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VVS Laxman: exceptional consistency over the last couple of years
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John Wright considers his words as carefully as he did his strokes in his playing days. “Personally,” he told us, sitting in the lobby of the Cricket Club of India, a few days before the Test series against New Zealand began, “I never take it more than three months at a time.” We were talking about India’s World Cup campaign, and while Wright was full of praise for the way India played, he was worried about the effect of all the hype on the Indian team. Good days shouldn’t make you forget the bad ones, he said. “When I hear people saying that the coach is doing a good job, I think about the days people found it hard to say one good thing about you.”We caught up with Wright once again, at Mohali, hours after the Test series ended. And as is his custom, he offered no excuses for India’s failure to win.How do you look back on the New Zealand series?
I think we played below ourselves. I don’t think we played well as a unit, though obviously there were some good individual performances. If you compare our energy levels, particularly in the field, with that of New Zealand, that gives off some signs. I think we need to up our energy.I’ve been worried about the comfort zone after the World Cup and I feel that this is a sharp reminder. If we are to go on and play competitively in Australia we’ve got to lift our performance several levels and as a unit. It’s no good having one or two good individual performances.You know the pitches have been slow, but we have to get that mentality of tosses and pitches completely out of our heads and accept the conditions we are given and get the job done.How are we to raise the intensity?
It’s not a game-time thing alone. Intensity is in everything you do. To me intensity is created by the way we practise, by the importance we attach to playing for our country, the importance we place on doing everything that needs to be done to get the best out of ourselves. Now we can’t just have that from five or six players. We’ve got to have that from everyone.Would it be fair to say they bowled better than us through the series?
I feel they were more consistent with their lines. It’s a little more difficult to talk about spinners here because in both Tests they have had no help, which is unusual for Indian conditions. But having said that, that may well be the case in Australia. They bowled to their fields better than we did. Our plan, in the last Test particularly, was to take away the leg-side option from them and we didn’t achieve that. I feel our discipline and line and length have to improve.Rahul Dravid said after the second Test that had India been in New Zealand’s position, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh would have probably forced a result. Do you agree?
I’m not into conjecture. The reality is that we have to bowl better – we have to not allow them to score 630 in any conditions. The reality is that we’re going to lose tosses, we’re going to find wickets that perhaps aren’t suitable, and we have to be able to adapt to the conditions, whatever they may be, so that we achieve the result or the type of performance that we want.But I agree with Rahul in that when it turns I would back our spinners to bowl any side out. There was more assistance on the last two days at Mohali than at Motera. So he has a point.What went wrong with someone like Zaheer Khan? He started the series so well and then went from bad to worse.
We need Zaheer to bowl well. I have seen what he is capable of when he is at the top of his game. You know, bowlers, like batters, can have an off game. He will be back and we will back him as he is important to the team. I thought Balaji, in terms of effort and attitude, made a promising start.Did Tendulkar’s form concern you?
Sachin will sort it out. I have every confidence in him. We’re talking about two games; and in one of those games he got a fifty. Sachin will work it out. There are no hassles. One of the things that champions have is that they can sort these things out. If he needs help, he’ll ask me, or he’ll go and sort it out. People were worried about his form before the World Cup. Australia will be a big stage; I’m sure he will play well.VVS Laxman must have pleased you.
He’s a gem, really. Outstanding, outstanding player. The thing I’m liking about Laxman is the consistency he has shown over the last two years. I have a lot of admiration for VVS Laxman. I’m sure he’s going to carry his good form to Australia.
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Akash Chopra: is he the long-term solution to India’s opening woes?
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Do you think we are closer to finding a solution for the opening slot?
Opening in India has not been a problem. The problem is when we go overseas, because the adjustment is significant. However, you’d have to be very pleased with Akash [Chopra]. He looks like an opener, he thinks like an opener, and he’s made a good start. But it’s still an area that we have to nail down when we go overseas. If we can get it sorted, it’ll be a big, big help for us. The other issue that arose is the tail. We need contributions.We’ve got to have a damn good look at things and see what’s got to be fixed or changed because we’ve got to perform at a higher level than we have done in the last two Tests.Does it ever strike you as odd that while India have been producing some great middle-order batsmen down the years, there has not been a world-class opener since Sunil Gavaskar?
It’s a lot to do with the conditions. Opening here is like batting at No. 5 or 6 in other countries. That’s the bottomline. You can get away with being a front-footed player. Technically, you are much less tested. We need to decide who we are going to back, and stay with him for a little while. Also, we need to appreciate that it’s a specialised position. If someone can get the job done, which to me means taking the shine off the new ball, that will be a huge bonus.Is opening all about technique? Or is it a lot to do with the mind?
It is a unique challenge. The bowlers are fresh, the wicket is fresh, the ball is new and you have different problems to solve. I always liked opening because I hated hanging around. I would rather be out there than waiting to bat. If you don’t enjoy it then your chances of success are pretty low. You should want to out there first, when things are buzzing around. You ought to enjoy the thrill of facing the new ball.If you were to put the team in a room and tell them something, what would it be?
That we have a great opportunity ahead. Forget about the World Cup. It’s gone, it’s finished, and we didn’t win it. We need to look forward, get hungry and improve. Let’s work out how we can become better, not only in the one-day game but also in Test cricket, and let’s get our attitude and desire together and do everything with total commitment.Was the big break a factor? Were some players a little rusty?
Some people used the time wisely, some didn’t. The break was needed. There are boys who you know will have a break for six or seven weeks and then get back with their training and practice. But there are some who concern you. The season just doesn’t start when you turn up for the first fitness camp. International cricket is a year-round pursuit, whether you’re playing or not. Players need to be self-motivated to train and practise wherever they are.Are you happy with the work ethic of this team?
Overall, yes. We have some tremendous professionals in this side. The aspect I worry about is that when we play well, everybody gets very carried away. Then the commercial angle comes in and that’s a trap. Here, more than anywhere else, success, both individually and team-wise, creates challenges. If players are not careful they forget the reason they are getting those rewards in the first place. I am concerned about how some of them use their spare time, because they have many other responsibilities, commercial or whatever. Sometimes, unknowingly, they might start neglecting their game, all the hard work and all the training that got them there, and get into a comfort zone where their form suffers. That’s something that is very much part of the environment here, where cricketers are big stars and earn a lot of money. It can apply to individuals and it can apply to a team. You’ve got to stay up there all the time. And not only stay up there, but try to get yourself to a better level. When that does not happen it concerns you.But who are the guys whose work ethic really makes you happy? Who can you use as role models for the younger players?
There are a number of role models For instance, [Anil] Kumble. He never seems to get carried away with all the hype. He missed quite a few matches in the World Cup, which was very disappointing for him. He had a small break with his family. But when I was at the Academy (NCA), I’d see him every day, working out, trying to stay in shape. That’s the sort of commitment and attitude you want to see.In a way, those two World Cup matches showed how tough Australia are going to be.
Yes it did. But we should not be going to Australia thinking how tough they are. We are going to go there thinking how good we can be. Every team is beatable. We have beaten them before and I would like to believe we can do it again.You have been to Australia as a player yourself. Do you think there is something about their cricket that makes you feel under siege all the time?
Yes, you can develop a siege mentality. And they are very clever about it. But that’s part of the challenge. You have to go there and be mentally strong, it’s a great test. There is no reason why you have to look up to them and feel awe. You know it’s a game of cricket; you’ve got to back yourself.Would you say that the only way to beat Australia is to beat them at their own game? India certainly played aggressively in 2001.
You have to be aggressive against everyone. But you have to play to a plan. Sometimes the plan might be to actually slow down the game, not allow them to dictate terms. Your planning has to be aggressive, which doesn’t always mean that you try to hit every ball out of the park.Why is it that New Zealand always manage to do well against Australia?
That’s because they are not intimidated. And they know how to play for their team in each situation in the game. All right, they (the Australians) are great players. But so what? Who cares? They play their brand of cricket, we play ours, and let’s see where it goes. You ought be able to put pressure on them and pressure can do strange things to even the toughest of teams.India have won Tests abroad in the last couple of years, but we’ve gone into the last match of the last four away-series with the chance to seal it but failed every time.
We have got a lot of belief as a one-day team now. We back ourselves to win. Somehow, we’ve got to win one series abroad. And then things will change. We have come close. We missed an opportunity in Zimbabwe, and another in West Indies. We shouldn’t have lost that Test; we should have hung around a little longer. That was disappointing, and that’s something we’ve got to change. There was a wonderful opportunity in New Zealand. Those games could have been won as easily as they were lost.We know what we need to do. We need to be more incisive with the new ball and we have to be more solid at the top. Look at any top team in the world from any era, they all had very good top threes. And then we’ve got to keep on developing good seam bowlers, and create depth and competition in that. From what I have seen, things are coming along. I saw some good boys at the camp and there is some good work happening at the MRF academy too. The scene certainly looks more promising now than when I arrived here.There are a lot of bowlers in the 18- to 20-years range who have potential. We need to take care of them. Once we find them we have to make sure that we don’t pick them in every team, bowl them in every match so that some them end up as shattered 21-year-olds. I worry about the workload some of these young guys are bearing. There has to be an understanding in the selection process about the development of a player, particularly where it concerns fast bowlers.Team selection was one of your major concerns when we spoke last time. Has anything happened since then to make you feel better?
I haven’t changed my views. Team selection is one of most critical issues facing Indian cricket. There are still a lot of ad hoc processes there. It’s not just the national side but cricket right through the system. It’s an area where you have to be spot-on. But there is just too much of pressure on the selectors from their own zones; that’s the fault of the system. I mean, it’s wrong for zones to have expectations from their selectors. Selection is a tough enough job anyway. It’s not about zones, it’s about the country.Would you like to have a greater say in the selection process?
It is a difficult area. When players are not selected they can be hugely disappointed, and if they think the coach has had a hand in the decision, it can affect the relationship between the coach and the player. It happens. Different countries have different rules. In Australia they have taken the coach out of the equation now and there are countries where coaches are heavily involved.The frustrating thing is that you do have gut feelings about players. When you’re thinking about building a team, you look at players who can do a certain job, and above all have the right attitude; those are the ones you want to really back. It can be frustrating for the captain and coach when players are not picked with the broad picture in mind. In the end it’s your job to convince the selectors with your reasons. If you can’t do that then it’s as much your problem as theirs.Wisden Asia CricketWisden Asia Cricket..