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No silly point, this!
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Sourav Ganguly, the man behind the now famous Indian huddle, has led the team to some inspiring triumphs. But the skipper is in no mood to rest on his laurels. As a new season dawns, the boys in blue gear up for some more clean sweeps
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— Photos: Sampath Kumar G.P.
AFTER A hard training session in the fitness camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) last Friday, Sourav Ganguly was just catching his breath. Beads of sweat still trickled down his forehead. But as fans fell over themselves trying to get autographs, his face broke into a smile.
It looks like the coming days will be demand more from him. A fresh season is about to begin with the Asia Cup, at Sri Lanka next month.
Fate has been mighty kind to Ganguly - he has led India to a record 15 Test victories and in the one-dayers, the Nat west Trophy triumph and a runner-up tag in the World Cup are additional nuggets in his leadership profile. However, the skipper is keen to move on.
"It is a long season and I expect the team to give their best," Ganguly said before leaving for Kolkata by the evening flight. "We have to win. We have worked hard at this fitness camp. I have a role to play and I want to do my best."
Team India may be on the move but Virender Sehwag added to the opening blues when he insisted that he was a middle-order batsman. Ganguly clarifies, "Sehwag said that as long as it is going good for the team, he will open. He has done well as an opener for the team and I don't see him coming down in the middle-order."
Ganguly may have opted for Yuvraj as the first choice to partner Sehwag, but the captain had some words of encouragement for Akash Chopra. "He (Akash) has done well but there is always competition in Indian batting. Akash will definitely be a part of the squad," Ganguly said.
The last season has left Ganguly with a heady feeling. A 144 at Brisbane set the tone for the 1-1 drawn Test series against Australia and the 2-1 Test series victory over Pakistan were career highs. "Beating Pakistan in their own ground was special. Doing well against Australia was also great. In Australia— of course, it was Steve Waugh's last series— we wanted to prove that we can fight against the best and we did it," he says.
India may challenge Australia in Tests but in the one-dayers, the gap seems huge. "We will have to bridge that gap. We will have to do it over a period of time; let's see how we do against them in this season," Ganguly said.
Bonding and bonhomie now mark Team India's march. Ganguly conceded that it involved thought and effort to trigger bear hugs and backslaps, not to mention the now famous Indian huddle after the fall of every rival wicket.
"We make a conscious effort to have a happy dressing room. That is the way to go forward. The key to our success has been our talent and the players' ability to play together. Our youngsters are assured of a fair run in the team. That way, you get the best out of them," he said.
Ganguly has his reasons for the pat-youth-and-get-results philosophy. In the early 1990s, he toured Australia as part of the National squad and was dropped without a fair trial in the one-dayers. And insinuations about his attitude did hurt. Ever since those days of distress, the Indian captain has made it a point to give youngsters a chance in the spotlight. "It has worked for the team," he urges.
The man, who forced Lords to shed its stiff upper lip and break into smiles, after his century on Test debut in 1996, admitted that he had to gradually strike a balance between captaincy and batting. "Captaincy is hard work but at some stage you have to learn to do it. You have to keep it separate from batting, or else you will lose track of both. At some stage, captaincy does affect everybody but once you learn to balance the two, you settle down," Ganguly said. His 4586 Test runs and a 9309 aggregate in one-dayers will vouch for that.
The season ahead, with stints in the Asia Cup and the ICC Mini World Cup will be followed by Tests against Australia and South Africa. However, the skipper can rest easy that a potent bowling arsenal is revving to its potential. "Anil Kumble and Harbhajan are probably two of the World's best spinners and our fast bowlers are getting better. We now have a good bowling unit," Ganguly says. On spearhead Zaheer Khan's fitness worries, Ganguly says, "We want Zaheer to get fitter and stronger and he knows that. Trainer Gregory Allen King is working on him and I'm sure he will get fit."
Ganguly believes that the Indian batting will remain strong. However there are worries of the middle-order quartet of Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman and Ganguly (who are in the same age-group) bowing out a few seasons after the 2007 World Cup. Does Ganguly ever fear the quartet's absence? "In India, batting is never a problem. I know that everybody is replaceable and in the next four, five years, may be after the World Cup, we will definitely have batsmen who will take up the responsibility," the ever-optimistic skipper says.
He is now banking on his team to keep the momentum going. Meanwhile, the flight to Kolkata is waiting. His family beckons. And Ganguly needs that spell of peace before the new season dawns with all its rapture. The field lies awaiting.
K.C. VIJAYA KUMAR
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