The Hindu : Sport : ‘Captaincy is a lot about having a passion for tactics’

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‘Captaincy is a lot about having a passion for tactics’

S. Dinakar

— Photo: K. Pichumani

THE ART OF CAPTAINCY: Mike Brearley reckons that captaining in Twenty20 cricket would be a lot more challenging than leading a side in one-dayers.

Chennai: Mike Brearley is a qualified psychoanalyst. He is also among the game’s legendary captains.

Brearley’s strategic skills and leadership qualities transformed England into a formidable force from the mid to late 70s. Captaincy was always his strongest attribute whether leading Cambridge, Middlesex or England.

The 66-year-old Brearley retains his passion for the game. A part of the English media covering the India-England series, he shared his thoughts with The Hindu.

What is captaincy? How would you define it?

You cannot really define captaincy. Can you define female beauty? I think captaincy is a lot about having a passion for tactics…getting the best out of people. Each cricketer is different and you first need to understand a player, his strengths and his weaknesses.

I don’t like the word man-management, which is more about sitting in a chair and sending out instructions. Captaining a cricket team has several more dimensions to it. A captain has to reach out to his men, anticipate, create and react to situations on the field. For every match you have a different plan. And for every plan you have alternate plans. This could change between every session, hour, and over.

You were admired for the manner in which you motivated the players…

It’s a lot about human engagement. There are certain basics. You must not try to humiliate a player in front of others. You got to be honest with a player without putting him down too much. You should try and encourage him whenever you have a chance. You must remember and recognise his contribution in a team meeting.

Ricky Ponting brought his part-time spinner on since his team was behind on over-rate in Nagpur. Australia had come back strongly in the match but subsequently lost the advantage…

This is ridiculous if it is true. I firstly find it hard to believe that teams are finding it so hard to complete their quota of overs. Look at this (pointing at the field from the press box). Someone is tying his shoe laces and someone else is...

Steve Waugh said something interesting the other day. He suggested that the team should get fined instead of the captain for slow over rates.

In the same Test, M.S. Dhoni asked his pacemen to bowl outside the off-stump with eight fielders on the off-side. Would you advocate such tactics?

The Aussies adopted similar methods against Kevin Pietersen. They blocked Pietersen’s areas of scoring and eventually got him.

I think it is all right to try these tactics in specific situations. A batsman has a greater range of shots on the off-side. I had problems, however, with Ashley Giles (a left-arm spinner) pitching outside the leg-stump from over-the-wicket with a packed on-side field in India some years ago.

How would you assess Pietersen and Dhoni as captains?

In the beginning, I had reservations about Pietersen being given the job. It takes more than a brilliant cricketer to be a good captain. I also thought that captaincy could affect the natural flow of his batting. Those fears have been dispelled now.

I would like to see more of Dhoni but I like the sound of him. He seems to have the respect of his men, which is very important.

Any another captain who impressed you along the way?

I thought Michael Vaughan was a very good captain to begin with. Later on, he tried too many things. Much of these experiments were wasteful.

Greg Chappell once said that the captains were merely playing the pattern in the ODIs...

I think he is right. Captaincy in the one-dayers has become predictable. I think captaining a side in Twenty20 cricket is a lot more challenging since things can change very fast.

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