Coach Aravind turns player for Dindigul Dragons in TNPL 2018

It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light. Aristotle's words of wisdom may seem obvious but it is difficult to give up on something that has hitherto given your life meaning.

But that is precisely what Raghavan Aravind had to do in 2015. After 17 years of professional cricket, he knew that he couldn't continue to play. Although he admits that his back issue wasn't so serious that he had to go under the knife, it was a painful process and one that eventually forced him to go into coaching.

The former junior Tamil Nadu cricketer successfully completed his level II coaches course in Australia and then became a High-Performance coach at Ravichandran Ashwin's Gen-Next Cricket Academy.

On 31 May 2018, two years after giving up on professional cricket, he was signed by Dindigul Dragons in the TNPL 2018 Draft.

Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Aravind Ra opened up about the reason behind coming back to professional cricket after being a coach, R Ashwin's influence in his career and how a rendezvous with cricketers in Melbourne changed his outlook on the game.

So how difficult was the decision to give up on playing cricket? Aravind admits that it was a decision that drove him to depression.

"It was difficult not to play cricket," he recounts as he is driving on his way to a coaching session at the Gen-Next Cricket Academy. "Though every aspect, be it playing or coaching, is the same to me, it was a hard decision to decide to not to play cricket professionally. I underwent depression, I wasn't stable and it was affecting my lifestyle, health. I was going through a tough time."

That was when his family, friends and his coaches came to his aid. The fact that he got back to cricket as a coach, made that an easier call but he admits that in the two years since he gave up, he was frustrated.

"Two years of not playing got me frustrated. It was biting me inside. Always poked me in my heart as I felt I could have done more. The spark lit the fire and ultimately, I had to give in to my passion."

Aravind (R) keeping a close eye on the proceedings

That drove him to get back to the game that he started playing when he was six. A game that saw him play with future Indian international R Ashwin, CSK players A Srikant and Yo Mahesh in age level cricket, play first-division cricket for 14 years, win the Buchi Babu All-India tournament in 2010 against Saurashtra, playing alongside Indian stars L Balaji, Murali Vijay and Dinesh Karthik.

That and the fact that he wanted to set an example for the kids that he was coaching. He wanted to show them that hard work and determination can get you to where you want to go and there is no reason to get bogged down by the naysayers.

"Some of the 18-19-year-old kids told me that it is not possible for them to reach the level required for TNPL. I would tell them that if you have the fire in you and if you train properly, you can do it. So I wanted to set an example for them and lead the way myself," he adds.

If the decision to give up the game he loved due to injury was hard, the road back would be even harder. Especially after two years of not playing professional cricket. But the 31-year-old understood that. Although he has been coaching, he understood that he had to start from scratch. He understood that it was a long process.

"(On getting back to cricket) It is one thing to want to do it and another thing to understand what it takes to do it. I clearly understood from Ash and others around me what it takes to get back and what the fitness standards are. It was a tough process but I enjoyed it because it was my passion."

That passion helped him kick-start his return by doing drills eight months back. It was that passion that made him go to current cricketers and catch up with the modern game. And one constant throughout what has been a rollercoaster ride has been Indian international Ravichandran Ashwin.

"Ashwin inspired me to come back to cricket as a player for TNPL"

Aravind (right) with R Ashwin in Dubai

Ashwin, who he played under-age cricket against from a young age and has since formed a strong bond with, has played an important role in his career. At the start, he was the fierce competitor that Aravind wanted to get the better off and as time wore on, his bond with him grew. Once he got into coaching, it was Ashwin who gave him his first big break as high-performance coach at the Gen-Next Cricket Academy.

When Aravind speaks about Ashwin, you can sense the admiration he has for him in his voice. "Being with Ashwin, you get inspired. He would tell me that I could have given more during my playing days. I recovered from my back issues thanks to rehab. Ashwin inspired me to come back to cricket as a player for TNPL."

Speaking about Ashwin's competitive spirit, he says: "We used to travel a lot during U-10 days. He has always been a great competitor. He used to dominate everyone. Everyone would try and catch up with Ashwin. He would push everyone indirectly because everyone would aspire to play as good as him. He trains crazily to be fit and it rubs on to me. He has always had an impact on me, right from playing days and in coaching as well because he is process-oriented. He has helped me in improving as a person, both in personal and professional life."

He also credits the off-spinner for pushing him to go harder during the yo-yo test and prepare for his second coming. After hitting more balls and tripling down on his efforts due to his time away from the game and his age, he feels that he is ready for TNPL 2018.

Aravind is also happy that he has been picked by Ashwin's side, Dindigul Dragons ahead of the third edition of the tournament. "I am glad that I was picked by Dindigul Dragons this year. Ashwin being in the team, it is inspirational as well as a responsibility to live up to my standard which I have set.

The coach of the team is Kedar, alongside whom I have played cricket. He expects very high standards and I will have to live up to it. It will be a great process playing for them. Aswhin knows my strengths and weaknesses. He knows my game inside out. Both him and Kedar know me well since we have played age-level cricket and traveled together."

While the journey to his maiden TNPL has been far from straightforward, his decision to go from playing cricket to coaching was always on the cards, especially after an encounter with a couple of state cricketers while playing club cricket in Melbourne. Recounting the rendezvous in 2012, Aravind spoke about how that opened his eyes to a new world of possibilities even before his back got the better of his playing career.

"When I was there, I met a couple of cricketers who played state cricket there. The conversations with them opened my eyes. Once they turned into a coach, they started to become a better cricketer. Being in Australia, it is tough to be a professional cricketer so I was already planning to coach part-time. Then, I wanted to do my certification. I did level 1 when I went there and I was playing as well as coaching. It helped me a lot to understand the game."

"Every time I coach, I learn. I have learnt more as a coach in 2 years than I have as a player in 15 years."

When asked about whether Aravind the coach helped the player learn and the answer is a resounding yes. He credits his coaching experience for helping him get away from a narrow-minded focus on results.

"When you are a player, you think only as a player. When you coach, you have to see different aspects of the game. You tend to understand about the game, you try to understand different players, about their fitness, how they learn differently. It is more of a self-realization. Every time I coach, I learn. I have learnt more as a coach in 2 years than I have as a player in 15 years."

In many ways, the story of Aravind only highlights that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. No matter how dark or dangerous it seems, all you need to do is focus to see the light.