Despite a number of accomplishments internationally, the Divyang Cricket team of India has faced a number of challenges, both physically and financially over the years. Kailash Prasad, a member of the Indian cricket team for the physically challenged was given captaincy in 2021 but is yet to lead the team in a tournament due to various COVID-19 postponements. Despite his disability on his right hand, Prasad is considered one of the best bowlers in Asia and is hoping to achieve greater feats by leading the Indian team to glory.
In this exclusive interview with SPOGO, Kailash Prasad shares his cricketing journey so far, the proudest moments in his career, overcoming challenges, getting support from governments and federations, training regime and future goals.
Q 1) How did your cricketing journey begin? What inspired you to pursue a career in this sport despite having a disability?
I started my cricketing journey in 2003, there was a tournament going on in my village for general players and I was a spectator. Someone from the neighbouring village asked me why I don't participate in handicapped cricket since I play well. At that moment I was not aware that there was any such thing as ‘handicapped cricket’ but I was informed that there was a camp going on at St. John’s college so I travelled to the venue by cycle.
I was selected in my very first trial for the Agra district and in 2004 I was selected for Uttar Pradesh. That’s how my cricketing journey began, from the district level which then progressed to the state level until 2007.
Q 2) What is the experience like of being captain of the Indian Divyang Cricket team? Is it the proudest moment of your career?
I have captained the Uttar Pradesh state for four years and I have quite a few memorable accomplishments from that time. We had a match against Mumbai at the Gymkhana Stadium at Marine Drive and I performed very well. We used to play with a special ball at tournaments which used to swing a lot and since I was a medium pacer, batting against me was quite tricky. I was the Man of the Series in that tournament, scored 147 runs and managed to get 17 wickets.
Q 3) What are some of the challenges that you have faced as a physically challenged cricketer in your career? How have you overcome those challenges?
When I used to watch the general cricketers play, I wished that I also had a platform to practice my cricketing skills. When I tried playing with them, they didn’t let me because of my disability. The reality is that if they would have played with me, I would have outperformed them but they never really gave me an opportunity to play alongside them. They would insult me and say that they would be disrespected as a team if I were to be included amongst them.
The irony is that I use my disabled hand to bowl with the speed of 135 and I also use the same hand to throw. All things considered, the reality is that at that stage of my life I didn’t receive much support from general cricketers and it demotivated me to the extent where I considered giving up on the sport.
Q 4) According to you, what needs to be done to help physically challenged cricketers both in India and around the world? Do physically challenged cricketers get support from the government and federations?
There are very few people who come out in support of the Divyang Cricket team of India. We have to spend our own money. We were supposed to leave today for our tour to Bangladesh but because of COVID-19 it got postponed and not for the first time. We do not get any support, we have to use our own money for travelling and accommodation. The BCCI spends so much money on the Indian men's cricket team. If we even get a small percentage of that money it will be a big motivation for us.
Q 5) Please tell us about your training regime and how do you prepare before a big tournament?
We have a big 4 nation tournament in Bangladesh which is organised by Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina. We have a 3 day camp in Kolkata to prepare for that. I currently do a private job with the Indian Air force. In December, I applied to open an academy in the Indian Air Force. Day before yesterday I got permission to do so. I'll start the academy after the Bangladesh tour which is very important for us and we have to win at all costs.
Q 6) What are your future goals and objectives in the future? How do you plan to achieve them?
I've been playing since 2003 and now with DCCBI (Divyang Cricket Control Board of India) we have a platform. Before that we used to play only in Mumbai for ICAT which was Ajit Wadekar's team. From 2013 I've been a part of the Indian side and in 2021 I was appointed as captain. Under my leadership the team hasn't played any tournaments yet because of COVID-19. We have a Divyang Premier League and a World Cup in Sri Lanka coming up. We have got a great platform and our future is bright. We get a lot of respect and recognition but the only thing we don't get is money.
