The Hindu : Sport : A tough act to follow

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jan 10, 2006

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A tough act to follow

One of the main aspects of good captaincy is to relinquish the responsibilities at the right moment, says Javagal Srinath.

Fans of the Indian cricket team should be feeling elated seeing their side scaling up to the No. 2 slot in the world ratings. But there are some serious indications that ICC point system is far from accurate and do not necessarily reflect the true status of the teams.

But then, despite doubts about the accuracy of World ranking, Team India has done extremely well against the backdrop of the mayhem it went through in the recent past. The now infamous public spat between the then skipper Sourav Ganguly and the coach Greg Chappell, the speculative news of factionism within the team, the change of guard in the BCCI and its never-ending legal battles were enough to rattle the confidence of any team. And as if that were not enough, the unceremonious dumping of the ex-captain from the squad followed by his selection back in the team looked too much for the team to digest.

But in the midst of all, Team India has managed a series of laudable wins in both forms of the game. The credit should firstly go to the new captain Rahul Dravid and of course to the senior members of the team along with coach Chappell.

In the sub-continent, captains hardly ever get a chance to make a graceful exit. There was hardly any captain who made the right statements and passed the baton on to his successor with dignity. I can understand that there are too many things at stake for a quitting Indian captain but the side-effects of a disgraceful departure is always worse.

Timing is crucial

One of the main aspects of good captaincy is to relinquish the responsibilities at the right moment. One can take the example of former South African captain Kepler Wessels handing over the reins to Hansie Cronje. England captain Mike Atherton chose the right time to pass the mantle on to Nasser Hussain, and Hussain in turn cleared the stage for Michael Vaughan. The Australians naming Ricky Pointing as future captain while Steve Waugh was still at the helm was also an illustration of classic progression in cricket.

Captaincy is a time-honoured position. Ganguly had many such opportunities where he could have laid down the captaincy. It would have held him in good stead. Instead, he chose to be sacked by the not so consistent selectors. Indeed it was a self-inflicted tragedy on Ganguly's illustrious career as a captain. His downfall from the captaincy has also had a snow balling effect on his career as a cricketer. A successful captain till the last season is now searching for a suitable place for himself in world cricket.

Away wins all-important

Although, the results of the home series were important, Dravid must be aware of the significance of winning abroad. The current team management has appeared to be more daring and upright in dealing with issues. Right from selecting the squad to picking the final eleven and even attempts to bring flexibility into the batting order, shows the emerging new pattern of operations in the team.

The biggest gain in the batting order changes was the emergence of Irfan Pathan as a mature batsman. The recent results will testify that the current team is heading in the right direction.

Some of the senior members will certainly endorse that a reality check can only be performed when the team starts its campaign on foreign soil.

The Ganguly-Wright duo has set a high precedence for the new combination of Dravid and Chappell to emulate. For the new pair, the task is pretty tough in the sense that nothing less than a ticket to the final of the forthcoming World Cup and levelling a series in Australia would equal their efforts. But let's not forget that Dravid was the main architect of the legacy left behind by the earlier coach and the captain.

The Pakistan series could be emotionally draining for Team India. While any match-winner emerging out of this series will be feted as a national hero, dismal performances on the other hand could well bring the curtains down on some players.

More than Dravid, it's a testing time for Chappell. Although the Indians came out with flying colours on the previous visit to Pakistan, this tour would be different ball game altogether. — PTI

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