Zaheer Abbas: “I learnt a lot from watching Rohan Kanhai, he was a batsman who I used to love watching bat and someone who I could learn from”
Image courtesy of: Pakistan Cricket Board
Pakistan batting icon Zaheer Abbas has said that he learned a lot by watching West Indies great Rohan Kanhai bat.
Abbas noted that never relied on coaches and instead felt that he could develop and improve his game a lot more by keeping a close eye on the players he played with or against.
The 73-year-old said he loved watching Kanhai bat as it was a great sight to see and served as a learning experience for himself and his own batting.
“I never bothered with coaches, I never learnt from coaches and I never needed a coach to tell me how to bat,” Abbas told Wisden as quoted by PakPassion. “I could never understand why some guys, after a few low scores, would go running to the coach as if that person could wave a magic wand and help them suddenly start scoring runs again. I always felt players who relied on coaches too much were mentally weak and too reliant upon others.
“My philosophy was always to learn from the great players that I was playing against or alongside. They were my coaches and source of inspiration and who I needed to look at for improvements to my game. I learnt a lot from watching Rohan Kanhai, he was a batsman who I used to love watching bat and someone who I could learn from.”