Giving baseball a shot in India

Passing by

I believe sports is similar to life. In our daily life, we come across a lot of problems of which, we have to find solution ourselves.

So is sports. Every time you hit the ground, a new challenge lurks around and being a sportsperson, you have to overcome those hurdles,” says Barry Larkin, a retired Major League Baseball player, who visited the capital for the first time to provide coaching to young baseball players.

“These young guys are full of enthusiasm and vigour.  However, what they lack is information,” says Barry, on his week-long trip to India as sports envoys of the US government to encourage youth participation in sports.

“I believe it is a good opportunity for players to understand the basics of baseball. It will not only improve their game but will add to their experience too. However, players lack information. They are not updated about the current happenings in international sports. They have to improve themselves,” says Barry.

His dynamic personality and zealous approach towards the game can be gauged from the fact that despite knowing that India is a country where baseball is not popular, he believes that someday, it will get popular among masses. “There are many countries where baseball is not the traditional sport but they still have a national team. Baseball can reach out to masses only when there is a strong system which promotes sports in the country,” says Barry.

“Sports in India is like a reality TV show. People are quite enthusiastic about it. It’s reactionary but people are extremely passionate about it. I think it is healthy for human spirit. No doubt, it pushes players to deliver their best at the global level,” says Barry.

Barry has been living in Orlando for almost 13 years now. Though he won three Gold Glove awards, 12 All-Star appearances and a World Series Championship, Larkin had attended University of Michigan on a football scholarship before these laurels. He is a basketball and football enthusiast too. “I love to indulge in basketball and watch the matches of the US team,” he says.