‘Was lucky to have got a student like Kapil Dev’

“When Kapil came to me for the first time,he was just like any other teenager. He was quite thin at that time and sported long hair. I rejected him at that time and it was on the insistence of his family and friends that I enrolled him in the academy. Kapil along with Ashok Malhotra and Yograj Singh was a very hard working boy. Yet,all these players needed proper guidance and I am happy their talent did not go waste. I still remember making regular checks at various cinemas in Chandigarh to enquire about these four as they often bunked classes to watch movies,” Azad had said.

Azad started coaching in 1964 and recalled how players would play cricket without telling their parents. “Cricket has witnessed a complete makeover over the years. When I started coaching in 1964,parents would not allow their wards to enter the cricket ground. Players would play without telling their parents and did not even want their names to be published in newspapers fearing a backlash from their parents. Now the whole scenario has changed. Every parent wants their kids to be like Mahendra Singh Dhoni or Yuvraj Singh,” Azad had said.

A legendary coach himself,Azad coached under Lala Amarnath and Ram Krishan. Azad had done a diploma from NIS,Patiala,in the 1960s and started coaching in Chandigarh. “I had the privilege of having been coached under Lala Amarnath and Ram Kishan. I qualified as a coach from NIS,Patiala,under Lala Amarnath. I owe everything to his guidance,” Azad had said.