The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : It's a nice feeling: Kumble

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 11, 2004

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Sport - Cricket

It's a nice feeling: Kumble

By Our Principal Correspondent

DHAKA, DEC. 10. "It is definitely a kind of a relief to get there," said Anil Kumble on going past Kapil Dev's record at the Bangabandhu National Stadium on Friday.

"I was really happy that I could get to 434 at the Eden Gardens. That was a really special moment. My family was there, my wife was there. She could not travel here. But it's a nice feeling to get to 435."

Kumble said there will now be the pressure of expectation of him reaching the 500-wicket mark. "I'll have to put up with that. I just have to go out there and keep getting wickets. But I must say, it's really satisfying. Spinners mature with age. Hopefully there are lot more wickets for me in the future," said Kumble, presently the fifth highest wicket-taker in Test cricket with 436 scalps.

Never the emotional kind

Mentioning that he has never been the emotional kind, Kumble said, "I don't show too many emotions on the field. But I'm really happy with the way things have gone. When I first started I never thought that I would get to this level. I've played with Kapil paaji. My first three or four years were with him, so it's really nice to go past somebody you have looked up to from a young age. To be alongside him and then cross him, after having watched him on TV at one stage, is really good."

About him being written off from time to time, Kumble said, "Critics are always there to say things when somewhere along the line you haven't been doing well. I think that's something which I don't really worry about. If I thought too much of whatever people said then I wouldn't be here. My job is to go out there, play, give 100 per cent. The rest will take care of itself. I'm not there to prove anything to anybody. At this point of time I think I have proved enough, and ultimately I need to go out there and prove to myself that I am still capable of achieving the results that I am capable of."

I am different

About criticism that he does not turn his leg-break, he said, "As long as I am defined as a bowler I am happy. At the end of the day a bowler is there to get wickets and a batsman is there to get runs. How he does that is immaterial. I am different from the orthodox leg-spinner. There is a feeling that you will be successful only if you do things a certain way, but I don't agree with that. I'm happy that even with my style I've been able to get the results. At the end of the day it doesn't really matter what style you bowl."

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