From Tendulkar to Bangar: Achrekar was responsible for shaping careers of many India internationals

Dronacharya awardee and famed cricket coach Ramakant Achrekar died aged 87 on Wednesday in Mumbai. Achrekar had produced several cricketers who played for India, including the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.

Here is a list of Achrekar’s most famous proteges:

Sachin Tendulkar

The name is almost synonymous with Achrekar. Tendulkar is the most successful of Achrekar’s wards, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest cricketers of all time. Tendulkar’s international career spanned over 24 years. “[Achrekar] sir was strict at times, extremely strict and also caring and loving,” Tendulkar had once said. “Sir did not say ‘well-played’ to me ever, [but] I knew [when] sir has taken me to have bhel-puri or paani-puri, sir is happy – I have done something nice on the field.”

Tendulkar has almost every record possible in cricket. In 200 Tests, he scored 15,921 runs, the highest in Test cricket. In ODIs, Tendulkar played 463 matches and scored 18,426 runs, another all-time record. He is the only batsman to score 100 centuries in international cricket. In 2010, he became the first man to reach a double hundred in ODI cricket.

Vinod Kambli

Another Achrekar protege who was primed for success and made a lot of waves in international cricket early in his career. Along with Tendulkar, Kambli was one of the biggest names out of Achrekar’s camp who went on to play top-level cricket. Kambli made his India debut in 1993. After a rousing start, the stylish southpaw failed to live up to his billing.

In 17 Tests for India, Kambli scored 1084 runs with four centuries, including two double hundreds. In 104 ODIs, he scored 2477 runs but managed only two centuries.

“[The] one thing which I always remember which I am going to pass on to the students, usually people say ‘practice makes a man perfect’, but my coach [Achrekar] sir used to say ‘perfect practice makes a man perfect’. That’s how me and Sachin and all his students work towards having a perfect practice,” Kambli is quoted as saying about Achrekar.

Ajit Agarkar

Not only batsmen, but even bowlers came out of Achrekar’s school. One of India’s mainstays in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Agarkar became a leading fast bowler for India. The pacer was once the quickest to get to 50 wickets in ODIs.

Agarkar finished his career with 58 wickets and 576 runs from 26 Test matches. His record in ODIs was far better, where he picked up 288 wickets in 191 matches.

Chandrakant Pandit

Another cricketer who went on to play for India. In his short-lived international career, the wicketkeeper-batsman played five Tests (171 runs) and 36 ODIs (290 runs). Pandit had a more successful coaching career with the Mumbai cricket team, leading them to two Ranji Trophy titles. Last year, he stunned the domestic field to steer Vidarbha to their first-ever Ranji title.

Pravin Amre

Achrekar had once predicted that Amre would go on to become better cricketer than Tendulkar. While that did not happen, Amre still played for India in 11 Tests and 37 ODIs, scoring 425 and 513 runs respectively. He was also from the Tendulkar-Kambli batch.

Nowadays, Amre is following his coach’s footsteps. He coached the India U-19 team that won the World Cup in 2012, and many India cricketers – most notably Ajinkya Rahane – have trained under Amre when struggling with form.

“There was no off-season with sir as we played with the rubber ball during monsoon,” Amre had said last year. “He has created good coaches along good players. In my opinion, sir was a ‘guru’ and there is a lot of difference between a ‘guru’ and a ‘coach.’”

Sanjay Bangar

Bangar was an all-rounder who represented India in 12 Tests and 15 ODIs. He picked up seven wickets in each format. He contributed to many a Test win during his playing days. Though he could not make it big on the international stage, Bangar was a domestic cricket legend, having led Railways to Ranji Trophy, Irani Cup and Vijay Hazare Trophy titles. He is currently the batting coach of the Indian cricket team.

Ramesh Powar

Another cricketer from Achrekar’s school who went on to play cricket for India. An off-spinner, Powar failed to cement his place in the side but ended up playing two Tests and 31 ODIs for India. He played first-class cricket for 16 years for Mumbai before retiring in 2015. He recently coached the Indian women’s cricket team briefly, leading them to the semi-finals of the World T20.

Balwinder Singh Sandhu

Originally an off-spinner, it was Achrekar who spotted the talent in Sandhu and asked him to bowl medium pace. Sandhu went on to play eight Tests and 22 ODIs. But his biggest achievement was being part of the Indian team that won the 1983 World Cup. “Till that time, I did not know that the ball was called an in-swing. It was sir who asked me to develop the in-swing,” Sandhu was quoted as saying of Achrekar.