It is very common for just-retired cricketers to make careers in the media as commentators, or take to coaching by qualifying themselves or setting up coaching academies. Daren Ganga, the former West Indies batsman, is involved in both, though with a difference. Aside from his commentary commitments, Ganga has produced an interactive coaching DVD to help youngsters fast-track their development and assist coaches and parents in enhancing their knowledge of the game.
The product, launched on July 23 at the Queen's Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, is backed by the Daren Ganga Foundation, a charitable organisation started by Ganga in 2007 to help kids from less-privileged backgrounds to find their way in cricket. The DVD, titled 'The Fundamentals', is to be the first volume in a series of Ganga's coaching DVDs. It contains sections covering batting, bowling, fielding, wicketkeeping, pitch and equipment, players and fielding positions, officials. The instructional video uses animation, live action videography, in-studio demonstrations and interviews. There are tips in the form of video with current and former West Indies players, including Curtly Ambrose, Ian Bishop, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, umpire Billy Doctrove, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Anisa Mohammed from the women's team.
The idea was conceived two years ago, when Ganga was involved in a scholarship cricket program for children part of his foundation. While researching on the available coaching material, he discovered that there were several videos focusing on specific components of the game, such as captaincy and fielding. He then set about producing his own product that would "encapsulate all aspects of the game." That, and the presence of experts offering tips, is the DVD's USP.
"I recognised that I can't be there all the time but I have done a lot of networking in terms of cricketers," Ganga told ESPNcricinfo over phone from Trinidad. "I had access to a lot of information and wanted to set up a more accessible medium for these young cricketers."
