SportsMechanics celebrates 20-yr association with BCCI

CHENNAI: SportsMechanics, a leading sports technology organisation, on Monday celebrated its 20-year association with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in the august presence of the national men’s team head coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma.

SportsMechanics joined hands with the BCCI in 2003, when incidentally Dravid lit the lamp to mark the beginning of the association. Dravid and Rohit landed in the city on Monday ahead of the third India-Australia ODI at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday.

Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) president Ashok Sigamani and Indian Bank MD and CEO Shanti Lal Jain also graced the occasion.

SportsMechanics founder S Ramakrishnan worked with the India men’s team as a performance analyst for a number of years while CKM Dhananjay, one of the organisation’s employees, succeeded him.

Hari Prasad Mohan, also from the company, is now serving as the analyst for the Rohit-led team.

Besides helping the men’s team clinch three ICC titles, SportsMechanics has implemented new methods and provided solutions to many involved in the sport – from match referees to umpires to scorers.

The organisation is also home to many video analysts, who are sought after not only in cricket but also other sports like hockey, squash and football.

Data helped Rohit seamlessly switch to opening batting

While addressing the gathering, Rohit stressed that he would not have become the opener he is today without the help of data.

Rohit, who began his international career as a middle-order batter, was promoted to the top by the then captain MS Dhoni in 2013.

“When I was asked to open the batting, I had to go back and see what the world’s best openers had done. Obviously, opening the batting has a lot of challenges. I wanted to go through data, look at the best players in the world. If the data or analytics had not been there, I do not think I would have had the success I have today,” said Rohit.

‘Next gen coaches must adapt’

Dravid said that the next generation of coaches must become comfortable with data and its understanding.

“As we start collecting more and more data, it is only going to get better. We have almost reached a point where there is too much data and information sometimes. The key is going to be distilling the information, understanding what is relevant and what is not, what is important and what is not. That is obviously a great challenge for coaches.”

Apart from Rohit and Dravid, the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Lakshmipathy Balaji and Harbhajan Singh spoke about the impact SportsMechanics’s work and data had on them. The quartet delivered their messages via recorded videos.