The Prodigal Son ‘Samik Das’, writes Dr. Himabrata Das

May 01: In a welcome bid to facilitate stargazing at some of the biggest names in the sporting arena from the region,the Barak Upatyaka Krira Sangbadik Songstha (BUKSS) has enabled Facebook Live interactions on their eponymous page. This write up The Prodigal Son ‘Samik Das’ for way2barak was adapted from the Facebook Live interaction organised by BUKSS on 30 April, 2020 by Dr. Himabrata Das.

One of the biggest regrets for a cricket lover is not to be able to watch a genius at work and only hear about him being venerated by successive generations of cricketers. One question that has always fascinated me has been “Just how great might the late Amal Das have been? What does it take to remain immortal in folklore almost like a mythical demigod? “I seek solace in the astute veteran Mridul Sir who has this to say in rousing exaltation for the “Pioneer of Silchar Cricket.”

“Amal Das was part of the All India School Team in 1978-79 that played against England.The former England International Derek Pringle who played in the All England School Team was his good friend. He was part of the Assam Ranji squad of 1980-81. He was deprived later due to some unwanted situation. My memorable match of the great happened in 1984 when he ran through a formidable NF Railway order in the Inter District Tournament. I have never seen a more complete cricketer than him ever in my lifetime being equally talented with both bat, ball and also on the field. He was a terror in Assam Cricket due to his extreme pace. I along with many youngsters of the time got to learn from him and he would always encourage us.

Whatever we (Abhida, Tapu, Raja, Mithu, Sushanta, Mithu, Bappa and later Nira and many more) played was due to the great man. He had a great batting talent but would always bat in the lower order to encourage others to bat up the order. SAMIK is a worthy son of a worthy father. My advice to Samik would be to try to concentrate more on his bowling and emulate the killer instinct that was synonymous with his great father with ball in hand. “I am convinced that selflessness is a prerequisite for immortality as I speak to another celebrated veteran in Subhasish Bibhuda Choudhury who says in reverence:

“Amal Das has been an inspiration for all of us on the cricket field. I personally have learnt a lot that this game can teach us. One incident I would like to share was when we and Amal Das whom we lovingly called Amu Da,  were playing goodwill matches in Aizawl against their state team. On day one he played and on day two he himself became the 12th man. A young and upcoming fast bowler Alok Sarkar was bowling very well but was facing some problem with his bowling spikes. Amu Da, seeing this, himself ran to the ground with his pair of shoes, luckily of same size, and tied the laces for Alok. These things taught us his humility and passion for the game. For me he was a coach, mentor, a brother and a guide for all my cricketing years.”

Very rarely does discussing cricket bring tears to your eyes.The conversations with both Mridul Sir and Bibhuda were indeed moving.

Samik feels it was “destiny” that brought him to cricket as he grew up watching his father as a player as well as a coach. His formal cricket coaching started in 2002 and he considers his first Inter District century against Charaideo in 2016 as a defining innings in his career. It was a momentous feat crossing the line as he had been getting out a lot in the 80s and 90s prior to that watershed knock. He speaks about planning for each bowler, respecting the good deliveries and capitalising on the loose bowlers. Like Raihan, he is a believer in giving yourself the first 20 balls and then looking to accelerate. He emphasises on the 1s and the 2s to get the momentum going into an innings.The more you stay, the more you score.

He talks about playing with the tennis ball but warns against the risk of imprinting wrong muscle memory for batsmen and chucking for bowlers. He picked up the helicopter shot playing with the tennis ball in his backyard where hitting the corner yielded 6 while the batsman would get dismissed if the ball left the compound. It was from his first coach his belated father that he developed an inclination towards pace bowling. He also learnt from the likes of Dhiraj Sir and Hira Sir and is grateful to Sujoy Sir for being a calming presence ahead of many big games. The cricket addict considers the shoulder dislocation and muscle tear that prevented him from bowling for 3 years “a blessing in disguise” as he had to focus on his batting with his dominant left hand to keep his spot in the side. A string of impressive performances enabled him to go up the batting order and bat at No 3 and No 4 and brought him into the reckoning for selection.

Putting on weight after being offset by successive shoulder, knee and ankle injuries made it difficult for him to make it to the Ranji team. But the flamboyant all-rounder who thanks his mother and his sister for their prayers has no regrets and invokes the inspirational Praveen Tambe who played for Mumbai Indians in the IPL at the ripe age of 40. “Life e hope na thakle gaari besi augae na“, (If there is no hope in life then the vehicle doesn’t goes too far) he quips in his signature crackling style that made him quite a sensation as a commentator in the recently concluded BPL.

He is indebted to Prakash Bhagat who brought the best out of him in demanding situations and rates Proxy as one of the best captains he has played under alongside Abu Nechim and Amit Sinha.From the generation bygone, he mentions being influenced by the all-rounder Alokda, the stylist Mehbub Alam, the inswinging Nirada and Bibhuda for the way he handled his team as a captain.He has had a glittering season with 3 centuries and a topscore of 138.

He is spending the lockdown watching TV and web series while being mindful towards his diet and his fitness.He reminisces the 135 run partnership that he stitched together for the last wicket with Biswajit against Nagaon. “Biswajit was batting on 47 when I walked out to bat at number 11. He told me not to throw my wicket away. By the time he got to 50, l was in the mid 30s. Nagaon were pleading for us to get out. I told Biswajit not to throw his wicket away and I scored the fifty,” a delighted Samik recalls. A lot has been spoken about his temperament on the cricket field.

An unapologetic Samik makes no qualms about it and believes that it is this intensity that gives him a cutting edge. He showers praise on the U16 team and their coach Tathada and urges young cricketers to pick up from others while watching cricket citing the sensational innings that Ben Stokes played with Jack Leach in the 3rd Ashes Test last year. The zeal to win and to contribute to the team’s cause is all that matters. As he pans the camera over his enormous collection of trophies in his neat living room before signing off, there is good news for his countless female admirers who swoon over this winsome bachelor. There is a vacancy at the non-striking end for the lucky princess who will bat alongside the outstanding cricketer before he takes guard for his “second innings.”

(The title “THE PRODIGAL SON” has been chosen in a positive sense to underlie how time and again Samik falls back on his belated father for inspiration)

Also Read: Badshah in the BUKSS Box: Kaleidoscopic travel among sports, politics & social service

Dr. Himabrata Das, Registrar, Department of Psychiatry, Tezpur Medical College & Hospital (TMCH). Apart from this, he is a vivid lover of sports, an eloquent commentator and a columnist.