‘What IPL did for Indian cricket, Mumbai T20 will do for city cricketers,‘ says Abhishek Nayar

The last time the T20 Mumbai League was held in 2019, Abhishek Nayar was among the icon players. But as the tournament returns after a six-year hiatus, Nayar is back as the mentor of Maratha Royals.

Nayar, who until recently was the assistant coach of the Indian team, believes that the tournament, which begins on June 4, will provide a perfect opportunity for the rookie, young players to showcase their talents.

“What IPL did for Indian cricket, I think Mumbai T20 will do for Mumbai cricketers,” Nayar said on Saturday during the jersey launch of the Royals.

“You have club cricketers who have not represented Mumbai, not necessarily played at that level. They would now experience what it is to play at that level, experience what it is to play in a match that’s broadcast, and play at Wankhede and DY Patil Stadium under lights. There are multiple aspects to it, and this tournament also financially helps a lot of cricketers to play this sport with a little more vigour,” Nayar, a former India international, said.

The T20 Mumbai League will be held from June 4 to 12, with matches at the Wankhede Stadium and DY Patil Stadium. While some of the India internationals – including Suryakumar Yadav and Shreyas Iyer – will be in action, it will also be an opportunity for several young cricketers.

“It gives them that freedom to play, freedom to also go back from here and plan how they are going to plan their whole season around next year. Although this is a shortened tournament, in the future when the tournament will be longer, it will sort of create a platform for a lot of our youngsters to evolve into players who then would represent Mumbai, and hopefully in the IPL and then go on to play for the country,” Nayar said, adding: “The outlook is overall growth from a systematic process of club cricket, company cricket.”

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While it will be a challenge for the teams to up their ante in back-to-back games, Nayar believes it will be important for the players to live in the moment.

“The T20 format challenges you differently. Your body goes through different physical challenges. So, the advice is quite simple. We have got a great support staff in the physio and the masseurs. I think their job is a lot harder than ours to make sure the guys can turn up every single day and be at their best. For me, recovery is a really important part when you have a tournament that is so tight in schedule and timings,” he said.

“When you get an opportunity at this stage, it’s about not just the environment, but the environment of freedom and fun as well. We need to enjoy such moments. It’s far and few when you get an opportunity for your family and friends to watch you live on TV, support you. For us, it’s just creating an environment where they can be themselves and enjoy this more than adding any undue pressure or expectations about what is expected from them,” he added.

While Nayar expected the team to play to its potential, captain Siddhesh Lad hoped for the young cricketers to make the most of the opportunity in the absence of Tushar Deshpande, who’s currently in England with the India A team, and Armaan Jaffer, who moved to Puducherry recently.

The event was also attended by Maharashtra Cricket Association president Rohit Pawar, along with the officials of the Mumbai Cricket Association. The promoters of Maratha Royals also own Raigad Royals – a team in the Maharashtra Premier League.