IPL 2022 | Cannot teach players like Virat Kohli how to bat, says Mike Hesson on working with Kohli

03/04/2022

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Director for Cricket Operations Mike Hesson has revealed that the players like Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers cannot be taught how to bat but a value can be added to what they already know sharing his experience on working with them. Hesson was roped in by the franchise in 2019 for the post.

IPL 2022 will be a 10-team affair and the recently held mega auction has changed the dynamics amongst teams. The teams will look to take a shot at title with fresh faces in their squad. Royal Challengers Bangalore have been struggling to win their first IPL trophy. The franchise roped in Mike Hesson as the Director for Cricket Operations in 2019. He has worked with star players like Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers.

Reflecting on the experience of working with both the cricketers, Hesson revealed that these players cannot be taught how to bat but it’s about how to add value to the information they already know.

“You certainly cannot teach them how to bat, that’s the last thing you’re going to do. It’s just how you can find a way to add value to what they already know,” Hesson said on the ‘RCB Podcast’.

Kohli has been retained by the franchise for the upcoming season. De Villiers is not a part of the game anymore as he retired from all forms of cricket last year. The upcoming edition of the tournament will be played from March 26 in Mumbai and Pune. Hesson revealed that he just points out if something is not right about players’ gameplay.

“When you’re straight in competition, the last thing you want to do is create uncertainty around techniques or anything like that,” he stated.

“So, most of our coaching or discussions are just, if you see something that’s maybe not quite right, you just observe for a while, and then you ask questions because these players are great for a reason.”

“They’ve probably had 10-30 different coaches throughout their lives, who have all offered different bits of advice, so, they’ve arrived at this point in time with loads of information.”

Hesson also added that it is important to make them realize their flaws in the game sometimes as the players can’t watch themselves at the time.

“They’ve obviously gone down this path for a reason. Rather than feeling I have the right to come in and make a judgment on their game and question it, I just ask questions,” he revealed.

“Because ultimately, they have the answers but they can’t watch themselves at the time. They might be kinesthetic learners so they might need to feel it, they might need to see it; they might need somebody to tell them.”

“It’s just working out how that player receives information and how you can add value.”