<p class="rtejustify">Kunal Kapoor scripted history in the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy season when he became the first from the State to slam centuries in each innings of a game. Many expected Kunal to scale higher after that special effort but his career never really reached the potential it had promised. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">After playing his last first-class game in 2015, Kunal has reluctantly moved on from what he loved the most -- playing cricket -- at a relatively young age of 31. He has begun a fresh chapter as coach and strength and conditioning specialist. His first significant assignment was in the recently-concluded Karnataka Premier League where he worked as an assistant to coach J Arun Kumar for last year’s champions Belagavi Panthers who narrowly missed out on a semifinal berth. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">“These are hard decisions to make but you need to move forward,” Kunal noted about his decision to quit playing. “I am studying to be a strength and conditioning specialist. Apart from the coaching role, I want to open a fitness facility and train athletes. I want to merge coaching and fitness training. I will use my experience as a player in this job. My stint with Belagavi Panthers as a coach was a good learning experience. I was with JAK who was also my Ranji coach. It was nice guiding youngsters from rural backgrounds who didn’t have enough exposure,” he said. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">The twin hundreds (106 & 100 n.o.) in Hubballi against Haryana exhibited his talent. During Karnataka’s unprecedented dominance, between 2013-15, Kunal played a key role. He bailed the team out of precarious situations on more than one occasion. But inconsistency and the stiff competition in Karnataka cricket derailed Kunal’s journey. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">“My neck was on the line always,” he pointed out. “If I failed in a couple of games, I would either be out of the 11 or dropped from the squad. By the third year of my career, I knew if I failed in even one match I wouldn’t get another opportunity. This thought didn’t allow me to bat freely. I rescued the team from tough situations and I felt maybe I should have been given more chances” explained Kunal, who has four fifties apart from those two tons in 17 first-class games. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">Kunal wasn’t interested in the blame game. “I should have also prepared better. I should have converted my starts in many matches. I would have been a better batsman if I had done that. I played in England and Australia and understood more about my game,” he said.</p>.<p class="rtejustify">Not playing for Karnataka was a tough phase, confessed Kunal. “I wanted to play for the country. But I wasn’t getting my chances and if you aren’t playing for the best domestic side, then you cannot achieve bigger goals and I didn’t want to continue. It’s disappointing not to play with the guys you grew up with. I wanted to play for Karnataka for a long time.” </p>.<p class="rtejustify">The desire to play, however, is still alive in Kunal. “I still feel like playing. BCCI has introduced nine new teams so you never know. But right now, I want to take this path,” he signed off.</p>
<p class="rtejustify">Kunal Kapoor scripted history in the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy season when he became the first from the State to slam centuries in each innings of a game. Many expected Kunal to scale higher after that special effort but his career never really reached the potential it had promised. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">After playing his last first-class game in 2015, Kunal has reluctantly moved on from what he loved the most -- playing cricket -- at a relatively young age of 31. He has begun a fresh chapter as coach and strength and conditioning specialist. His first significant assignment was in the recently-concluded Karnataka Premier League where he worked as an assistant to coach J Arun Kumar for last year’s champions Belagavi Panthers who narrowly missed out on a semifinal berth. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">“These are hard decisions to make but you need to move forward,” Kunal noted about his decision to quit playing. “I am studying to be a strength and conditioning specialist. Apart from the coaching role, I want to open a fitness facility and train athletes. I want to merge coaching and fitness training. I will use my experience as a player in this job. My stint with Belagavi Panthers as a coach was a good learning experience. I was with JAK who was also my Ranji coach. It was nice guiding youngsters from rural backgrounds who didn’t have enough exposure,” he said. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">The twin hundreds (106 & 100 n.o.) in Hubballi against Haryana exhibited his talent. During Karnataka’s unprecedented dominance, between 2013-15, Kunal played a key role. He bailed the team out of precarious situations on more than one occasion. But inconsistency and the stiff competition in Karnataka cricket derailed Kunal’s journey. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">“My neck was on the line always,” he pointed out. “If I failed in a couple of games, I would either be out of the 11 or dropped from the squad. By the third year of my career, I knew if I failed in even one match I wouldn’t get another opportunity. This thought didn’t allow me to bat freely. I rescued the team from tough situations and I felt maybe I should have been given more chances” explained Kunal, who has four fifties apart from those two tons in 17 first-class games. </p>.<p class="rtejustify">Kunal wasn’t interested in the blame game. “I should have also prepared better. I should have converted my starts in many matches. I would have been a better batsman if I had done that. I played in England and Australia and understood more about my game,” he said.</p>.<p class="rtejustify">Not playing for Karnataka was a tough phase, confessed Kunal. “I wanted to play for the country. But I wasn’t getting my chances and if you aren’t playing for the best domestic side, then you cannot achieve bigger goals and I didn’t want to continue. It’s disappointing not to play with the guys you grew up with. I wanted to play for Karnataka for a long time.” </p>.<p class="rtejustify">The desire to play, however, is still alive in Kunal. “I still feel like playing. BCCI has introduced nine new teams so you never know. But right now, I want to take this path,” he signed off.</p>