World champion shuttler P V Sindhu believes foreign coaches would be difficult to hire in a post COVID-19 world, presenting former India internationals the opportunity to step forward and fill in the void. "If the global pandemic continues, bringing coaches from abroad might become difficult, there are a lot of good players in our country who have played at international level, and we can use them in a coaching capacity," Sindhu said on Monday while speaking during an webinar.

The Olympic silver-medallist was addressing the newly-appointed Assistant Directors of the Sports Authority of India through an online session. Sindhu stressed on the importance of parents, coaches, administrators working as a team to build up a champion. "The administrators must know the journey of every sportsperson. The future of Indian sports lies in the hands of young sports administrators like all of you," she said.

"You must visit all the SAI regional centres and be aware of the performances from the players and be in touch with their parents. The parent's involvement is a lot and you need to take feedback from them. This feedback needs to be monitored." The 24-year-old from Hyderabad also said "players must be continuously tracked to avoid age fraud." "You must also understand how the SAI coaching system works and if athletes are receiving the right diet and supplements at the various centres," she added.

Sindhu also stressed on the need to acknowledge the contributions made by parents in the success of athletes. "Before the Rio Olympics we shifted to the academy. My mother gave up her job to care for me. My father took two years leave from his job," she said. "The challenge was recovering from the injury I suffered in 2015. I used to sit and play in the academy. I had to play 23 tournaments in a year to even qualify for the Olympics.

"My father taking leave from his service really helped me. He used to take me to the Railways ground." Sindhu complimented the government for schemes such as Khelo India for propping up various sports from the grassroot level and urged other organisations to do the same. She also urged budding players to not ignore their studies for a career in badminton.

"While you don't need to go to school every day, you must not skip it altogether," she said.

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Taapsee Pannu has been regaling fans with interesting anecdotes from her shoots lately, to beat the lockdown blues. She has now recalled of the time she was shooting for the 2018 sports biopic "Soorma", which narrates the remarkable real-life story of Indian hockey star Sandeep Singh.

While Diljit Dosanjh essayed Sandeep in the film, the hockey star himself used to be on the set too, to guide the actors of the finer aspects of the sport since both Taapsee and Diljit were cast as hockey players. Taapsee took to Instagram, to share a behind-the-scenes video where she can be seen doing somersaults. Sharing an anecdote with the video, she revealed it was punishment meted out to her by 'coach' Sandeep Singh is she missed her preparatory classes!

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

This one is from #Soorma . Ithe hockey world they call it ‘baajiyaan’ but when I was a kid we used to call this gulaatiyaan back home in Delhi. This is usually a punishment in hockey world but back home it used to be a fun activity. N me being the hyper active kid , had a lot of this ‘fun’ while growing up. It surely helped me to do this easily on set. Also my coach @sandeep_rebirth was always ready with this punishment for me if I missed the class ! Talk about method prep ! 🤷🏻‍♀️ #Throwback #Archive #QuarantinePost

A post shared by Taapsee Pannu (@taapsee) onApr 21, 2020 at 10:41pm PDT

"This one is from #Soorma . the hockey world they call it ‘baajiyaan' but when I was a kid we used to call this gulaatiyaan back home in Delhi. This is usually a punishment in the hockey world but back home it used to be a fun activity. N me being the hyper active kid , had a lot of this ‘fun' while growing up," she wrote.

She shared that her childhood activity helped her on the film's set.

"It surely helped me to do this easily on set. Also my coach @sandeep_rebirth was always ready with this punishment for me if I missed the class ! Talk about method prep ! #Throwback #Archive #QuarantinePost."

Directed by Shaad Ali, the film also stars Angad Bedi. Earlier, Taapsee shared some anecdotes from the sets of the film "Manmarziyaan".

Taapsee's latest role in Anubhav Sinha's "Thappad" has been widely acclaimed. The actress will be seen in "Haseen Dillruba", "Rashmi Rocket" and "Shabaash Mithu" in the coming months.

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Representational Image

In a freak mishap, one coach of a Central Railway harbour line train dashed the dead-end and derailed at Goregaon yard on Saturday night. No passenger or staff was injured in the incident and there were no repercussions on any services.

Sources said the incident occurred around 7.45pm on Friday when the train, belonging to Sanpada crashed, was being parked. Four wheels went off the rails and it took around four hours to put the train back on track. A spokesperson confirmed the incident, saying that an internal departmental inquiry will be conducted.

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A missing platform stands between Mumbaikars and the restored tram the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had promised to set up for display at Bhatia Baug, by the first week of April. While the tram coach is nearly ready, the tender for construction of the platform, which will serve as its base, didn't receive an adequate response, and a second tender cannot be floated until after the Lok Sabha elections in the city.

The BMC floated a tender last month to appoint a contractor who will construct a 3 feet tall platform. The tram, as well as part of tracks, will be installed on top of it. The overall of cost of restoration of the tram and construction of the platform is estimated to be R28 lakh. "We received a response from a single bidder so we have to float another tender. However, since the model code of conduct is in place, we will have to wait for the elections to get over," said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner of A ward. He added that they will float the tender next week and it will remain open for a period of eight days.

Also read: Elections 2019: 422 polling stations in Mumbai declared 'critical'

Based on the plan, the BMC is considering letting people enter the tram under certain conditions. Before the final setup, however, the BMC will need the approval of the heritage committee. Unlike most projects that are approved based on documents, for this project, the committee members will have to inspect the tram. On April 24, A ward officials wrote to the heritage committee asking them to inspect the tram and give their approval for the project. Dighavkar added that the tram will be brought to a godown in Cuffe Parade from Rabale sometime this week.

Over the past couple of months, the tram was restored in a workshop in Rabale using the parts of another tram that was functional in Kolkata between 1874 and 1907. Once the tram has been assembled at Bhatia Baug, the BMC is planning to set up lighting in the area to attract visitors. Civic officials are also planning to install LED screens inside the tram which will display information about the history of trams in Mumbai from the horse drawn ones till the electrical ones which were taken off the road around 50 years ago.

Also read: Elections 2019: Netas appeal to citizens to vote

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The Sports Authority of India will conduct online education programme and lectures beginning Wednesday to keep its coaches engaged during the lockdown period in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, The coach education programme, to be done via Zoom, will be like a refresher course, one of the participants said. Coaches from swimming, judo and volleyball will have their one-hour session on Wednesday while the programmes on athletics, fencing, weightlifting and boxing will be held on Thursday.

"As far as I know, the SAI is using this period of COVID-19 to conduct this refresher course for the coaches. This is a welcome move. As a coach, it is always good to have additional knowledge," national cycling coach RK Sharma told PTI. Indian athletics high performance director Volker Herrmann will be one of those who will conduct the sessions.

The SAI has also lined up sports science lectures as part the of coach development programme during the lockdown period. Eminent speakers from top institutes of the country will deliver online lectures on topics relating to physiology, bio chemistry, strength and conditioning, physiotherapy and injury prevention, sports medicine, nutrition, sports psychology, bio mechanics and doping.

These lectures will begin on Thursday and continue till May 12.

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Indian boxing's High Performance Director Santiago Nieva expects the national camp to resume at least partially next month and foresees no hiccups in fans rushing back to live sport in the age of social distancing as he feels people always "look for risks". The seasoned coach, who has been with the Indian team since 2017, is quite optimistic of things improving by the beginning of next month despite the rising COVID-19 cases as well as the number of deaths in the country. "I think the camp will restart next month. If not full strength, then at least the core group," he told PTI. The core group comprises the ones who have already qualified for the Olympics and those who are seen to be strong contenders to make the cut in future qualifiers.

Asked what gives him the belief that camps would be good to go if the national lockdown ends on May 3, the Swede said, "That's my hunch. Of course I can be wrong but I think we will be able to restart early next month." "Humans have the ability to adapt to different situations. And I think here, people are facing up to the reality quite well even though it is an unprecedented crisis." Talking of the crisis and its impact on sports, Nieva said things would never be the same again but asserted that people will not give up on live sports either. "In amateur boxing, we are used to fighting in empty halls, so no fan concerns for us," he joked. "But seriously speaking, yes, there will be more restrictions on movement of people, the security is going to be tighter, it won't be that easy to travel. But fans, they are going to rush back at the first opportunity," he predicted. "People don't care. I think they should be more careful but mostly they are not. They will come back easily because they have been confined at homes for too long.

"They like to be risky. You can see it even now. Look at Europe and US, people are just refusing to follow the lockdowns, they are flocking bars, restaurants despite strict measures. You think they will stop once all these restrictions are lifted?" Nieva is currently in Patiala's National Institute of Sports, busy delivering lectures in online classes for coaches by the Sports Authority of India. "The technology has to be better for these classes to have more impact but overall, I think it is the future as far as complementing live training is concerned. Obviously, it cannot replace live training," he said of his experience so far. "It can be a bit disconcerting when you are not able to see the 250 odd people who are listening to you but you get used to it," he added. Asked if boxers have been reaching out to him while being at their respective homes during this period, Nieva said, "Sometimes, not often. They call up to tell if they are struggling with the equipment but overall they have adapted well." "It's not an optimum situation and as I said earlier, we have to face up to the reality," he signed off brushing aside any concerns of his own when quizzed about the considerable time he has spent away from his family in Sweden.

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National rowing coach Bajrang Lal Takhar, 39, wants India's ace rowers, Sawarn Singh and Dattu Bhokanal to make the most of the Coronavirus-caused lockdown by working on their mental toughness.

Takhar, the first to win an Asian Games individual gold [Guangzhou 2010], is keen that the duo fine-tune their technique and emerge mentally stronger when the lockdown is over.

"Dattu performed well at the Rio Games in 2016 [finishing 13th in men's single sculls] in his maiden Olympics. Sawarn is also a good rower. My advice to them is to become mentally strong if we want to win at the Olympics. At the top level, there is not much to differentiate in terms of physical fitness. Being mentally strong can make a huge difference. They [Sawarn and Bhokanal] also need to work on their technique," Takhar, who has been guiding the rowers via video conferencing from his hometown in Maganpur, Rajasthan, told mid-day on Monday.

Meanwhile, Takhar urged patience from those expecting a rowing medal at the Tokyo Olympics. "They [Sawarn and Bhokanal] will surely qualify for the Tokyo Games. They will make it to the final as well, but we may have to wait for another Olympics [Paris 2024] to win a medal," felt Takhar.

Sawarn, 30, has won gold in quadruple sculls along with Bhokanal, Om Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, while he bagged a bronze in single sculls at the Incheon Games in 2014. Bhokanal, 29, won silver in single sculls at the 2015 Asian Rowing Championships in Beijing.

Takhar has urged the Rowing Federation of India (RFI) to concentrate on rural areas if they wish to tap upcoming talent.

"The RFI needs to search for talent in rural regions. Getting physically strong people is extremely crucial to succeed in rowing. We have worked on certain plans to train aspiring players," he concluded.

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Former national-level kho-kho player and coach Ramesh Waralikar, 83, who served the game in different capacities over five decades, passed away at a city hospital on Thursday.

Prolonged illness

Waralikar, who had been unwell for the last couple of years, went on to become one of the finest kho-kho statisticians, given his vast knowledge of all the players and records associated with it.

Shrirang Inamdar, 65, the youngest kho-kho player to be honoured with the Arjuna Award at the age of 18, recalled his association with Waralikar during Maharashtra's victorious campaign in the national championship at Patiala in 1974. "I was leading Maharashtra for the first time and Waralikar sir was our team manager. His expertise and guidance helped us win that title. He was a genuine all-rounder. He served the game as a player, coach, selector, umpire, administrator, commentator and statistician. He was like Google. You could ask him anything and he would give you accurate details. Back then, without the internet, he manually kept every record of the game," Inamdar told mid-day from Pune.

A game of kho-kho being played at Dantewada village in Chhattisgarh. Pic for representational purpose only

India's women's kho-kho team captain Sarika Kale, who led the country to a gold medal at the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati, said Waralikar would readily share his kho-kho knowledge with everyone.

'Most helpful person'

"Though Waralikar sir was not associated with our team as a coach or manager or in any official capacity, whenever we would meet him, he would readily share tips with us. He had a unique style of explaining the nuances of the game. He analysed opposition teams well and always advised us on strategies," said Kale.

Fellow statistician Arun Deshpande doffed his hat to Waralikar. "He is the originator of kho-kho statistics in India. It's a challenge to maintain statistics of a sport that is not well documented but seeing his passion, we were inspired to continue collecting and preserving data associated with the game," said Deshpande, who has been working on kho-kho statistics with Waralikar since 1970.

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Besides being an actor, Meghna Naidu is now turning life coach. "I have always been keen to be a certified life coach to help people find their self-worth. By professionally counselling someone, I am hoping to guide them to a better path," says Naidu after wrapping up her course.

Slambook

Arhaan Khan

One superpower you wish to possess?
The power of X-ray vision.

Your guilty pleasure movie?
Hum Hayeen Ganwaar (Bhojpuri, 2017).

The last nightmare you had?
That my phone bill went up by R100 every time I pressed the snooze button on my alarm.

Your best asset?
My butt.

Which same sex actor are you crushing on?
Always Salman Khan.

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Former FC Barcelona captain Xavi Hernandez admits that one day he would like to return to coach the Catalan giants. Xavi is currently in charge of Qatari club Al-Sadd and in January rejected the chance to replace the sacked Ernesto Valverde at the club. However, in an interview on YouTube, he admitted that his ambition is to coach in the Camp Nou, Xinhua news reports."

"Now I have tried as a coach, I think I'm able to do it and it is a dream to be able to return to Barcelona." "I have said it many times, that I consider Barcelona to be my home and my life," he said.

"I am learning a lot here in Qatar and although saying I want to coach Barca is a big statement and you have to be properly prepared in order to do so, it is a process and I hope one day to get there," commented Xavi, who added that for the moment he was content living in Qatar.

Earlier, six FC Barcelona board members stepped down and told president Josep Maria Bartomeu they are not pleased at how the club is being managed.

According to a BBC report, the six board members expressed their concern over the financial implications in a joint letter amid the coronavirus crisis.

"We have arrived at this point because we cannot reverse the way the club is managed in the face of important challenges in the future, especially in the post-pandemic era," the six said in their letter as quoted by BBC.

"We also want to show our displeasure over the unfortunate episode about the social media accounts, known as 'Barcagate', which we learned about through the press.

"As our last act of service to the club, we recommend that elections are called as soon as circumstances permit so that the club can be managed in the best way possible and deal with the important challenges of the immediate future."

In response to the resignations, Barca said they have come about "due to a reorganisation of the board put forward by Bartomeu and which will be completed in the next few days".

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Football coach Priya PV, who guided Gokulam Kerala FC to the Indian Women's League title, is currently assisting relief operations in the Coronavirus-caused lockdown through a helpline centre which provides medicine and food to the needy. Priya has joined the same helpline centre in Kannur, where India and Jamshedpur FC attacker CK Vineeth has been working. The biggest challenge for them at the centre is to make sure that all requests for medicines are met.

"We have been getting around 150-200 calls every day. Most of these are for medicines. We make sure that whenever we get any requests for medicines, they are duly sent to those in need," said Priya, who had earlier coached India U-19. "No requests for medicines are ever turned down. We try to do the same for grocery and food items as well. But sometimes we have to keep in mind that we have to distribute such items among a lot of people. So we try to divide it for everyone to get some amount," she added. The call centre also attends to requests from students and other professionals from around the area.

Kannur being the headquarters of the helpline centre, Priya and Vineeth also get a number of calls from the nearby districts, where tertiary networks have been set up to help the people. "We are working from the headquarters in Kannur. There are tertiary helpline centres in different districts as well who have their own network of pharmacists, grocers, and delivery executives," said Priya, who won the IWL 2019-20 title as head coach of local club Gokulam Kerala FC.

"My ancestral home is a bit far from the call centre, so I am staying at a place that is close by. Initially, I wanted to go to my ancestral home every weekend, in order to make sure that my parents have all they need during the lockdown," she said.

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Indian Super League (ISL) side Kerala Blasters on Wednesday appointed Mohun Bagan's I-League winning coach Kibu Vicuna as their head coach for the upcoming season. This came hours after the franchise announced that it has parted ways with Eelco Schattorie after one season at the helm of affairs. "We are happy to announce that Kibu Vicuna will take over as head coach for the upcoming season!" Kerala Blasters said in a tweet. Spain's Vicuna oversaw Mohun Bagan win the title with four rounds to spare. The league was suspended midway due to the COVID-19 pandemic and later had to be called off with Mohun Bagan declared champions.

Mohun Bagan have merged with ATK to enter the ISL from next season with Antonio Lopez Habas, who coached ATK to their record third title, in charge of the combined outfit. Dutchman Schattorie was in charge of the Kochi-based outfit in the ISL 2019-20 and could only guide the club to a poor seventh-place finish. "Kerala Blasters FC have parted ways with the Head Coach, Eelco Schattorie. We'd like to thank Eelco for his efforts and services during his tenure and wish him the best for the future," Kerala Blasters had tweeted earlier in the day.

The 48-year-old first landed on Indian shores when he took over Kolkata-based Prayag United back in 2012. He went on to win the IFA Shield and guided the team to a fourth-placed finish in the I-League. After serving as the head coach for Kolkata giants East Bengal for the 2015 season, he joined Avram Grant's NorthEast United setup for parts of the 2016 ISL season, before taking over as head coach for the 2018-19 campaign.

In his very first season as a head coach in the ISL, Schattorie showcased immense tactical guile and took Guwahati-based NorthEast United to the semi-finals for the first time since the club's inception, before being knocked out by eventual champions Bengaluru FC. After leading the NorthEast United to their best-ever campaign in the club's history, Schattorie replaced Nelo Vingada as the Kerala Blasters head coach heading into ISL 2019-20.

The Dutchman, however, could not replicate the same success in Kerala which he had achieved with the NorthEast United as several factors came into play. A host of recurring injuries to key players, including a season-long one to stopper Sandesh Jhingan, severely handicapped Kerala's campaign as they finished seventh on the table with 19 points from 18 matches.

Despite not making the top four, Schattorie's Kerala side found a lot of admirers for their free-flowing attacking style of football.

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There’s many former LaLiga stars currently using the experience and skills picked during their time in Spanish football in managerial and coaching careers all around the world. The list is almost unrivalled: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Diego Simeone (Atletico de Madrid), Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Rafa Benítez (Dalian Pro), Xavi Hernández (Al Sadd), Míchel (Pumas UNAM), ‘Guti’ (UD Almeria), Raúl González (Real Madrid Castilla), Van Nistelrooy (PSV U19), Unai Emery, Mauricio Pochettino, Quique Sánchez Flores, Laurent Blanc, Ernesto Valverde, Mark van Bommel, Aitor Karanka, Clarence Seedorf… but here are five more with very special stories.

1. Giovanni Van Bronckhorst – FC Barcelona to Feyenoord

All the lessons learned winning two LaLiga titles with FC Barcelona in the early 2000s as an attack-minded left back have definitely proved useful for Giovanni Van Bronckhorst’s coaching career. The former Netherlands international became first team coach in summer 2015 at Feyenoord, the Rotterdam club where he started and finished his playing career. His first season brought the KNVB Cup trophy, while the following year he led the club to its first Eredivisie title in 18 years, a historic achievement. Last January he was announced as manager of Chinese club Guangzhou R&F.

2. Jonathan Woodgate - Real Madrid to Middlesbrough

Jonathan Woodgate’s spell at Real Madrid famously did not get off to a great start, with an own goal and red card on his LaLiga debut. However, when fit and available the classy defender made a valuable contribution to Los Blancos 2005/06 campaign, with the team keeping seven clean sheets in his eight other games. The following summer he joined hometown club Middlesbrough, where he also returned after hanging up his boots to begin his coaching career in 2017. Last summer, Woodgate was named first team manager at Boro, and he took December’s Championship Manager of the Month award.

3. Jordi Cruyff - Camp Nou to Ecuador

Son of Barcelona legend Johan Cruyff, Jordi made his LaLiga debut in September 1994 against R. Sporting. The winger or attacking midfielder scored 22 LaLiga goals across spells at FC Barcelona, RC Celta, RCD Espanyol and most successfully D. Alaves, where he helped the Basque club reach the 2001 UEFA Cup final only to lose 5-4 in agonizing fashion to Liverpool. Cruyff also represented Manchester United, Metallurg Donetsk and the Netherlands national team [nine senior caps] during his playing career. He has since worked in Malta, Cyprus, China and Israel, where he oversaw three consecutive league titles as sporting director at Maccabi Tel Aviv. In January 2020 he was appointed Ecuador senior international manager.

4. Diego Forlan - Pichichi to Peñarol
One of the very few players in history to have won LaLiga’s Pichichi top scorer prize with two different clubs, Diego Forlan clinched it at Villarreal CF in 2004/05 and Atletico de Madrid in 2008/09. A strike rate of 128 goals in 240 LaLiga games counts among the very best. A long playing career also brought goals scored in England, Italy, Brazil, Japan and Hong Kong, and appearing at three World Cups and a 2011 Copa America triumph during 112 caps for Uruguay’s senior team. In December 2019, Forlan returned to his former Uruguayan club Peñarol to start his managerial career.

5. Fabio Cannavaro – Santiago Bernabeu to China

2006 was quite a year for Italian defender Fabio Cannavaro, who won the World Cup in Germany, signed for Real Madrid and was then awarded the Ballon D’Or. Cannavaro won two LaLiga titles during his three years in the Spanish capital, where he continued a strong relationship with mentor Fabio Capello. His first managerial job was at Dubai club Al-Ahli, where he won UAE Pro League and UAE League Cup titles. He also won the China League One title with Tianjin Quanjian, guided Guangzhou Evergrande to the Chinese Superleague title last year, and even took charge of the China national team for a time in 2019.

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Tennis ace Sania Mirza said that one needs to be more sensitive while coaching young female sportspersons. Speaking in the All India Tennis Association and the Sport Authority of Indias digital Coachs Education webinar on Wednesday, Sania said that coaches need to be sensitive of the hormonal changes that girls go through while working with them.

"My dad always tells me that to work with a woman tennis player is a lot trickier and a lot more mental because I do think that there are a lot of issues that girls go through, especially when they are adolescent," said Sania.

"There are so many changes that are happening, internally in your body and externally as well. You are trying to be the best tennis player that you can be while there are so many hormonal changes happening as well, and it happens throughout the life of a woman.

"You can be a little bit more sensitive to their needs and the way they are because a lot of the times they are just trying to discover who they are, while they are also trying to be a tennis player. It can be a pretty tough job."

33-year-old Sania made her comeback to tennis this year after giving birth to her first child. She won the Hobart International in January before playing an integral role in helping India seal a historic playoff spot in the Fed Cup.

"Just the way I have managed everything else, I could manage both tennis and motherhood. I am lucky enough to have enough help around me as well, that is a huge plus point for me. My mom and my sister have played a huge part in giving me as much help as possible," said Sania on being asked about how she is managing the twin-role of mother and professional tennis player.

"A lot of people questioned it even when I was trying to make that comeback, how did you find time to lose so much weight. There's so much that happens with your body after you give birth. You just have to, sort of, adapt, find a way to take out two hours from your day to work-out and try to find that balance. It's also good for your own sanity as well, to find time for yourself."

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Former Australia batsman and Sri Lanka's 1996 World Cup-winning coach, Dav Whatmore is set to become the Baroda Ranji Trophy team's first overseas coach.

Whatmore, 66, who coached Kerala for the last three seasons, will replace Sanath Kumar as head coach of the team. He will also be the Baroda Cricket Association's cricket director for next two seasons.

"We have almost finalised Whatmore and will give him a letter of intent in a couple of days. Chandrakant Pandit and Sulakshan Kulkarni were also in the fray, but Pandit became coach of Madhya Pradesh, so we decided to go with Whatmore," BCA secretary Ajit Lele told mid-day on Monday.

Ajit, the son of former BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele, also revealed that Whatmore will be the most expensive first-class coach in India. "He will become the most expensive coach of a first-class team in our country and also the first foreign coach of a Baroda Ranji Trophy team. He has huge experience of handling national teams like Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh so we gave him priority," Lele remarked.

Whatmore's manager Kaustuv Lahiri, who also manages South Africans Lance Klusener (head coach of Afghanistan) and Russell Domingo (Bangladesh's head coach) confirmed the development. Baroda, who were Ranji Trophy champions in the 2000-01 season, managed to win just two games for 14 points in eight matches last season.

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With people finding various ways to spend time during quarantine amid the Coronavirus pandemic, a Brazilian model challenged her cricket coach boyfriend to teach her how to bat during the 21-day isolation period.

And they are doing it. According to a report in dailymail.co.uk, Coco Cuhna suggested her boyfriend Gio Colucci that it might be fun to see if he could show her how to bat. "I was joking...he took it very seriously," Coco said.

"I thought Oh my gosh, what have I got myself in for!" Coco revealed she is spending 25 minutes a day learning how to pull, cut and drive from Gio, who is a director at The Cricket Academy in Cape Town, South Africa and has coached the likes of England batsman Tom Wesley, Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman and Ben Curran, brother of England duo Tom and Sam.

"I had never had any contact with cricket before, I never even knew about it before I moved to South Africa," said the Brazilian model. However, after a fortnight, Coco is now enjoying the drill.

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India's limited-overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma has become brand ambassador of 'CricKingdom', a cricket academy based here which will also facilitate coaching through its online platform after the global COVID-19 pandemic subsides.

CricKingdom's online platform "will connect student, coaches, academies and facilities into an integrated ecosystem'. It will help in booking of coaches, ground/nets along with management of academies. "CricKingdom seeks to merge the time-tested theories that has produced legends in the game along with modern scientific training methodologies," Rohit was quoted as saying in the press release.

"The vision is far-sighted and it seeks to make every aspect professional and structured," said Rohit, who is also being proposed to be a Director. The academy also has Mumbai medium pacer Dhawal Kulkarni as one of its mentors. There are at least 20 coaches associated with this venture and most of them have worked at the grassroots and junior level. Notable names include Pradeep Ingale, Parag Madkaikar, Subhash Ranjane and Prathamesh Salunkhe. The coaching on offer is for four categories -- from 5-8 years, 8-13 years, 13 years and above and club and elite level cricketers.

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Ex-Australia skipper Michael Clarke has revealed that legendary spinner Shane Warne shared a boisterous relationship with former coach John Buchanan and they never got along. Speaking on Big Sports Breakfast, Clarke said: "The fact him and John didn't get on and Warnie didn't respect John Buchanan as a coach at all, that he thought I'm not getting told what to do from this dude. "If it was Ricky Ponting there, Warnie would have found a way to either bite his tongue or he might have said something to Ricky one-on-one...it wouldn't have been in front of everyone. At that stage Warnie was so done with John Buchanan he didn't care," he added.

Clarke, the 2015 World Cup-winning captain, also divulged details of the Australian dressing room culture when both him and Warne were together in the side. He said that the leg-spinner chose cigarettes for the three-day training camp instead of the essential items which the players were allowed. "For someone like Warnie who loved a smoke, he pretty much told them he is not coming unless he can bring his smokes. It was World War five," Clarke said.

According to Clarke, Warne and Buchanan had a deal where the latter told the former that he would have to chuck a piece of clothing for every pack of cigarettes he took. "Warnie flicked his three pairs of undies, flicked his three pairs of socks and put six packs of darts in and off we went.

"In the middle of the bush, sleeping bag only, no cover, no shelter, on the ground and it was pitch black. All you could see was this orange light coming out of someone's sleeping bag and it was Warnie just sucking his dart back," Clarke said.

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Former India batsman and Zimbabwe coach Lalchand Rajput has created a training module encompassing both the physical and mental aspects, and is monitoring his players' progress through the use of technology. Like in India, the lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic has been extended in Zimbabwe, too. "We have given a training programme to the players. The activities we have included are the ones which can be done at home like skipping, side to side running and thera bands. We have also included stretching and Yoga activities," Rajput told PTI.

According to Rajput, he shared the training-cum-fitness programme with the team's trainer and Zimbabwe cricket director of coaching, who shared it with the players. "Skipper Sean Williams messages me sometimes about what he does, also one-two others are also in touch with me. Not all players are from Harare (a prominent city)," he added.

Citing an example, he said he has asked the batsmen to follow a simple drill - put a ball inside a sock and hit it indoors. According to the Zimbabwe head coach, there are some players who reside in bungalows and he has asked them to do short sprints inside its premises. "I have asked the trainer to follow up with the players on a day-to-day basis and he informs me on weekly (basis) about the development," he added.

Rajput, who has been a manager with the Indian cricket team, said he has asked the players to also follow the programme given by the psychologist to keep their mind free of any negativity. Rajput has asked the Zimbabwe cricket board to give at least a month's time for training when sporting activities resumes.

"Once the action resumes, it won't be feasible to immediately start the tours as they will need practice," said Rajput, who also thanked Zimbabwe Cricket for providing help. On a personal front, Rajput headed home following the Zimbabwe tour of Bangladesh.

Rajput, who has also coached Afghanistan and domestic teams, is enjoying spending time with his family.

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India head coach Ravi Shastri and his counterparts with the A and junior teams discussed future plans for their respective sides in an online interaction, making use of their time at home amid a national lockdown. National Cricket Academy (NCA) head Rahul Dravid was the man behind the initiative and senior team support staff comprising Shastri, bowling Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar were a part of this interaction last week.

"It wasn't an online coaching class. You can say it was an interaction where you give ideas and listen to the mindset and plans of other coaches. There has only been one such session but it is likely to be a regular affair," an NCA official told PTI. The online session was also attended by junior and NCA coaches including Paras Mhambrey, Narendra Hirwani, Abhay Sharma and Sitanshu Kotak.

"If senior coaches like Shastri, Arun and Sridhar are also part of the interaction, you are bound to learn something from their rich international experience," the official said. "At the moment, it is a lockdown so it was easier to organise this. It remains to be seen how often it can be done when things are normal and the Indian team is on duty," the official added.

The aim was to bring in more synergy in the work of national teams (senior, India A and under-19). All global sporting activity has come to a standstill due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no clarity when the Indian team will take the field next, having played last in New Zealand in the first week of March.

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With the world coming to a standstill due to the coronavirus pandemic, former and current sportspersons have been interacting on social media to keep fans engaged and former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has said that he would love to take up an offer to coach the Indian fast bowlers.

In an interview on social networking app Helo, Akhtar said that he has never stepped back from sharing his knowledge and he would be more than happy to do the same with Indian bowlers.

Asked if he was open to coach the Indian team if such an offer came, he said: "I will definitely. My job is to spread knowledge. What I have learned is (ilm) knowledge and I will spread it. I will produce more aggressive, fast and more talkative bowlers than the current ones who will tell-off the batsmen in a way that you will enjoy a lot."

Earlier, Akhtar had proposed a series between India and Pakistan to help raise funds to fight the pandemic. While former India skipper Kapil Dev was against the idea, Akhtar found the support of former captain Shahid Afridi.

"The entire world is fighting against coronavirus and we need unity in our region to defeat this common enemy. Such negative comments don't help at all. I don't see anything wrong with Shoaib Akhtar's suggestion for Pakistan and India to play cricket.

"Kapil's reaction has surprised me. I expected better from him and feel one should not talk like this in these crisis times. Sport is supposed to bring people together and build bridges. It is pretty disappointing," he said.

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