So, India’s greatest ever match-winner Anil Kumble aka Jumbo is set
to take over as Team India’s coach. A panel comprising his former
teammates Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar has closed
down on the Bengaluru man for the prized job.
Needless to say, Virat Kohli, captain of the Test team has put his money on Kumble and hence, the latter gets the job. Let’s not get into the details of what actually prompted the three wise men to recommend Kumble’s name. Being a sceptic, it’s quite unlikely that Ganguly who has never been held in highest esteem by Kumble would have been comfortable at the choice.
Despite the Prince of Calcutta relying on the former leggie on the field, the latter deep down has had a score to settle with Ganguly. Overlooked in favour of Harbhajan Singh as the mainstay in the spinning department, Kumble has never been friends with Ganguly both on and off the field. Hardly have we seen Kumble showering praises on Dada (as Ganguly is fondly referred to). By the way Kumble was not even shortlisted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) when the latter trimmed the number of applicants.
No snooping on how the panel picked Kumble, but knowing Tendulkar and Laxman’s fondness for Kumble, it was a foregone conclusion that he would beat the rest of the applicants to come up trumps.
In the process, a man with better leadership qualities has been left on the sidelines. And we are talking about Ravi Shastri under whose coaching Team India hasn’t performed disastrously. A team that has got accustomed to Shastri’s way of functioning is all of a sudden left with dealing with a new individual.
Mentoring an Indian Premier League (IPL) side and coaching the Indian cricket team are not two sides of the same coin. When it comes to Indian cricket, the passionate fans outnumber the city-centric loyalty that IPL boasts. And when we talk about Kumble’s success as a captain and a mentor, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) didn’t win a single IPL while Mumbai Indians (MI) won twice but no way can the legend take credit for it. He had the likes of Ricky Ponting, Jonty Rhodes and Robin Singh as part of the support staff.
It’s said that the blueprint that Kumble produced impressed the panel. Now is he talking about the World Cup in 2019? Well, Kumble has only one year to prove his worth and during this period, India plays a lot of test matches mostly on the home soil.
A ‘match-winner’ who has encashed the amicable turning tracks in India couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to show his skills as a coach. But does Kumble have the expertise to guide the team when it is travelling, especially to places like Australia, England and South Africa?
It is precisely in this context that Shastri’s guidance would have come in handy for the team. The former Indian all-rounder has had a good run on difficult tracks facing the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Len Pascoe, Shane Warne, Courtney Walsh and others. The Champion of Champions in the Benson & Hedges World Series in 1984-85 knows a thing or two about countering the challenges one faces abroad.
Shastri for one was the skipper India never had. It’s a pity that despite being the deputy to Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar and Mohammed Azharuddin, he was never trusted as a full-time captain. But even his staunchest of critics would dare not challenge his cricketing brains.
But as things would have it, it’s the King of benign home tracks Kumble who will take charge from Shastri. It remains to be seen how much he delivers as coach, but left to oneself even he would be wondering whether he deserved the job at the expense of somebody like Shastri.
Bad luck Ravi, best wishes Jumbo!
Needless to say, Virat Kohli, captain of the Test team has put his money on Kumble and hence, the latter gets the job. Let’s not get into the details of what actually prompted the three wise men to recommend Kumble’s name. Being a sceptic, it’s quite unlikely that Ganguly who has never been held in highest esteem by Kumble would have been comfortable at the choice.
Despite the Prince of Calcutta relying on the former leggie on the field, the latter deep down has had a score to settle with Ganguly. Overlooked in favour of Harbhajan Singh as the mainstay in the spinning department, Kumble has never been friends with Ganguly both on and off the field. Hardly have we seen Kumble showering praises on Dada (as Ganguly is fondly referred to). By the way Kumble was not even shortlisted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) when the latter trimmed the number of applicants.
No snooping on how the panel picked Kumble, but knowing Tendulkar and Laxman’s fondness for Kumble, it was a foregone conclusion that he would beat the rest of the applicants to come up trumps.
In the process, a man with better leadership qualities has been left on the sidelines. And we are talking about Ravi Shastri under whose coaching Team India hasn’t performed disastrously. A team that has got accustomed to Shastri’s way of functioning is all of a sudden left with dealing with a new individual.
Mentoring an Indian Premier League (IPL) side and coaching the Indian cricket team are not two sides of the same coin. When it comes to Indian cricket, the passionate fans outnumber the city-centric loyalty that IPL boasts. And when we talk about Kumble’s success as a captain and a mentor, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) didn’t win a single IPL while Mumbai Indians (MI) won twice but no way can the legend take credit for it. He had the likes of Ricky Ponting, Jonty Rhodes and Robin Singh as part of the support staff.
It’s said that the blueprint that Kumble produced impressed the panel. Now is he talking about the World Cup in 2019? Well, Kumble has only one year to prove his worth and during this period, India plays a lot of test matches mostly on the home soil.
A ‘match-winner’ who has encashed the amicable turning tracks in India couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to show his skills as a coach. But does Kumble have the expertise to guide the team when it is travelling, especially to places like Australia, England and South Africa?
It is precisely in this context that Shastri’s guidance would have come in handy for the team. The former Indian all-rounder has had a good run on difficult tracks facing the likes of Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Len Pascoe, Shane Warne, Courtney Walsh and others. The Champion of Champions in the Benson & Hedges World Series in 1984-85 knows a thing or two about countering the challenges one faces abroad.
Shastri for one was the skipper India never had. It’s a pity that despite being the deputy to Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar and Mohammed Azharuddin, he was never trusted as a full-time captain. But even his staunchest of critics would dare not challenge his cricketing brains.
But as things would have it, it’s the King of benign home tracks Kumble who will take charge from Shastri. It remains to be seen how much he delivers as coach, but left to oneself even he would be wondering whether he deserved the job at the expense of somebody like Shastri.
Bad luck Ravi, best wishes Jumbo!
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