Denies reports of quitting as India jr coach
NAGPUR, August 18, 2008
IT WAS for the first time in the annals of a world junior chess championship that both the titles at stake in the open as well as in the girls’ championship went to the same country.
And had one of his wards listened to him, International Master Anup Deshmukh would have achieved his personal target of winning four medals on his first assignment as coach of junior India team, in the recently-concluded World Junior Chess Championship at Gaziantep in Turkey.
"Winning three medals out of a possible six is in itself a big achievement but for a silly mistake of Soumya Swaminathan, who needed just a draw against local girl Kubra Ozturk, that robbed team-mate Mary Ann Gomes of a bronze. The loss was more painful because she forgot to press the flag," said Deshmukh upon his arrival to the city on Monday.
Talking in a ‘Meet the Press’ organised by Sports Journalists’ Association of Nagpur (SJAN) at Tilak Patrakar Bhavan Deshmukh shared his Turkey experience and also denied media reports that he was quitting as India juniors coach.
Excerpts:
On a newspaper report that said ‘frustrated Deshmukh quits coaching’:
My frustration of India missing a medal due to a silly mistake was blown out of proportion. Neither I have quit coaching nor am contemplating to do so. It was just in the heat of the moment that I said ‘If they are not listening to me, there is no point coaching them’. I also found the Indian players more focused on their game than others.
On what he expected from his team:
I knew Abhijeet Gupta was a good player. He had been at my place for quite some time in the past for training. We also had two experienced young girls in Dronavali Harika and Mary Ann Gomes. Last year in the same meet, Harika blew one full point lead to be placed outside the medal bracket, but this time I had faith in her.
On his coaching stint prior to the tour in New Delhi:
Actually I was to coach just the boys but as the coach of girls was indisposed, I guided them too in the camp. All the team members were hard working. But coaching boys is much easier as I think they grasp things quickly.
On their actual performance in the meet:
Till the eighth round we were nowhere near the top. In fact we were out of the top 10. But in this 13-round tournament which was very taxing as the players had to play one match a day, I knew that the other players too very losing focus. I encouraged my members telling them that this was the time to do it. And they responded. I also got the record of the previous Under-19 events and circulated the copies among the players which helped them prepare well against different styles of the Europeans and the Communist Block players.
On India’s future:
The future is bright. If we take a systematic approach, we can go far ahead. Apart from this team, I feel two players—Krishnan Sasikiran and Parimarjan Negi—can take their game to higher level. Sasi is very patriotic and gives his best playing for the nation. Negi, placed in the same bracket as Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore by their sponsors, is a very humble boy. He was a wild card entry in the meet. He used to run with me for 2-2.5 kilometers daily there. Gupta and Harika are also very dedicated players.
On his personal experience:
Being a vegetarian is the biggest disadvantage outside India. To be out of your home for such a long time takes toll on the body. And last but not least, there was no happier moment than hearing the national anthem twice on August 15 in a foreign land!
Georgia-Russia war costs India dear!
With the Georgia-Russia war going on at the time of the competition, the Georgian players had come with tattoos and banners reading ‘Go Russia’, ‘Stop Russia’ etc., that distracted some Indian players who lost their concentration and the match too.
‘BLACK’S WIN OVER ‘WHITE’ ON I-DAY
In his final match on the Independence Day, India’s GM Abhijeet Gupta played against GM David Howell of England and won comprehensively. The success tasted more sweet as it was August 15 and ironically Gupta was playing with black pieces against Howell’s white.
No comments:
Post a Comment