T20 - big team game; wicket valued differently: John Wright

The news of Suresh Raina coming to represent Uttar Pradesh in the group stages of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2016 took little time to reach the ears of cricket-starved people of Cuttack, bringing in crowds to the stadium. Meanwhile, presence of another former international cricketer and, as an Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) official put it, possibly 'India's most loved foreigner' - John Wright remained a low-key affair. But that's how he likes it. "No, it's alright. I'm satisfied in the background," he said refusing an offer to be felicitated at the DRIEMS Stadium.

What's your purpose of coming to Cuttack?

I've come here since some of our (Mumbai Indians) boys are playing here. (I'm here) to monitor their performances. We've got an established squad. We have got our core squad. There are one or two players we are interested in. We see up all that and give a report to the management and they make the decision. So we just provide the information.

Also, not many would know, but as the coach of the Indian team this is the ground where we played our first ODI. It was against Zimbabwe. It is also the venue where we faced off against New Zealand, my home country in 2003. It's lovely to come back - to see a lot of grounds and people. A lot of players I used to coach are now coaches. So it's a nice trip. I'm very glad to be here.

What do you look for in a T20 cricketer, which is different from a player in ODIs?

There are different skill-sets . You've got to have a lot of power in T20. Having power is important. You have to pick quick singles. Fielding is hugely important. Every run is important. Bowlers have a different mindset now because you have only 24 balls. Within that you have to get a balance between attacking and defending. It is all in the minds of the bowlers. You have a new set of problems to solve when you are playing T20. You don't have to value your wicket. You value it, but in a different way. It is very much a team game. You cannot play for yourself in T20. It's really, really important that you play for the team. If it's not your day, someone has to chip in. It is a very big team game. If you take time because you need time, it cannot be. Always consider the team first. It is very important.

But players adapt (in different formats). I'm doing a lot of coaching. The young players now want to play T20. They watch T20, they watch a lot of it on television and it suits some of them. It is a fast-medium game. The society is sort of fast. It suits the youngsters. It suits some players more than others. It is a natural thing.

What all factors are considered while picking a player during IPL auction? Is it more than just their form?

It differs from franchise to franchise. What you find now is that a lot of preparation goes into those decisions, a lot of thought and then a lot of economics. You have a salary cap and each team is looking sometimes for a different player to fill their gaps and we are all looking for that young talent. There are a lot of decisions going into the players that we pick.

Sometimes it is hard to predict because auctions can be a funny thing. If sometimes there is a player that you want, no other team wants it. That's a good situation to be in. And there are situations where there is huge interest. If that happens then you have to balance how much money you can spend and who else do you need. I thought (Josh) Hazlewood was a good buy for 50 (lakh). He is not with us now. But I thought he was a really good buy. It's sometimes hard to predict (at what price a player is going to be sold). There are times when two teams will keep at it and the stakes go high for a player. There was a lot of interest from Hyderabad for (Glenn) Maxwell when we bought him (For $1 million). He was lucky that two teams were interested in him. That's why the planning was important. All the players understand that when leading into an auction if they perform well, they become the 'talked about player'. That helps. There are quite a lot of things. We're really happy with our squad. We've had good three years since I've been here. Ricky (Ponting) with the new team did a good job, made good signings. I just want to carry that on.

What's your take on too many specialist coaches in one team. Does that help the player or confuses him?

In the end in T20, because I'm only talking about T20, each country has its own ideals about those things (too many specialist coaches). It's all changed abit since I coached. But that happens. When I look at our coaching staff, we have Ricky, who has got huge experience and a great role model. We have got Jonty (Rhodes). We have got Robin (Singh), who has been there with the squad since the start and then Shane Bond. Anil (Kumble) is not there in the squad any more. But every team has its own ideals. In IPL every franchise is different. We are very passionate about our team and care about our players. We try and provide a very good environment to the players.

What according to you are India's chances in the upcoming World T20?

Any T20 competition is hard to predict. I think India has a really good chance. India's big advantage is that they are playing at home. That is a good advantage. If you look at the season and how it is set up, it's perfect leading into the T20 World Cup. Now we have the domestic T20, a series against Australia. They are a tough opposition in Australian conditions. The playing programme is a good build-up to the world cup.

How do you look at the Associate Nations and countries like Bangladesh?

That's the beauty of T20. There are teams that won't be competitive in 50-overs, but will be competitive in T20. One odd upset here and there can change the balance of the tournament. That is why it makes it unpredictable. One of the advantages of teams like Bangladesh and Afghanistan is that they are used to these conditions.

For the Indian fans what is more important is that they have this domestic T20 to watch, the Australia series, the World T20 and then the IPL. Plenty to look forward to.

Do you think that will saturate the viewers?

The way the game is going, I don't think there is any saturation. There are people watching. The interest is huge. The game has changed. There is another main course on the menu, which is T20 cricket.

Speaking of exciting cricket, New Zealand have displayed an interesting avatar lately. Did you see that coming when you quit as the coach?

Yes. I've worked with a lot of these young kids when they were in the New Zealand A teams and the Under-19 team. I knew that New Zealand are going to have a good period of cricket. So that doesn't surprise me. They are playing an exciting brand of cricket under Brendon (McCullum). That is what he has personally brought and encouraged. It's a very good bunch of cricketers that has come through and matured. They are going to have a very good period of cricket in the next five to six years. I think it's one of the best New Zealand teams, apart from the one that I played in and the one that (Stephen) Fleming led.