What Indian Cricket Wants
New Wine in New Bottle
By Murli

The knives are out, daggers drawn, villains known, but who is to draw the first blood? After a grand entrance, Greg Chappell has chosen his exit, and left a simmering, seething volcano behind. In the next 24 hours, Indian cricket will separate the villains from the non-villains (there’s no place as yet for “heroes”), the boys from the wannabe men, and the denouement from the debacle. Right now, the world cup at the Caribbean is peanuts compared to the game that is being played off the ground in India. A game where there are plenty of bouncers, googlies, boundaries, catches and run outs – not in the 22-yard circle or on a cricket pitch, but in the boardrooms of the powerful bosses who run Indian cricket. As for the fans and of course the betting crowds, there’s plenty on the table: Will Sachin Tendulkar retire, at least from the one dayers? Or, will he be named captain by default? Will Dravid manage to save his head? Will there be an Indian coach now? If so, will it signal the return of desi brand of politics? And so on and so forth.

The BCCI’s high profile meeting on Friday and Saturday will supposedly set the agenda for the future of Indian cricket. You cannot rule out the possibility that they may chicken out at the last time, for right now, it is too hot in the kitchen. However, desperate situations call for desperate measures, so you cannot say which way the cookie crumbles. Here’s a checklist of what the BCCI and the selection committee have to unravel and get it right for the sake of the blue billion:

•Bring in John Buchanan as coach: Last heard, Buchanan will soon be out of a job, after the expiry of his 5-year term as the Australian coach. The first complaint against him will no doubt be, oh no, not another Australian as coach! After Greg Chappell’s lousy record (let’s not get fooled by his terrific sound bytes – they made for a great read, but result wise, they amounted to zilch), there is bound to be some skepticism on this count.

But the richest cricket board ought to hire the best in the business. And Buchanan fits the bill perfectly. Someone who has coached the Australians for the last five years and mentored the number one team in the world should be the first, second and third choice. Period. Price no object. Culture shock be damned. He is going to talk and teach cricket, not share culture notes with the Dravids and Tendulkars.

•Other Option, an Indian Coach: If the bosses are adamant about an Indian coach, then it has to Sunil Gavaskar. Sunny’s CV is known to all, has a shrewd cricketing brain, is passionate about the game, is close to most of the players, and his commitment and contribution to Indian cricket, is unquestioned.

The inspirational way he captained the Indian team to win the Benson & Hedges Tournament in 1986 where our bowlers managed to get all the opposing teams all out in every match – barring the finals against Pakistan where they lost nine wickets – is a lesson which is yet to be learnt by our present day cricketers.

•Remove Dravid as captain: To be sure, India’s humiliating first round exit at the world cup is not solely because of Dravid’s captaincy, but a leader has to take the major share of the blame.

Secondly, too much water has flown down the bridge after India’s loss at the world cup. Coach Greg Chappell has made a public tamasha of the spat – perceived or otherwise – between the senior players and the juniors.

Amidst all this controversy, what is significant is that while even a normally taciturn and conservative Tendulkar has chosen to come out against the coach and speak out in support of the seniors, Dravid has maintained a studied and laboured silence. That he is the captain could be only one of the reasons. But if he is retained as captain, the seniors will perforce carry a “grudge” against him that he did not speak out for them when it mattered the most. That his silence meant that he was in general agreement with what Greg Chappell had stated in his missive just before he resigned.

Will this do any good for Team India under Dravid as captain? Will it not further burden Dravid, a gentleman at the best of times whose temperament is not suited to weather storms of this kind? Assuming the seniors have a grudge against him, do you really think he can melt it down with some hard, no nonsense talking, to players with whom he has virtually started playing cricket, and not to some recent recruits?

•Make Sachin the captain: If not Dravid, who else? Yuvraj Singh? His place in Tests is not cent per cent certain. He’s an integral part of the one day team, but has no experience as captain. His leadership ability is a secret no one knows. And rightly or wrongly, he has been identified as being a Ganguly man, and a party to the faction fights in the team, according to the coach. So, a promising, enigmatic, never-been leader, as captain? Just because of his age? That’s no way to pick a captain.

Which leaves out Sachin Tendulkar, by default. Yes, his record as captain is poor, but if you look closely, he got to lead the team to the toughest tours abroad – South Africa, and then England. The public sentiment may be against him at the moment, but no one doubts his shrewd cricketing brain, his skills. It might sound absurd now, but you can add to that, his commitment, and his involvement, Chappell’s criticism – veiled or otherwise – notwithstanding. What has failed Sachin is his form, which is not the same for every player who has played ever since cricket was played. What has failed Sachin is his reflexes – which is but natural when you have played for the country at the highest level for the past 17 years. In spite of all this, his records – they are not something to be ashamed about, are they? – are still good enough for the Pontings and Haydens to chase.