So Anil Kumble follows Sourav Ganguly into retirement. It cannot be long before Rahul David follows suit with VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar having a little longer left.
The five of them have shaped Indian cricket for over 15 years and have been responsible for some of the team's greatest performances such as the series win against Australia in 2001, the drawn series in Australia in 2008 and away series wins in the West Indies and England.
Kumble has chosen the perfect time to retire - his body has given up even though he is still mentally ready and willing to keep going. His final overs were typical of the man - not much spin but enough bounce and that unplayable straight one. He can retire happy in the knowledge that he gave everything he had to the game and always put the team first. He looked embarrassed by the attention he received but it was well deserved. If the BCCI have any sense (and I'm not holding my breath) he will be kept involved in the development of India's young players as his experience and sense of fair play are priceless.
MS Dhoni has inherited a team that are in transition and can still beat the best team in the world. The efforts of the Fab Five as they are known in India have seen the team develop over the past decade into world beaters. Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina are two of the players waiting to get into the team and have the talent to do very well. The next year will be an interesting and occasionally difficult time for India but they have the talent to keep challenging the best in the world and MS Dhoni appears to have the backing of everyone in the dressing room.
Showing posts with label Anil Kumble. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Anil Kumble. Show all posts
Tuesday, 4 November 2008
Saturday, 11 October 2008
Aussies in India
After a month of hype and build-up the series between India and Australia has started. The first two days have been tightly fought and the series looks like it may live up to the hype.
Ponting was magnificent on day one. His 123 was exactly what the team needed and just as importantly what he needed. His average of 12.7 in India has been well documented but let's remember that he missed the last series in 2004 and the series in 2001 was before he became the brilliant player that he is now. He was disciplined but not scared of playing his shots. I think he'll end up with plenty more runs in this series and on current form is likely to end up with the most runs in the history of the game.
Day two was the Hussey show. His ability to minimise risk and set up games for Australia is almost freakish and a test average of 70 is pretty much unbelievable. He doesn't play in the classical attcking way that we've come to expect from Australia but is effective anyway. Having had to wait so long for a chance at test level it's nice to see him doing so well.
India were average in the field apart from Zaheer Khan who got five wickets. Kumble started off badly with the ball but came back well and was unlucky not to have picked up any wickets. His captaincy was by the numbers, which may work against lesser teams but you need to have flair against Australia. A couple of odd bowling changes or field positions for a few overs may get you a wicket.
Ponting was magnificent on day one. His 123 was exactly what the team needed and just as importantly what he needed. His average of 12.7 in India has been well documented but let's remember that he missed the last series in 2004 and the series in 2001 was before he became the brilliant player that he is now. He was disciplined but not scared of playing his shots. I think he'll end up with plenty more runs in this series and on current form is likely to end up with the most runs in the history of the game.
Day two was the Hussey show. His ability to minimise risk and set up games for Australia is almost freakish and a test average of 70 is pretty much unbelievable. He doesn't play in the classical attcking way that we've come to expect from Australia but is effective anyway. Having had to wait so long for a chance at test level it's nice to see him doing so well.
India were average in the field apart from Zaheer Khan who got five wickets. Kumble started off badly with the ball but came back well and was unlucky not to have picked up any wickets. His captaincy was by the numbers, which may work against lesser teams but you need to have flair against Australia. A couple of odd bowling changes or field positions for a few overs may get you a wicket.
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