Through umpiring,my affair with cricket continues: Vishwanath

Vishwanath who is in Lucknow to officiate as an umpire in the UP vs Mumbai match of the Col. CK Nayudu Trophy,sounded quite optimistic about his career in umpiring. “Umpiring allows my love affair to with cricket to continue,more so,since I am still a bachelor,” the 48 year-old tells sportingly.

“”I still remember the day when the Test cricketers were invited by the BCCI in 1995 to give the viva exam for umpiring at Secunderabad. It was a turning-point in my life. A total of 10 Test players reported and among them Yashpal Sharma,Maninder Singh,Lalchand Rajput,myself and late Parthasarathy Sharma were declared passed. I took up umpiring as a passion. I have officiated in about 150 various Board trophy matches including the Ranji Trophy matches since then. I have also officiated in the Women’s World Cup match between South Africa and Australia in 1997. My greatest moment in umpiring in the men’s cricket came when I was chosen to officiate in the India ‘A’ vs Australia ‘A’ match played at Bangalore in 2008.”

Ask about his future target,and he replies with a smile,“ I am looking forward for a call to officiate in international matches. I have been doing my job with dedication for the past 15 years. I am sure the BCCI will recommend my name to the ICC one day. I had opened a cricket academy in Bangalore which too I have shut down in order to concentrate fully on umpiring.”

Reflecting upon the wicketkeeper’s role in the present times,Sadanand says,“ The game has become a lot more aggressive because of the twenty20 format so the wicketkeeper needs to be even more alert today. Not only that,he has to double-up as a more than useful batsman.”

Vishy had a word of praise for Team India captain Mahendra Singh Dhohi. “As a former wicketkeeper I am proud of him as he has been able to highlight the wicketkeeper’s position. I can say that he is doing a terrific job behind the stumps and as a batsman in front of the stumps . He is a role model for any cricketer. His ‘man management’ as a captain is excellent.”

Looking back on his career as a cricketer,he has no regrets now. “I am happy with the fact that I got a chance to play for India. It feels good when your fans tell you that they were impressed by your efforts while you were were representing the country. I am happy that my relentless passion for the game has never stopped,” he concludes.