The Amol Muzumdar story: Never played for India — now coach of WC-winning team

Life has travel afloat ellipse for Amol Muzumdar. The Mumbai stalwart is 1 of the top cricketers, who ne'er got to play for India.After years of toiling successful home cricket and amassing implicit 11,167 first-class runs without ever donning the India cap, Muzumdar has scripted a poetic twist to his story.

As a youngster helium announced himself arsenic the adjacent large thing, scoring 260 connected his Ranji Trophy debut for Mumbai. Sadly, helium played successful an epoch erstwhile India’s mediate bid was packed with icons — Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, and Sourav Ganguly. In 2014, helium retired from first-class cricket, ending an illustrious vocation that spanned 21 years.

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Eleven years aft his retirement, the antheral who erstwhile carried Mumbai’s batting connected his shoulders present stands gangly arsenic the manager who guided India’s women to their maiden ODI World Cup triumph.Head manager Amol Muzumdar was flooded with emotion arsenic India lifted their first-ever ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title, describing the triumph arsenic a “watershed moment” that volition redefine the aboriginal of Indian cricket.“I’m speechless. Absolutely proud. They merit each spot of this moment,” helium said aft the match. “The hard work, the content — they’ve made each Indian proud.”Muzumdar, who took complaint of the nationalist broadside successful 2023, praised his team’s resilience and unity passim the tournament.

“We ne'er fto aboriginal setbacks specify us,” helium said. “We dominated astir matches but conscionable needed to decorativeness better. Once we did that, determination was nary looking back.”India’s triumph was built connected a implicit squad show led by 21-year-old Shafali Verma, whose all-round brilliance — a fluent 87 with the bat and 2 cardinal wickets — acceptable the code for the night.“One connection for Shafali — magical,” Muzumdar said with a smile. “Semi-final, final, packed stadium, each the unit — she turns up each time.

Runs, wickets, catches — she did everything. I couldn’t beryllium prouder.”Muzumdar credited India’s renewed absorption connected fittingness and fielding — a halfway portion of his coaching vision.“That was thing we talked astir a batch successful the dressing room,” helium said. “The vigor successful the tract contiguous showed however overmuch they’ve grown. I couldn’t person asked for more.”

For Muzumdar — agelong regarded arsenic 1 of Indian cricket’s astir talented players ne'er to play astatine the highest level — the triumph carried heavy idiosyncratic meaning.“It’s a watershed moment,” helium said softly. “The ripple effects volition beryllium felt for generations.”