India’s Most Experienced And Special Member Stopped By Nagpur Police From Entering Team Hotel

Raghavendra Dwivedi, known as Raghu, is India’s most special support staff member on the national side. Their former captain and the most successful batter of the game, Sachin Tendulkar, handpicked Raghu back in 2011. Since then, he has become one of the most recognized members of the team.

The blue brigade enjoyed the last two weeks thanks to their 4-1 series victory against the Jos Buttler-led side. Their bowling, especially the spinners, was excellent against the aggressive visiting batters, who hardly had any answer to tackle the home side.

Nagpur police fail to recognize Raghavendra Dwivedi

For the opening ODI of the upcoming three-match series against England in Nagpur, the Indian team has reached their hotel. But Raghu was stopped by the police personnel of the city from entering the team hotel on February 03 (Monday).

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In a video that has now gone viral, two police personnel were standing in front of the Radisson Blue Hotel in Nagpur. They couldn’t recognize Raghavendra and tried to stop him from making his way into the hotel, mistaking him for an introducer.

One of the video journalists, recording the proceedings, started shouting with Raghu’s name to help the police personnel.

“Arey coach hai who. Team ke saath hai. Bus see utra hai. (He's a coach and a member of the team. He just deboarded the bus).” The journalist screamed.

Raghu’s contribution to India’s batters

Not many people know Raghu, who always keeps a smile on his face. He handled the situation pretty well, and after a brief period, he was allowed to go through the checking. He plays an instrumental role in shaping the success of the Indian cricket team.

As a throwdown specialist, he works behind the scenes and has proved to be a vital member of the squad in ensuring the team’s batting strength is at its peak. He delivers precise throwdowns to the batters, simulating various match situations.

Before their 2015 World Cup clash against Pakistan, it was Raghu, who worked with Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, and other batters to face the lanky opponent pacer, Mohammad Irfan. It makes it easy for the batters to judge the pace, bounce, and length of the delivery.

Raghu’s different expertise as a specialist throwdown

His expertise lies in replicating deliveries from the pacer, spinners, and even bouncing balls, helping the players to adapt to different conditions and challenges that they might face during the actual game. His career as a cricketer was cut short after the Karnataka-born survived a fracture in his hand.

He failed to fulfill his dream, as his love for the game led him to pursue a different path than the one that would see him making a major contribution to their team’s success. His incredible work ethic and ability to generate balls at the speed of over 150 got him into the Karnataka state team.

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He soon became a favorite of the players at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. On Tendulkar’s recommendation, he became a regular of India’s support staff. What sets him apart is his specialty of varying the deliveries.

Raghu has different throwdowns to each batter’s specific requirements, whether it’s a short ball a yorker, or anything else. He worked with the former Indian World Cup-winning captain, MS Dhoni, and is still in the process of helping youngsters like Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and others.