July 29: Debutant Suresh Raina, who cracked 120 against Sri Lanka in the second Test on Thursday, was not only inspired by his Team India teammates, but also his long time coach Sat Pal Krishan.
“Grab the opportunity with both hands”, was Krishan’s special message for his ward. “When it was announced that Raina would play his first Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, I asked him to grab the chance that had come his way more than five years after one-day debut,” the coach said from Jalandhar.
“He kept my word by scoring a hundred and making it a dream start. I am delighted for him. He was included in the Test squad in early 2006, but could not make his debut then,” the coach added. Youngest in the family of five children, Raina decided to take up cricket seriously in 1999, and moved from his home town of Ghaziabad to Lucknow.