The Hindu : Sport : A right choice

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Nov 18, 2007
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Sport

A right choice

Peter Roebuck

Anil Kumble was the right choice to lead India in the forthcoming Test series. Apart from anything else legitimate contenders were thin on the ground. The idea of going back to Sourav Ganguly was preposterous whilst Sachin Tendulkar wanted to focus on his batting and Rahul Dravid recently stood down. Putting Indian cricket entirely in the hands of Mahendra Singh Dhoni might have killed the golden goose before she hatched her allotment of eggs.

Kumble was the correct nomination. His greatest strength is that he serves the game and his team and not himself. It is not always the case. Cricketers may not say these things publicly but they know them. Nor is the singular spinner merely a last resort.

A fighter

To regard him in that light is to patronise a fine competitor and a substantial cricketer. Strong captains communicate character and Kumble has an abundance of it. The veteran from Karnataka is a fighter to his boot straps, an aggressor from tip to toe, a thinker and also an action man, at once a librarian and a warrior.

He is also a gentleman. It is hard to recall a single instance of bad sportsmanship from him. Yet, he has suffered defeats and setbacks, has been dropped and ignored, has endured a hundred butter-fingered fieldsmen, has had a thousand leg-before appeals rejected, has endured betting scandals and has been left untouched. Come what may he goes back to his mark and tries again. If they cannot follow him, the players will not follow anyone.

India’s fortunes are in safe hands. The idea that Kumble has come too late to leadership and therefore will hover on the brink of the action is fallacious.

Sooner or later a man reaches a point where he no longer bothers about appearances or criticisms. A thick skin develops and then the performer is prepared to listen to the voices inside his head, the whispers that have become his most reliable source of advice.

Will command respect

Far from being inhibited by leadership, Kumble will be inspired by it. And he will command respect amongst comrades and opponents. After all he has proved himself as a fair, uncomplaining and relentless fighter.

Kumble’s stint as national captain may be short but it will be interesting. His first two series present formidable challenges. The forthcoming encounters with Pakistan will examine both the strength and temperament of his players.

No matches are more passionately followed than contests between these neighbours. Moreover the visitors will be eager to bounce back after defeat at the hands of an improving South African outfit. But Kumble is familiar with the intensity of these confrontations and his team will display respect for the game and the opponent even as they strive to take the spoils.

If anything Kumble’s sagacity will be even more important in Australia. Powerful teams have a way of disrupting the thinking of their opponents. In the space of a few days Sri Lanka omitted their most incisive pace bowler and conceded first use of an admittedly greenish pitch. To make matters worse a former Sri Lanka captain and current opener described the selectors as “Muppets led by a joker.”

Kumble will not lose his head. He knows the game and sticks to the basics. Under his influence, India will choose its six best batsmen and four most dangerous bowlers. It is not as easy as it sounds. Captains facing fierce opposition often try to get the best of both worlds and end up compromised. Kumble must hope that his players stay fit and support him with deeds as well as words.

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