Times Shield is an institution, says Amol Muzumdar | Cricket News

MUMBAI: India women’s cricket team head coach Amol Muzumdar urged young cricketers to respect the game, embrace failure and put the team first at the Times Cricket Shield prize distribution function at the MCA Lounge, Wankhede Stadium, on Friday.Recalling his early days in Mumbai cricket, Muzumdar spoke about the advice he received from former India batter and 1983 World Cup winner Sandeep Patil when he made his Times Shield debut for Sungrace Mafatlal in 1993. The Times Award Shield was sponsored by The Times of India Cricket Shield’s celebration partner Heineken 0.0 (Mr. Vasant Bhandari) and Sterling Reserve Packaged Drinking Water. Incidentally, this is the 96th year of the Times Shield, which started in 1930.“Score 200. What’s the big deal about scoring 100? Everyone here scores hundreds. If you have the guts, score a double hundred, then I’ll accept it,” Patil had told him. The words motivated the then 18-year-old, but his debut innings ended at 97. “As I was walking back, the captain was sitting in front of me. He gave me a smirk. That was my baptism of fire in Mumbai cricket,” Muzumdar recalled.Three months later, he scored a then world-record 260 on his firstclass debut for Mumbai against Haryana in a Ranji Trophy pre-quarterfinal in Feb 1994.Muzumdar, who went on to captain Mumbai and score 11,167 runs in 171 first-class matches, offered three lessons to youngsters.“Respect the game. That is the most important thing. The game will respect you back multifold,” he said.He also urged players not to fear failure. “Failures are part of every cricketer’s life, it’s only a question of how you respond,” he said.Highlighting the importance of the Times Shield in Mumbai cricket, Muzumdar said, “The Times Shield has been an integral part of Mumbai cricket. But I can tell you one thing: It was an absolute privilege to play in the Times Cricket Shield when I first started. It’s not just a tournament, but an institution. It is probably the livelihood of so many cricketers. It gave a platform, an encouragement to so many cricketers to display their talent.“It was just an honour to play in the Times Shield when I started and even when I finished in 2013.” Former India batter and BCCI Cricket Advisory Committee member Jatin Paranjape, the other chief guest, lauded the tournament’s role in strengthening Mumbai’s club cricket.Award winners: