Ranji cricketer Parag Das rues the fact that had he set greater goals for himself he would have been in contention for a place in the national team.

“In retrospect, the goals I set for myself were actually not enough. I had graduated from the under-16 to under-19 level quite early. Perhaps, the sense of accomplishment every time I performed came in the way of the bigger goals that I should have set as my career progressed,”Parag, who has played 43 first class matches for Assam, said.

The cricketer took the game seriously only when he was in high school.

“I began playing competitive cricket when I was in Class VIII. I was around 13 then and played for my school (Sonaram High School) in the Abhay Shankar and Kamrup district school tournaments. The good thing was that I had enrolled myself at Nehru Stadium at the same time. Nababda (Nabab Ali) was my mentor. I can never forget my first match in school cricket, where I scored an unbeaten 109. That was in 1989,” the all-rounder (right hand bat and medium pacer), also known as PD Boy”, recalls.

Hard work has no substitute, and there were no two ways for the young man as well when it came to training and keeping himself fit.

“I went the extra mile and fine-tuned my strokes against rubber-duce balls on concrete. The others would have been home while we (I and Nababda) sweated it out in the nets. There was no respite in the afternoon as well. I used to set out from my Dhirenpara home after lunch to pick up my coach from office and take him to the stadium. By the time the other trainees came, we would have already finished an hour’s workout. Academics took a backseat, though, as I was focused on my game,” Parag, who is employed with Northeast Frontier Railway, Maligaon, says.

The Ranji debut in 1994-95 was a milestone.

“That was against Karnataka in Bangalore. I scored 26 and 25 in the first and second innings respectively and bagged two wickets. A decent start, but I knew I had miles to go,” he says.

After being absorbed by NF Railway, the very next season Parag led the under-25 Railways team. There was a two-year interval between the 1996-97 and 1999-2000 Ranji seasons.

“The worst phase was in 2000 when I was dropped from the team. Fitness was the prime reason and I had gained extra kilos,” he says.

But there was hope for the man who had tied the nuptial knot in 1999. “I must thank my wife Mithoo (a national swimming champion) for making me believe I could make a comeback. I worked hard, shed the extra kilos and controlled my diet. The hard work opened doors for a comeback in the very next season. Things got better when I was asked to lead the state team a couple of seasons later — in the East Zone Elite group league tournament. In 2001-02, I represented East Zone in the Deodhar and Duleep Trophy matches. I had earned the slot as I was the top-scorer from my state with an average of 41.44,” Parag, who now lives in Kharghuli, says.

Any special knocks for East Zone?

“I can never forget the brisk 73 against South Zone. I had opened the innings with Devang Gandhi against the likes of Dodda Ganesh and Sunil Joshi. Devang, who was batting in the twenties when I was dismissed, went on to make 140. The opportunity was there for me to grab a ton, but that did not happen. The situation was similar in the match against North Zone when I made 65,” he says.

Parag had also led Assam in the Moin-ud-Dowla and Buchi Babu tourneys in 2004-05. He has also played in 32 List A matches.

The 35-year-old feels that his retirement in 2007 was a hasty move.

“I feel that I had hung up my boots prematurely. The Indian Cricket League happened later that year and as many as five from the state secured berths. As there was no provision for picking retired players in the league, I missed the bus. That was not all. There were strange things in store. At the request of the then chairman of the selection committee, Badal Thakur, I withdrew my retirement. But soon I found myself in no man’s land — neither did I get to play a Ranji match that season nor did I draw my monthly sports pension. A well wisher had told me that I revert to retirement so that the pension could be drawn. And I did just that,” he says.

And how has life been post retirement.

“Life’s been good and relaxed. But cricket is pretty much in my scheme of things. I play for Navajyoti Club in the inter-club leagues and football as well. Besides, I make it a point to spend time with my cricketer son Riyan and wife Mithoo,” he adds.

Finally, his take on the facilities for an emerging cricketer in Guwahati.

“More than the infrastructure, the scope for a player now is broader. The Assam Cricket Association has left no stone unturned in nurturing talent. The infrastructure, too, is in place. There are academies now. However, the number of tournaments and matches is far from adequate in the state,” Parag says.