My job is to give freedom to youngsters to express themselves: Vinay

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Bengaluru, August 23: Karnataka skipper R Vinay Kumar said apart from leading his Karnataka Premier League side Hubli Tigers he will keep an eye on youngsters who can excel at a bigger stage.

Vinay said with that aim in mind he will try to give full freedom to youngsters so that they can express themselves.

"My approach will remain the same. But here my role will be to change the mindset of the younger players. Being the Karnataka captain, playing with youngsters who want to play Ranji Trophy or the Indian Premier League and do well in Indian cricket ... my role will be to give them some freedom.

"You need to let them express themselves. That's when they can perform. Most of them have played the KPL already, but some of them are playing for the first time, and it's very important for them to have that freedom.

"As soon as they see themselves on television, it's a very big stage for them and it might get to them. There are chances their heads could be diverted. It's the duty of the respective team captains to make them understand that it's just cricket and that they need to play the way they've been playing all their ," he said.

With that intent Vinay said he has already been watching out for a few young players.
"A few could come and play Karnataka for the limited-overs matches and maybe even Ranji Trophy. If you look at the few guys who played the T20s last year - Stalin (Hoover), (Mohammed) Taha - they did well in the KPL. I've been watching their games. I watch the players from all the teams, not just from my own. It's my duty to take care of the youngsters, and at the end of the day, it's all about the betterment of Karnataka cricket.

"We need to grow and keep winning tournaments, whether it is T20s, one-dayers or Ranji Trophy. For that, you need youngsters who are doing really well. We need special talents," said Vinay.

The Davanagere man said his vast experience at all levels will come handy in the task.
"After playing 13 to 14 years of domestic cricket, representing India in different formats, playing with and against many great cricketers from across the world, there's been a lot of great experiences.

"It has helped me groom myself, and I will ensure those experiences are passed on to the youngsters. That's how we learnt from my seniors, it helped us reach this level. Now it's our turn to make sure the juniors have what we had," he added.

So what about Hubli Tigers chances of lifting KPL chances? "I'm very optimistic. It's a very well-balanced side, and anybody can make the playing XI from the whole squad. Most of them are youngsters, but they are motivated to play the Ranji Trophy and the IPL. It's a very balanced side, good bowling and fielding side. Ultimately though, we need to play good cricket."