Thailand’s right-hand opening bat and pacer Nattakan Chantam
Not many cricket careers would stutter for need of a TV set-top field – an extra second one within the household. For Nattakan Chantam (pronounced: na-taa-kaan chan-taam), Thailand’s right-hand opening bat and pacer, attempting to seize the sign of a cricket relaying-channel in Bangkok grew to become essential when she felt the necessity to watch what genuine cricket on the topmost degree regarded like. The Affiliate Nation participant’s solely window into the sport had been highlights on YouTube and Facebook, which she quickly outgrew.
This week, the exuberant Thai can be on TV herself as a part of BCCI’s Ladies’s T20 Challenger match in UAE, a historic first for the south-east Asian nation. Suleeporn Laomi was the primary Thai to end up for Sydney Thunder within the Ladies’s Massive Bash in Australia. The Indian match will welcome the easy-smiling speedster with the disarming folded-hands greeting, widespread to a number of Thai worldwide athletes, because the 4-match occasion takes off on Wednesday.
For the 24-year-old first-timer within the huge league, issues taken with no consideration in nations the place cricket is a mainstream sport – like a turf pitch – haven’t been simply accessible. Bettering her sport by switching on the TV too proved tough. “In Thailand, channels exhibiting reside cricket aren’t accessible. We would have liked to purchase an additional TV field to obtain the sign. In any other case, it was simply highlights on social media platforms,” Chantam informed The Indian Express.
Every bit of enjoying gear too wanted to be imported – from India, Australia or Malaysia. “We would have liked to plan upfront if we had to purchase cricket gear,” she added.
Chantam began enjoying cricket together with her college crew in her third grade. “I didn’t know cricket again then. As a sportsperson, I used to be eager to strive new video games and was additionally within the basketball membership. Nonetheless, sooner or later, I wanted to decide on and I knew cricket was merely the one,” says the 38-games-old Thai worldwide.
Speaking to the ICC’s official YouTube channel final yr, Chantam described how the Thai crew lived the entire yr spherical in an enormous home with three bedrooms and skilled collectively, solidifying the bond among the many gamers.
All this whereas, her mother and father would keep just a little boggled about this new sport, even when she set off for Dubai to play the BCCI match. Her father is a instructor and mom a hairdresser, and each earnestly shared her enthusiasm when she introduced she was picked for the occasion.
“They had been confused as a result of they don’t know a lot about cricket or what this Ladies’s T20 League means to cricket gamers. I informed them that is huge, so they’re excited for me,” Chantam stated. “My mates had been very curious. After I tried a easy clarification that you just use a skinny flat wooden bat to hit the ball, most of them thought it was hockey!” she laughs.
She got here up on the Indian board’s radar due to her batting performances in opposition to India and Pakistan. Enjoying for Thailand A as a part of a quadrangular sequence in Patna, Chantam had scored 80 in opposition to the Indian bowling assault and later one other half-century in opposition to a powerful Pakistan line-up eventually yr’s T20 World Cup.
Thailand’s coach is Harshal Pathak, a former cricketer from Pune. He informs her nickname is Jean and describes Chantam as an opener with a pointy thoughts who can bat at any place.
“Her sport sense is immense and she or he reads match conditions significantly better than others. On the similar time, her strokes are world-class. The fifty she scored in opposition to Pakistan bowling introduced her within the limelight,” Pathak stated. The coach would make sure the Thai crew spent an prolonged stint at Pune’s Cadence Academy, soaking within the expertise.
Chantam’s removed from the impetuous cricketer who’ll use aggressive batting as the perfect recourse and perish if the large hit doesn’t come off. Chantam respects the cricketing single, rotating strike and discovering the gaps – indicators of a smart and evolving cricketer.
She informed the ICC earlier, “In Powerplay, everybody (is fielding) inside, solely two outdoors. So all over the place, (there’s) house for me. Massive hole for me.” She’d view the open areas with a glint in her eye, although she’s identified to ship some hovering as effectively. “My mentality is (to) hit for one run by way of the hole. Our (hers and her batting associate’s) strategy is completely different, my plan is (to) hit by way of the hole and provides her the strike,” Chantam added. Which explains her selection of Mithali Raj and Virat Kohli as favorite Indian cricketers.
She loves a great problem although: like English batter Danni Wyatt in full circulate. “I wanna see how aggressive she will be able to bat in opposition to us,” the pacer informed ICC, including South African Lizelle Li’s fast bowling is one other supply of inspiration.
She admits to being pleasantly stunned when chosen for the Challenger. “I couldn’t consider it as a result of I didn’t anticipate to be chosen. It was a number of feelings once I first heard the information. I used to be shocked, delighted, excited and nervous. As quickly as I realised that I might be becoming a member of IPL (Ladies’s Challenger), I deliberate for psychological and bodily coaching simply to be prepared for the match,” she stated.
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