Rahul Dravid will be under the microscope on Thursday as he takes up
the skipper's duties for the first time in international cricket,
against Zimbabwe at Rajkot. While Dravid has been marked down as an
eventual candidate for the top slot, it has come sooner than he would
have bargained for, even if just for one match. In the vice-captain's
shoes, he has been a bit too unobtrusive on the field and being forced
willy-nilly to raise the level of his involvement in the game,
Dravid's panache - or lack of it - for the job should quickly become
apparent. He certainly has the right credentials, having led Karnataka
to a title triumph in the Ranji Trophy two seasons ago and the fact
that it is a low pressure situation, with the series already won, can
do him no harm.
Sourav Ganguly meanwhile will be cooling his heels in the dressing
room, having been slapped with a one-match suspension for the second
time in his career, something he will not be overly pleased about. He
certainly did betray a streak of immaturity in his actions in the
fourth one-dayer at Kanpur. Oftentimes Ganguly has shown himself to be
a poor loser, sulking like a spoilt child when something goes against
him. It's one thing to play the game hard, and another to lose one's
composure on the field and take out your frustration on the umpire.
Nevertheless the episode underlines the ultra competitive streak
Ganguly brings with him to the job which can only be dangerous for his
opponents. The break will doubtless afford Ganguly a stroke of
introspection which should bode well for his and the team's benefit in
the long term.
"Anytime you get a chance to lead it's an honour", was Dravid's
refrain. "I guess a lot more thinking", he replied when asked what the
captaincy involved, as opposed to serving as a stand-in when the
regular skipper is off the field. "When someone gets injured it's
different. Here I've got a whole day to prepare, I've been talking to
John and Sourav. The thinking process began as soon as I was told
really". Dravid did not hazard a guess on who Ganguly's replacement
would be in the eleven but he did suggest that Tendulkar and Sriram
would be opening the batting. He made the usual noises about the
pitch. "It looks a good batting track, a typical Rajkot wicket where
traditionally a lot of runs are scored." Another piece of tradition,
which may not be as much to Dravid's liking is that India have lost
consistently at the Rajkot Municipal Corporation Cricket Ground here,
four out of five games in fact.
John Wright was in a more loquacious mood than usual. The New
Zealander who takes his time to collect his thoughts before speaking,
told reporters with a wry smile that Zimbabwe was merely the stalking
horse for the Australian visit. "With all due respect to Zimbabwe, our
next opponents will be a bit stronger. This has been a good period for
me to plan ahead. It's allowed for some breathing space in which the
players can get to know me better." Wright soon reverted to his
favourite theme of putting in unstinted effort in the field. "Our
catching in the Tests left a lot to be desired but the victory in
Kanpur was underpinned by a good performance in the field. The players
were attacking the ball, there was a lot of aggression out there.
That's the kind of tempo we need to set every time. It's really the
intensity in the field that I'm looking for." Indeed it was revealing
to witness the fielding drills instituted by Wright and the zealous
response it commanded from the players. Divided into two groups, they
competed amongst themselves, with one player racing forward to collect
and throw the ball at the stumps while the other sprinted between the
wickets on a parallel patch. There was a humorous touch with the
fielders being punished with five mandatory push-ups if they fumbled
with the ball. Here were the Indians treating fielding practice as
pure unadulterated fun rather than hard work.
Wright stopped well short of saying he'd reached the goals set for
himself before the series began. "In coaching terms, you never reach
anywhere. Coaching is a process where you try to improve everyone's
performance, individually and as a team. You never actually reach the
end. It's important that the players do the job not only from the
coach's point of view but also from the country's point of view".
Zimbabwe skipper Heath Streak pronounced the match to be important for
his team even though the series was already decided. "We're going to
New Zealand from here, and then on to Australia. So it's important we
make the best of this game, finish on a winning note, and move on to
New Zealand with our confidence on a high." He admitted to being a
touch relieved at his rival skipper's dismissal to the bench. "Sourav
has been batting extremely well throughout the series and caused us a
few problems. Sure it will lessen our burden."
As usual the Zimbabweans hedged their bets on the final composition of
the team. "I'm not sure yet. We've got a couple of injury worries - I
won't say who at the moment - and they will be going through fitness
tests before we make the decision." With both teams playing for pride,
which sometimes can be the biggest motivating factor, it should turn
out to be an entertaining game.