Why Sachin, Sourav and Laxman should pick Ravi Shastri over Anil Kumble

You can keep sports out of politics, but certainly never politics out of sport. Or so it seems. Cricketing circles are agog with talk that politicians from the ruling BJP are batting for a certain former cricketer to be made coach of the Indian cricket team.

They may or may not have their way, but Indian cricket can certainly do without the extra pressure, particularly at a time when the current Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Anurag Thakur, a rising BJP politician himself, is working hard to inject transparency and responsibility into the system.

BCCI sources are tight lipped about these developments, but grapevine has it that the three-man committee of former Test cricketers Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, with co-ordinator Sanjay Jagdale, responsible for identifying the right coach, has come up with three shortlisted candidates. Their inability to zero in on one person despite much deliberation has vexed the board, which expected a clean and clear choice from the worthies. So much so that the board is now hoping they would at least get some sort of unanimity from Test and T20 captains, Virat Kohli amd Mahendra Singh Dhoni respectively, and from senior players like Rohit Sharma.

It might ultimately come down to a toss-up between two ex-captains: Ravi Shastri and Anil Kumble. Both were outstanding cricketers and performed with much pride and honour for the country. If Kumble was a match-winner on Indian pitches and performed creditably abroad, Shastri’s centuries against the four mean fast bowlers of West Indies was no less inspiring. At his peak, he was one of the best all-rounders in ODI cricket.

Both came up the hard way and know what it is like to battle against the odds. But, being coach of an Indian team of disparate abilities, mindsets, temperaments and backgrounds is no easy task. Accepting that cricketing skills are given, the most crucial aspect of handling an Indian cricket team would be the man-management skills of the coach.

It is in this regard that the eloquent Shastri edges ahead. He has managed the Indian team quite brilliantly and, not just Kohli, but also a Suresh Raina believes that Shastri’s inspiration has had a positive effect on his approach to batting.

Shastri, who has been a television commentator for a number of years and has travelled extensively for the same, has seen almost all the best Indian cricketers from close quarters. He also knows what the opposition cricketers are all about and the skills and threats they pose in various conditions.

The fact that he would have interacted with a number of youngsters in his role as commentator cannot be trivialised either, particularly as the biggest challenge for any coach or captain is to connect with young cricketers from the hinterland. The biggest advantage Shastri brings to the table is that he won’t miss a single trick in the book; he is smart, street sharp and can’t be fooled easily. This would come in handy while giving the captain inputs about opponents, strategies, pitches and playing conditions.

Kumble, outstanding as he was as a cricketer, does not quite match up in these areas. The fact that he, as ICC cricket committee chairman, allowed the apex body to push for a maximum of four fielders outside the circle in the middle overs of ODI cricket is a sore point among spinners who really are India’s strength. This rule allowed five fielders outside the circle only in the final 10 overs and was an advantage only to countries who revel with pace bowlers, not India.

Kumble, some felt, should have seen through the game and not allowed spinners to be so badly comprised during the crucial middle overs. As coach of Indian team, he’d need to lookout for such “sleight of hand” tricks.

Another disturbing aspect of Kumble’s stint with various bodies was that he didn’t stay long enough to soak in the challenges.  He abruptly resigned as chairman of the NCA. A website stated that he had made 10 presentations, but was unable to carry the rest of the team along. He was quoted in his resignation thus: “I had a three-year vision, a holistic approach for the NCA that was not in alignment with the rest of the committee. It didn’t make sense to me to just be a figurehead in this kind of a situation. So I thought it was better that somebody else take over.”

Kumble’s stint as mentor to the Royal Challengers Bangalore too was quite short. He quit to join the Mumbai Indians for the 2013 edition of Indian Premier League (IPL). At that time, Kumble was quoted as saying: “I have made this decision (to quit RCB) to take up a new assignment based on an opportunity that my company, Tenvic has been offered.”

Yet, by December 2015, he quit Mumbai Indians too. These come across as ironic as in his playing days, Kumble was a fighter to the core. He did not often have his way on the field, but fought tooth and nail to gain the admiration of fans and opposition. But playing and managing are different skillsets and this is where Kumble comes a distant second, his lack of experience as coach notwithstanding.

But then Indian cricket has its own equations. The board president is all powerful and can take decisions that he deems fit. The irony is that this president is trying so hard to avoid just that for the sake of transparency and responsibility. But as it was said in a different culture at a different time: More the change, more it stays the same.