Former cricketer Ajay Jadeja was in town recently to talk about all things sports, education and the importance of redefining the traditional Indian education system to make space for something that we have been told is the end of the world but is actually not — failure. t2 caught up with Jadeja for a quick chat on the sidelines of SIP Abacus and Athlead PE Program present admissiontree.in’s Conversations 2024, partnered by t2, at ITC Royal Bengal on September 6. Excerpts.
You’re back in Calcutta after a while and for a very important session tonight. What is it about interacting with students that you love?
When it comes to sports, the nicest thing about it is that you can now actually mentally play the game because physically you’re too old to run around and try and do those things with the students anymore. So we live through the kids. You can get someone to dive and catch a ball for you and that feels great. And then when you show them how it’s done, it’s almost like a new form of joy for yourself. It’s like living mentally what you can’t do physically.
What are your most cherished memories from your student days?
Oh, there are so many! The most wonderful time in your life is when you are in school! I didn’t like it back then, let me be honest, but now when I look back and think about it, it was probably the most blissful time. Can you imagine: going to the same place at the same designated time, having 20-30 friends in your class, then having 500 friends in the whole school that you interact with; then you play, you meet new people, you learn new things — it’s the most wonderful time. Every day is exciting, every day there is growth, and every day gives you something new, which keeps decreasing as you grow older or you repeat things. Like when you’re travelling to a new city for the first time and you think it’s great but then when you’ve been there 100 times, it’s not that exciting anymore. Because the first time everything was a discovery. So childhood is a process of discovery, too. That’s how I look at it.
The thing about this country is that the term ‘school’ is now used very loosely. There are IB schools nowadays, and there are schools with air-conditioners and then there are schools with no teachers. There’s a whole spectrum in this country. So I think it all depends on where you are and what you’re taught. It’s different for everyone. X will not have the experiences of Y and vice versa, right? Also, there’s too much competition these days. I’ve even been to schools where they don’t have a sports ground! I honestly don’t know how that can be allowed. It shouldn’t be. Because as far as education is concerned, the field is as important as the classroom or books. And if some kids don’t get those facilities, how will they experience life through it? It’s honestly beyond me.
Speaking of the field, how has golf contributed to your life?
Golf has done a couple of good things for me. First, like I said, it has allowed me to play sports mentally if I can’t do it physically as much as I would like. And it’s not that physically demanding a sport, so you can stretch it for many years beyond your cricket days. It gives you the same juices or adrenaline rush or happiness with a successful shot, or the same sadness and frustration with a bad shot you play. Second, it allows you to cope with the lack of a team. Cricket is a team sport but you are alone while playing golf and I think it’s part of the education of life, that you’ve got to deal with whatever life throws at you. We may like things a certain way, like we want to hang out with five friends every evening, or play sports every day, but life doesn’t always allow us that. So golfing is a way of re-training my mind and body and whole ecosystem, really. It allows me to get the pleasure I get from sport, but also trains me how to function on my own.
How did you prepare what you wanted to say to today’s generation?
I believe that education cannot just be a tool you use to get a job. Unfortunately, it has become so, a tool for employment, but it’s much more than that. It’s a tool for not only employment but also for life. So I think education is being restricted in the world, or at least in our world, more towards gearing you for a profession or job or particular skill. But it is something you should use for life. You get a job, but life cannot centre around your job only. Your work-life balance must be in sync. So that is something that anybody who is in the field should think about and see if it works in their favour.
What is the one piece of advice you would like to give young people today?
Make mistakes. And if you’re ready to make mistakes, then you’ll play sports. Because even Tendulkar had to fail 500 times out of 700 innings to get those 100 100s. And sports teaches you to deal with or learn to live with failure as well. Because if everything’s going according to plan and you’re always happy, then you won’t need anything, will you? You need to know how to deal with it when something’s not working. And who’s going to teach you that? Your school won’t. Failure isn’t accepted in school. Failure is accepted in sports. So if you’re ready to make mistakes then you’ll play sports. That’s what I always say.