Language is not a barrier to coach India: Stuart Law
Jun 17, 2016 at 5:12 PM
Stuart Law, who is one of the applicants for the post of team India coach, has said that the language will not be a barrier, if he is selected to coach the Indian cricket team.
The board invited applications for the top post with a circular comprising a nine-point criterion, including one stating a ‘desire’ to have a Hindi speaking coach.
The point said: “Communication skills befitting the coach of an international team are mandatory along with the ability to effectively convey the right messages and must demonstrate proficiency in English. The ability to communicate in an Indian language is desirable but by no means mandatory.”
Speaking from Australia, he said, ‘I am honoured to be named in the running to become the Head Coach of the Indian cricket team. As it is an extremely high profile position, the BCCI have expressed that the candidates be familiar with the national language as well as having had extensive coaching experience either at a domestic or international level with some kind of success.”
Law said that he would be humbled to get short-listed despite being unable to communicate in Hindi. Law said that spending time in the subcontinent has given him the experience to pick up the mood of any conversation. Law has been involved in coaching sub-continental teams since hanging up boots in 2009. He served as assistant coach of the Sri Lankan national team from 2009 to 2011, and was then elevated to the head coach the following year. A year after that, Law took charge of Bangladesh.
“This is their wish and still to be shortlisted will be extremely humbling. I don’t know the national language but having spent a lot of time in the subcontinent, you learn how to pick up the mood of the conversation and determine the feelings of the group or individual by observation,” Law said.
“The majority of words used to talk about cricket are English, so it can be a little easier to communicate to players that aren’t comfortable speaking English.”
“It can also be an advantage to have one of the local support staff there to help get a message across in the language known to the player concerned,” he signed off.