V for Victory (Venky)!

Venky. Victory. It's not a coincidence that the two rhyme nicely. V is for victory, and Venky, and the "blue billion" has gone crazy, the world cup shame, now all but forgotten. Right now, Team India is the toast of every cricket fan, after the series win against Bangladesh, including both Tests and ODIs. And in Bangalore, 'Venky' Venkatesh Prasad, the bowling coach, is yet again the cynosure of all eyes. 

Prasad's metamorphosis from bowling spearhead (along with his friend and State mate, Javagal Srinath) as national coach has been as swift and sudden as his international career. Under his tutelage, Zaheer Khan managed a five-wicket haul after a long gap of three years, while rookie bowler RP Singh was impressive, and debutant Ishant Sharma showed a lot of promise, managing to take a wicket. Not bad at all, considering that this was Prasad's first outing as coach of the national team.

With his buddy, Robin Singh as fielding coach, Prasad has miles to go and more higher peaks to conquer, but he has shown an appetite for the task of re-fashioning the Indian team as a top team in the world.

A glimpse at his career and playing years give insights into his future role as the coach and how he can help in transforming the team. Venkatesh Prasad started playing cricket "for fun". Perhaps that's one reason why the present bunch of players have been told to "enjoy" their game. Also, remember how Zaheer Khan effectively used the pitch conditions to his advantage against Bangladesh? One could easily discern the Venky hand in it, for Prasad had learnt the ropes of how to master the pitch conditions and work on the batsman's mind, from the original master of the game, the legendary Dennis Lillee.

The most unforgettable part of his career? His blitzkrieg against the Pakistanis and the English in the world cup (1999) when he was the man of the match. The same year, he went on to be the man of the series in a triangular tournament in Sharjah.

The lanky Prasad was often described as a wily bowler who used to bowl his heart out. Now, he is all geared up for a different challenge - transforming the Indian bowling attack to its fullest potential. It's a job he has fallen in love with.

Not every good player can be a good coach. But Prasad has made an exceptional start as coach. He's not much older than the players, shares good vibes with them having played with some of them like his State mate, Rahul Dravid, is articulate, focused, and fully dedicated to the sport.