Samant to coach Mumbai u-25

“I was given the coach’s job in the Madhav Mantri tournament and somewhere I thought that in the future MCA has planned something for me. It will be a big challenge for me because it will be my first assignment as coach,” Samant said. The 40-year-old replaced veteran Vilas Godbole,under whom Mumbai won the CK Nayudu Trophy thrice. Samant feels that in today’s time it is important to be a friend to players rather than coach. At the same time they need to know where to put in the stern words and pull the leash.

“Like wicket-keeping where one has to keep an eye on the ball till the end,the same will apply to coaching. Nazar hati durghatna ghati. Coaching the under-25 team will be dealing with different egos. It’s a group which has already played decent amount of cricket,so my work will be easy,” Samant added.

Samant played 101 first class games and has been Mumbai’s unsung hero behind the stumps. He quit Mumbai in 2010 after Mumbai clinched the Ranji Trophy title and later played for Tripura. Samant stresses on fitness and he says only fit players can survive the demands of tough cricket.

“Will have to work and see how we can plan proper fitness regimes which is the key once the season starts. I know the importance of fitness and off-season camps will help us to plan,” Samant added.