Coach Pulikkal: A Rising Star in USA Cricket

July 30, 2009

India’s Salim Durani must be a happy man today. His protégé, Sujesh Pulikkal, is making a name for himself as a coach in the United States. Under Pulikkal’s guiding hand, North West won the 2009 USA U19 Championship.  An accomplished player in his own right, Pulikkal represented South Zone (India) and names among his peers, India’s sensational opener Virender Sehwag. Recently appointed coach of the North West senior team, Dr. Samaroo spoke to Pulikkal about his journey.

Born in Bombay, Sujesh Pulikkal is a natural athlete. A sprinter, who also played soccer and hockey, he tells me, “I only started playing cricket at 11”. The late start notwithstanding, Pulikkal was selected for Tamil Nadu Juniors before going on to represent South Zone at the U19 level playing alongside such players as Vijay Bharadwaj, Sridharan Sri Ram, and Sadagopan Ramesh who all went on to represent India. Pulikkal’s promising exploits earned him a spot on the enviable Invitational President’s XI alongside many current first class players. He toured Sri Lanka, Australia, South Africa, Pakistan, New Zealand and Malaysia with the President’s XI and won the Best Fielder Award. That early international exposure would prove vital to him as player, coach, and selector.

There are two kinds of people in the world – givers and takers. Pulikkal is a giver, and from an early age, he longed to give something back to the game. The opportunity came when he was appointed assistant coach to Salim Durani in the mid 90s. “Much of what I try to teach our youths today, I learnt under the guiding hand of my coach and mentor, Salim Durani”, one of India’s most respected cricketers.  “He is one of my heroes”, Pulikkal gratefully boasts. Durani instilled in him the conviction that ability is only 50 percent of success – the other 50 is mental toughness, preparation and commitment. The very lesson that he teaches his young charges today in America. That mental toughness and commitment showed at the Nationals in New York when “we [North West] came so close to defending 150 runs [taking 9 wickets] against South West”, he vividly recalls.

 An hour into the interview, and coach Pulikkal was in good spirits. One gets the distinct impression that he delights in the exploits of his players, and is truly happy for their success – an admirable quality for sure. At this point I took the opportunity to ask his thoughts on the longstanding battle between North and South California? Pulikkal calls it a friendly rivalry, and unashamedly admits that “South California had always produced better cricketers that the North”.  “I believe it’s because North California didn’t have good batting conditions”…the pitch, the outfield – “and the city didn’t cut the grass very often.”  But that was until 2004, “we can beat them any given day now…the grounds are better”, he assures me. Today Pulikkal captains Santa Clara [Northern California] in the first Division but more about that later, I wanted to get back to India. From 1992 to 1995 Pulikkal captained his university team (Bharathiar University). In 1993, while representing Senior Districts (Tamil Nadu) he won the Most Promising Talent award, and in 1994 he won the coveted Best Batting Award while leading South Zone Combined Universities to the All India Inter-Zone Universities’ Championship. After graduating from Bharathiar University, “I played in the first division for Bangalore [Swastik and Ranji CC] and Madras (Vijay CC) in 1997”. Injury kept him out of the game the following year, and in 1998 he went to Cambridge University to pursue his MBA in Information Technology. While in England, he represented Warwickshire in the Minor Counties as a batting allrounder scoring over 500 runs in the season. Graduating from Cambridge, Pulikkal returned to India in 1999, and was again out of the game for almost a year – this time family and personal commitments got in the way. 

Migrating to California in 2000, Pulikkal was made captain of the Santa Clara Bees in 2003. For the next two years he led the Bees “to consecutive championship wins in the B division”. In 2005 he was appointed vice captain of the A division Santa Clara Aces, and went on to win the A division championship “for the first time in 20 years”, followed by a runner up placement in 2006. In 2007 he returned to lead the Santa Clara Bees taking them once again to the championship in division B. During the period 2001 to 2008 Pulikkal distinguished himself by winning multiple club awards for batting, bowling and fielding. In the years 2006 to 2008 he also represented NCCA, but the desire to coach was ever present. He tells me that it would be great to produce the next star or inspire some young kid to take up the game, and for it to have a lasting impact on their life. That wish came to fruition this spring when six players from his victorious U19 squad were selected to represent the United States at the ICC U19 qualifiers in Canada – the first step to realizing Lockerbie’s 2015 vision.  “My goal was to get 6 players from the NWR onto the national team”, he recalls.

I had the pleasure of watching the NWR squad when they won the U19 Finals in New York and I was enormously impressed by the promising talent on display…the maturity…the mental fortitude of the youngsters. I asked Pulikkal about that game. As coach and selector for the NWR, “I knew most of these players and have a good rapport with them”. “I was also familiar with the matting wickets in New York. There is no help for medium pacers…batting is the key, I told my players…batsmen and spinners will win this game”.  Did they do anything special to prepare for the big game?  “Not really...we take all cell phones; lights out at 10 pm [players need 8 hours rest]; players must get to the field in time for a half hour practice; and, very important, we always sit together as a team”. Discipline is very important, he insists. “It’s not all about winning”, it’s the bat and ball – not sledging”.  As a confidence booster, he assured them that, “this is the best team in the US, [and] if you can’t do it now [then] it’s never for some of you as it’s your last year playing Under 19.  I also reminded them that selectors were at the game and would be looking at them for possible selection to the national team”. What did he think about the team’s chances of chasing 250 to win in the final?  “I said chasing 250 should not be a problem. I was counting on Shiva [Vashishat] and Saqib [Salim] to score, [and] Vinay Suri likes the ball coming on to the bat – he likes to play his shots. Also, whenever it’s our turn to bat I make it a habit of encouraging the upcoming batsman to watch the game carefully, and to try and put himself in the place of the [opposition’s] bowler. We also practiced a lot playing spin”.

 In the end, the strategy worked like a charm and NWR went on to win the championship quite comfortably. So what did it feel like to be the last coach standing, I wanted to know?  Talk of winning almost seems to embarrass the modest Pulikkal but he acknowledges “winning the championship was a very special moment”. Returning to California, he was rewarded with the offer to coach NWR seniors at the Western Conference Finals scheduled for the weekend of July 31 to August 2. But Pulikkal was also in contention for a spot on the NWR team. He had a decision to make – play or coach? In the end it was an easy decision. “I prefer to coach”, he assures me.  Such unselfishness is refreshingly welcome, and it is the kind of attitude that US cricket needs if it is to realize its vision.

Being appointed coach of the NWR seniors is the latest stop on a journey that began when California Cricket Academy (CCA) “provided me a chance to act as a selector/coach. I was required to train both the U13 and U15 national squads for participation in tournaments and tours. My job required to work at specialized clinics and harness the selected players to be competitive, and was held responsible for building a winning team. [I] submitted written reports, assessments, and worked with other coaches and trainers in preparing, coaching, and training techniques. My goal [is] to ensure that the potential player receives the right attention and guidance to play at the higher level and get recognized for his/her potential, be it as a selector or coach”. Winning the U19 National Championship this year was not Coach Pulikkal’s first taste of success. In 2005 he also coached the CCA U13 squad to the first National championship at that age level.

It’s easy to talk to Pulikkal, and we could have gone on for another few hours but I couldn’t leave without asking: As a coach who was his role model? “I enjoy watching Lara and Sachin”, he tells me, before unhesitatingly adding “but Steve Waugh is my role model – grit and confidence in leading from the front and winning games”. And what is his coaching recipe for success? “My tip to the youngsters is that mental toughness decides who is the winner since cooler head wins [at] end of the day when mind and body work together.”  

Where does he see coach Pulikkkal in the next few years? “I am always looking to improve, to learn new things, and one area that I am particularly interested in is the field of biomechanics. Its on the cutting edge of successful coaching today and I plan to do a short stint within the next year, possibly in Australia, who are in the forefront of this new technology.”