R
Radhakrishnan was one of the most respected umpires in the domestic circuit
having umpired over 100 Ranji Trophy matches in a career spanning three decades - 1980s-
2000s. In all he umpired for 38years. He was also the 2nd youngest ever umpire from Tamil Nadu having passed the exam when he was only 18years. He was unlucky not to have got international recognition despite once
being reported to the BCCI by a match referee as one with great potential and as one who should get into the immediate elevation into the international engagements.
Radha, as he is known in the cricketing circles here, was the one who spotted the true potential in Ravi and mentored him in the late 1990s and created the confidence in him to make it big as an umpire. He was so impressed with Ravi and his umpiring capabilities that he took leave of absence from his employer SBI for over a month and took it as a personal challenge to coach Ravi for the board umpiring exam.
Radha, as he is known in the cricketing circles here, was the one who spotted the true potential in Ravi and mentored him in the late 1990s and created the confidence in him to make it big as an umpire. He was so impressed with Ravi and his umpiring capabilities that he took leave of absence from his employer SBI for over a month and took it as a personal challenge to coach Ravi for the board umpiring exam.
Radha
recounts those days of association with Ravi:
“As a
player in the 1980s, Ravi would never give up and would always fight tooth and
nail for his team. It was around 1996-97 that I was assigned the task of coaching umpires
for the board exam. Immediately after a few sessions, I found Ravi had the
acumen to understand law in its entirety. On-field he was really extraordinary.”
Radha
told himself in late 1990s after umpiring with Ravi in a local league match
that this man would one day ‘Hit the Sky’ in umpiring.
“Those
days, Ravi was a little aggressive in his style for my liking. I kept instilling in him that
while being authoritative was fine, it was important to know how to execute one’s
authority as an umpire. His implementation was crude in the beginning and he
had a few rough edges that had to be sharpened. In those early days, while he
was a humourous person, he was not really easily accessible to everyone and was
almost headstrong given the enormous confidence he had in his umpiring abilities.”
Fast Learner
Radha
sat with him for hours at the end of many matches that they umpired together
and inculcated the match management skills in Ravi initiating him with the
importance of relationships with players, authorities, grounds men and
sometimes even the spectators.
‘Ravi’s
forte is his decision making ability. I
was amazed at his perfection. In tricky situations, he was always bold and was
truly outstanding. I could clearly see that he had the potential to grow into
an internationally respected umpire.”
Radha is
sure that Ravi will go the full distance in umpiring. “I am confident that he
will grow fast in the ICC Panel. I do think he has it in him to be the best and I
expect him to become the Number One Umpire on the ICC Panel in the future.”
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