Left-arm spinners not wanted

By Vijay Lokapally

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 21. Left-arm spinners are not wanted in the scheme of things drafted by the Indian team management, not convinced of their ability to be matchwinners. The message has been coming through loud and clear for almost two seasons now. And there is none to take up their cause because the skipper himself appears to have little faith in this variety of attack.

Sunil Joshi, Murali Kartik, Rahul Sanghvi, Venkatapathy Raju, Nilesh Kulkarni have been tried at different stages in the last one year and have been quickly discarded too, signs of desperation more than a comment on their potential. Some, however, have been allowed staggered breaks to prove their worth and some have suffered in silence.

Joshi, one remembers vividly, had Mohammad Azharuddin and Sachin Tendulkar in a trance on the tour of England in 1996. Both raved about the loop Joshi possessed as he beat them repeatedly in the `nets'. But these very cricketers, during their captaincy tenure, soon lost faith in Joshi, who has since been in and out of the squad even though he has been on a few long tours, again bowling more in the `nets' than in matches.

Raju too can rightly claim to have been given the raw deal, for he was always dropped after bowling well. But he is not the man to grumble. Neither is Kartik, who was not allowed to settle by Sourav Ganguly. The skipper had a liking for Joshi but the selectors would not budge and insisted on having a player of their choice, which happened to be Kartik. In the tussle, the sufferers were Joshi and Kartik. Now, even the selectors have ignored Kartik.

An appalling situation was reached when the Indians played three left-arm spinners in three Tests against the Australians at home- beginning with Sanghvi at Mumbai, Raju at Kolkata and Kulkarni at Chennai. One more Test and Kartik might have gained a recall. And now there is none in a side of 15 for the tour to South Africa.

How can anyone justify such inconsistent selection? Players like Marvan Atapattu, Ricky Ponting, Inzamam-ul-Haq were protected and pushed after their initial failures and all three are now firmly established in their teams. They survived because of the backing from their selectors.

But the system in India has rarely encouraged such policies because the selectors seem so unsure. Evidence can be seen in the inclusion of Deep Dasgupta, who was picked essentially because his name was recommended by Rodney Marsh. Not because the selectors were convinced he is good, which, in any case, he looks. As good as Ajay Ratra even though Nayan Mongia, the best in the trade of wicketkeeping, continues to languish. If attitude is being cited by all selectors as the reason for keeping Mongia out, even though none of them has bothered to speak to him on the subject, the same holds true for Kartik, the Railways left-arm spinner with no godfather. If Kartik has an attitude problem, why is it that no selector has spoken to the young man, who has the potential, but no platform to test it now.

Sanghvi's case has been the worst. If he is being unfairly branded as a tourist, the blame lies with the team management. How come five selectors, all past players of repute at national and international level, pick a man they trust would deliver but the team management views the same bowler differently and snubs him and the selectors by not playing him even once.

Sanghvi, Kartik, Joshi are bowlers of the same kind, from different States but with an entirely different approach to the job, They have, however, one thing in common-their association with Bishan Singh Bedi, one of the finest left-arm spinners ever. At some point or other, on more occasions than one can remember, they have sought his assistance to sort their problems. And their lies the problem.

``I feel sorry for them. Have they committed a crime by coming to me for help? Is this why they're being punished? What is their crime I would like to know? Are they inferior to other bowlers? Are they incurring the wrath of the authorities by coming close to me? Why should they be victimised for my criticism of the Board and its policies? Hang me. Punish me, but please have a heart as far as these boys are concerned,'' said Bedi.

Bedi agreed the selectors and the past team managements have treated the left-arm spinners in the country most shabbily. ``I am aghast at the way these people have been destroying the confidence of the left-arm spinners. Whatever their worth, Sunil (Joshi), Rahul (Sanghvi) and Kartik have been treated very shabbily. I don't understand why do the selectors pick them at all if they don't have faith in them. What are these selectors and the team management trying to achieve by ignoring the claims of the left-arm spinners. I am not advocating who they should pick but when they do pick one at least give him a fair deal,'' thundered Bedi.

The former great did not agree that left-arm spinners had no place. ``How can anyone say that? Bowlers like Vinoo Mankad, (Dilip) Doshi, (Padmakar) Shivalkar, Bapu (Nadkarni), Maninder (Singh) served with distinction in different eras. I am sure left-arm spinners have as much important role to play as a leg- spinner or an off-spinner,'' Bedi said.

Ganguly's lack of faith in left-arm spinners, according to Maninder, comes from the fact that he is himself a good player of spin. ``Sourav plays left-arm spinners with ease and that's the reason I believe he has shown no faith in Joshi or Sanghvi or Kartik,'' asserts Maninder, a quality bowler who finished his career quite early.

But Bedi dismissed this argument ``if that was the case, then Ganguly should have more faith in Agarkar because he can't play fast bowlers well.''

``There's also this tendency,'' Maninder pointed out ``to deny the bowler what he wants. He won't get the field he likes and would often have to bowl according to the dictats of the captain. We don't give our spinners the freedom of setting their own field and bowling a line of their choice.''

Bedi, a great motivator, pointed out how New Zealand groomed Daniel Vettori. Elsewhere, one can see how Nicky Boje, Paul Adams, Phil Tufnell were supported by their team managements. Lack of opportunities could not have been a case for them. Now Neil McGarrell is being backed solidly by the West Indian selectors. But in the land of slow men, left-arm spinners are struggling to make an impact.

Former Test all-rounder Ravi Shastri was critical of the present lot. Even though he agreed there was a place for left-arm spinners in both the forms of cricket, Shastri emphasised that there was not one bowler worth getting into the Indian team today. ``No one is good enough to get into the playing eleven. So it would be pointless carrying a passenger. A left-arm spinner can be very effective no doubt because the ball goes away from the batsman but then if there's no decent bowler around, I would rather encourage a leg-spinner because he belongs to a rare breed. Even a half-decent leggie would be more effective in my opinion,'' said Shastri.

Left to Bedi, only spinners who do not rely on use of the elbow should be encouraged, the left-arm spinners obviously not falling in this category. He pleaded for the cause of the left-arm spinners. ``Don't discourage them. Let the selection be on merit and give them a fair chance to prove their worth. If you're convinced they're not good enough, throw them out of the system completely. But if they have even five per cent ability, we must try to utilise them. It adds to the variety,'' Bedi said.

Meanwhile, Joshi, Sanghvi, Kartik, all continue to work hard, each charting his comeback trail. In the career of these three left-arm spinners, the comeback toil holds a special place.

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