for any upcoming cricketer to be at a Test venue,” said Kanitkar in a video posted on bcci.tv on Friday.“The main thing I want them to take back from what we have watched so far, as a batter, is that not every ball has to be whacked for a four and six. You can still be extremely effective, score runs at a good rate, and still score a lot of runs, like what Shubman has done. When we go back, there will be a session on what they learnt from it.”“He has batted like a classical Test innings, but he has not just ground it. He has played his shots. He has chosen the right ball, getting into good positions. They can relate to it for sure that if this person succeeds at this level by doing the basic stuff very well, we can as well, and I think that will be the biggest learning,” he added.Left-handed batter Vaibhav Suryavanshi — who has impressed with scores of 48, 45, and 86 in the ongoing youth series — also spoke about how much Gill’s knock meant to the youngsters.“I am feeling very good. This is my first Test match of watching in England, and I am seeing how the game is going.”“I am feeling very good. We all came to watch the match. We got a lot of inspiration because Shubman Gill is a role model for us, and everyone’s dream is to play red-ball cricket for their country.”Young Punjab spinner Anmoljeet Singh, who shares his roots with Gill, said the outing to Edgbaston gave him even more motivation to chase his India dream.“Yesterday evening, sir told us that everyone has to go and watch the match. We were ready to go and watch the match from morning itself.”
“Gill was batting at 114 at that time, and it felt good that he was playing, and we went and watched his batting. Representing India is a big achievement. When I see them, I get motivated to play for India like them and become like them,” he said.India U19 currently lead the five-match Youth ODI series 2-1 against England and are set to play the fourth game at New Road, Worcester, on July 5, with the final match scheduled at the same venue on July 7.