Anil Kumble’s 17th-year captaincy jump a mixture of disciple and discipline

Anil Kumble’s 17th-year captaincy jump a mixture of disciple and discipline

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Anil Kumble during his playing days

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BCCI

Since making his debut in the 90s, when Indian cricket was just recovering from the heroics of Kapil Dev from the '83 World Cup, Anil Kumble has created a ruckus in the country with his spin bowling. Very often, he has been right amongst the mix of being hailed as one of the best in the country.

In a country, where stars are made every generation, Kumble belonged to the one-rare Indian generation, where the influx of talent was never-ending. It was the very same generation, which gave India three of the biggest batting stars in the world - Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly while the fourth one, VVS Laxman, too was not far behind. 

While it was pertinent to shift the pivotal attention towards Kumble, his art combined with his composure did not warrant too much work to shift one’s attention. During his playing days, the more you talk about the Karnataka spinner, the more people look at you like you are an alien from the movie Extra-Territorial. And it would never be your mistake because the leggie is one of that kind that you need not talk much about. While the right-handed Dravid was the epitome of a calm, stoical and composed player, Kumble was that plus much more. 

Anil Kumble and MS Dhoni during the 2008 season © BCCI

Hailing from the same state, the leggie’s influence on the team was a never-ending one, on the field and off the field. While he has been called as a taskmaster, disciplinarian and so on and so forth from his time as a coach, during his playing days, he was more than all of that. His nickname, ‘Jumbo,’ justifies all the things that he has done for the Indian team - his tall stature was just an indicator. 

His never-say-die attitude, as seen when he wrapped up his jaw to play against Pakistan in the famous Test match, for his famous spell, you could see every bit of dedication wrapped around the Karnataka spinner. And, his playing career, was indeed a concoction of brain, skill and willpower. All of this had resulted in one thing - that he was going to be a team-man beyond all measures. In 2007, when Kumble was handed over the reins of the national team, his eagle-eyed vision had the ball rolling. 

Aura

The aura that Jumbo brought to the Indian dressing room was not one of mystery but one of intent, one that was going to help the Indian team in the longer-run. His leadership phase in the dressing room came at a juncture where the Indian team were moving on from his statesman’s captaincy. The period was also very transitional to Indian cricket before they moved on to MS Dhoni’s youthful reign. Interestingly or not, his captaincy also came in at a time when none of the other senior stars was ready for a jump. 

"I became captain after playing 17 years for India so probably I became captain by default because nobody else wanted it," Kumble said. 

"Rahul Dravid had just given up the captaincy and at that time probably it was too early for MS Dhoni to step in as a Test captain and Sachin (Tendulkar) also did not want it, so they looked around and said, "Ok Anil is the only guy and let's give it to him," Kumble said.

That was really him in a nut-shell, a guy who was ready for all the challenges, be it waking up on a tough pitch for spinners in Australia to taking over the Indian reigns without raising a single question. While it can be pertinent to assume that none of the senior stars wanted the job as they eventually guessed it to be heading towards the young Dhoni. 

Numbers

Statistically speaking, Kumble’s reign is really not comparable to any of the others on the modern-day list of Sourav Ganguly - Rahul Dravid or Sachin Tendulkar. He took over the reins in the series against Pakistan, India’s arch-rivals albeit it being at home. The task of taking over such a star-studded team that has giant-like names in it must be really a task indeed. However, his calm-stature ensured that the team stayed together, more than ever during the brief period of his leadership. 

More than his first series, the second one was what caught the eye and the attention of the critique. On top of that, any Indian fan will surely give you an idea of how close India were to a series victory against Australia away from home. It surely was the one place that they lacked, however, they put it past them right from the beginning. The team looked more sure of what they were planning to do and everything was starting to look seamlessly fit in. While Australia got off to a resounding start in the first two Tests, the Indian team marched their way to an unlikely comeback Down Under. 

Anil Kumble, the task-master © BCCI

On a personal level, in the second Test, Kumble nearly got himself a hat-trick but the man was never just defined for the number-games. It was after the Test at WACA, a place where Australia have always found immense success - thanks to its assistance for pacers. India, with a team that was tilted partially towards the spin department, winning at WACA was always a telling statement to the opposition. More than all of that, Kumble’s men got the roofs burning down - Australia’s win record. While the leggie’s spells were nothing extraordinary or exquisite, the way he handled young men, including RP Singh and Ishant Sharma, was mind-boggling. 

However, it was in the fourth Test, where really the roof came hurling down. The infamous Sydney Test, home to one of the biggest controversies between the two countries - Monkeygate. While the incidents in the Test were widely known, Kumble’s statements in the aftermath - one of intent and only intent. 

“Only one team was playing in the spirit of the game, that’s all I can say,” his immortal statements could not define the situation and the series any better. India narrowly missed out an opportunity to wreck Australia up in their own backyard. But, the damage was done, with Kumble’s men letting them know that the end was near. While they were not aided by any support, the way the Karnataka spinner led the side, it could not be defined any better than the words - leading from the front. 

Intent and Compassion

The more you talk about his captaincy, the less - the value of some of the ordinary words become extraordinary. Several players in the recent past, including RP Singh and Gautam Gambhir, have come out and warranted top-marks for Kumble’s captaincy. While one was an opening bowler, the other was an opening batsman, which talks about how despite being a bowler himself, gave equal importance to all in the team. 

“Anil Kumble was himself a bowler and so he was the best captain of my life. I played only a few matches under him but the he knew the psyche of the bowler. I said ‘I will bowl in-swing then he would say no continue bowling out-swing and postpone your thoughts’. Rahul Dravid would not do that. He was a bowler and he knew better about frustrating a bowler,” RP Singh said. 

Anil Kumble in the latter years as coach © BCCI

While he was right about Kumble’s support to a bowler, his words of wisdom or words of support were enough to convince Gautam Gambhir to take the jump. Rightly so, Gambhir’s best days coincided with Kumble’s captaincy and the anecdote that he shared was enough to warrant a place in the top for a captain-material in the country. His endless support to the southpaw was enough to leave the left-hander loved and that really set him and his batting form apart. 

“Sehwag and I were having dinner when Kumble walked in and said that ‘you guys will open throughout the series no matter what. Even if you get eight ducks it doesn’t matter’. I have never heard such words from anyone in my career. So, if I have to give my life for someone, it would be Anil Kumble. Those words are still in my heart,” Gambhir said and that really makes a case for itself. 

To sum up Kumble's captaincy tenure in one line - it is the concoction of perfection, support and results all combined in one. While the numbers did not really favour the case, it was never really about the numbers but more about the way he handled one of the least talked about phases in Indian cricket - in terms of redevelopment.

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