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Fourteen years ago, Robin Uthappa, a teenage batsman who came with the reputation of being Karnatakas batting future, replaced J Arunkumar in the state side before the start of the domestic season. Arunkumar, a senior player and part of Ranji Trophy-winning sides in 1995-96, 1997-98 and 1998-99, was aggrieved and turned professional, playing for Assam and Goa before retiring in 2008. Four years later, when he took on a coaching role with Karnataka, Arunkumar found himself in the same position as the selectors were in 2002-03, having to take the brave call of dropping seniors.This decision, Arunkumar believes, has led to the renaissance of Karnataka cricket, taking them from an almost there side to back-to-back Ranji Trophy titles in 2013-14 and 2014-15. It is a process he is prepared to stick to as Karnataka look to reclaim the title they lost in 2015-16. They have begun promisingly this season, with a win and a draw from two matches.It was tough, but [there were] very conscious decisions to replace senior players like KB Pawan, Ganesh Satish and a few others, Arunkumar, who is now head coach, told ESPNcricinfo. That call was a must then because the team management was mindful of the bigger picture. By that I mean, by 26-27 if a cricketer wasnt playing for India A at least, chances of the national cap were remote. We didnt want a situation where a player is just happy playing state cricket and then going away. It was a bold decision we took when asked to present a roadmap for the state team, one that has worked wonderfully so far.Arunkumar said the decision to part with senior players put tremendous pressure on the youngsters, with some of them scrutinised on a match-by-match basis. When Arunkumar took over as batting coach before the 2012-13 season, KL Rahul was not a regular in the side. Karun Nair, Mayank Agarwal and Shreyas Gopal had not made their first-class debuts. Manish Pandey was far from national reckoning and Uthappa was struggling with form and fitness after being left out of the India team.Rahul, for example, made his first-class debut in 2010, but was dropped after three matches. It took him two more years to re-establish himself. Nair, too, failed in his first two matches. There was pressure not to give more chances, but as coach, you have to go by instinct, and I went with my heart, Arunkumar said. Even someone like Karun Nair did well in only his third game.A lot of times I have seen, and I say it from experience, that some players are slow starters. As a coach you have to give them the confidence. You need to be transparent and straightforward, you cant be manipulative and get away; you will be sorted otherwise. We were in fact extremely lucky to have a core group in such quick time that the two championship wins brought many of them in national focus. The national focus brought with it new challenges. The price Karnataka have paid for being so successful over the past couple of seasons is that they have lost players to the national or India A teams at various stages. While it is a matter of pride, Arunkumar said the challenge lay in handling fame and remaining grounded.Luckily were in a good position where those who have played for India realise the need to not take things lightly when they return, Arunkumar said. That is the challenge for us as coaches to bring out the best in them. There is an inclination to not give 100% sometimes, but we have given everybody ownership and authority to take their decisions, else coaches will be made to look like prison wardens. Thats what we were taught in 1995-96 when we won the Ranji Trophy.In 2015-16, Karnataka suffered from the after-effects of another aspect of national-team ambitions. Senior players Uthappa and CM Gautam had a small misunderstanding over their roles in the side because of the split wicket-keeping policy that stemmed from Uthappas desire to press his case as a keeper-batsman for India, a role he had fulfilled with Kolkata Knight Riders.CM probably missed out on an IPL contract because of that, but all that is in the past now, Arunkumar insisted. CM lost a bit of credibility because no one saw him as a wicketkeeper, but he did it for the team. Robin himself realised it was affecting team chemistry. So this season we decided to let specialists handle their own jobs.With the team set to remain on the road for the next three months, Arunkumar believes bonding between the players will be vital when wins are elusive. Theyre all mostly friends even outside the cricket ground, he said. They plan bike rides, movies, treks and outings during the off season. We all regularly meet for dinners during the season too. Were even allowed to have a couple of beers from time to time to celebrate victories. As a coach, you cant be imposing and set team rules and curfews. The boys understand where to draw the line, so its fine. Custom Nike Minnesota Twins Jerseys . How great will be revealed in the next couple of days at the board of governors meeting in Pebble Beach, Calif. Custom Nike Atlanta Braves Jerseys .C. -- After a listless first half, the Washington Wizards used a big third quarter run to beat the Charlotte Bobcats Bradley Beal scored 21 points and the Wizards used a 17-0 run in the third quarter to take control of what had been a close game and beat the Bobcats 97-83 on Tuesday night. https://www.customnikebaseballjerseys.com/171n-custom-nike-washington-nationals-jerseys-baseball.html . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in. 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I dont care if Roberson and Coprich were in the game -- (the Redbirds) did a great job against our defense and they did a really good job defending our offense.We also know that they have shared the league title with us the past two seasons and thats why this is such a huge game because this is a team thats perennially one of the best teams in the league.Jake Kolbe, who has since replaced Roberson as Illinois States starting quarterback, is expected to play after a sore throwing shoulder kept him sidelined for most of the first half last weekend. The 18th-ranked Redbirds (2-2, 0-1) tried to get by without him at Indiana State, but coach Brock Spack had to get the sophomore in the game after his team fell behind.Kolbe nearly led the Redbirds back from a 24-7 deficit in the second half, completing 25 of 32 passes for 258 yards and three touchdowns. He was pushing them toward a game-winning score before Indiana States sack and forced fumble clinched a 34-31 win.Obviously, you know, the quarterback is what drives everything and (Kolbe) has thrown the ball well, Spack said. I was surprised with how well he did throw the ball last week -- I didnt think hed throw the ball like that. Hes tough.Hes going to be a really good player before he leaves here.The Redbirds, who hope to avoid their first three-game losing streak since 2008 -- before Spacks arrival -- have used a committee approach to replace Coprich in the backfield. Sophomore George Moreira (240 yards, three TDs) is leading the way, but Illinois State ranks eighth in the MVFC with 161.2 rushing yards per game.Top-ranked NDSU allowed 450 passing yards in a 50-44 overtime win over Eastern Washington on Sept. 10 before tightening things up and surrendering just 231 total yards in an impressive 23-21 victory at FBS then-No. 13 Iowa on Sept. 17. 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The Bison are also relying heavily on senior running back King Frazier, who has totaled 217 yards on 37 attempts while scoring a touchdown in all three games.The Redbirds easily lead the MVFC in pass defense, allowing just 165.8 yards per game, but they dropped to fifth against the run (113.0) after letting the Sycamores gain 208 last weekend.I know not everyone wants to hear it, but weve got a lot of inexperience at some spots and its rearing its ugly head sometimes in these tight games, Spack said. The future of this team is going to be really good but I want to be good right now.Spacks squad could endure more growing pains against an NDSU team that has won 50 of 54 home games since 2010. The Bison also have won four straight and six of the eight all-time meetings, including a 28-10 victory in the last regular-season matchup at the Fargodome in November 2013.This is why we play -- for a chance to compete in the Missouri Valley Conference -- and as everyone knows anybody can beat anybody on any given week, Klieman said. 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No. 20 Youngstown State (2-1), meanwhile, will try to move to 3-0 at home against South Dakota (1-2). ' ' '