The St. John’s Sports Coaching Foundation multi-disciplined sports academy at Begumpet, inaugurated by cricketing great and National Cricket Academy Director V.V.S. Laxman, could well be the much-awaited destination for all the young talent in the Secunderabad Zone.
The beaming face of Laxman said it all — the quality and the planning in place for the facility spread on the 1.3 acres of land with six outdoor cricket nets, five indoor badminton courts, a mini-basketball court and a fully equipped gym.
Laxman, who had a special bond with the St. John’s Foundation (the other centre at Secunderabad) — being a trainee in the first batch in 1987 when the centre had also former India cricketer M.V. Narasimha Rao as the coach — recalled that he had great coaches like John Manoj, who were instrumental in shaping his career.
“They were there as my support system till my playing days. So the presence of great infrastructure and a good coach will yield good results. I am sure this new facility will provide a great platform for budding players, not just in cricket but also in other disciplines, a great opportunity to realise their dream,” he explained.
John Manoj, who heads the facility, said they would have the best of coaches in different disciplines. Indian shooter Esha Singh, former basketballer Mohd Rizwan, former India badminton player Manoj Kumar and former India fielding coach R. Sridhar were also present.
Laxman also appealed to the parents to have patience once they put their children in sports. “Never push them too hard. Let them enjoy the training sessions. Every child is unique and parents need to understand that,” he said.
