Greg in the hot seat

Chappell must learn to handle the pressures of Indian cricket to excel in his new role, writes Abhijit Chatterjee

NEW Indian cricket coach Greg Chappell has a big task on his hands as he sets out to build Team India for the 2007 World Cup. The time at his disposal is on the shorter side, especially since the team has not done anything noteworthy in the recent past, suffering defeat at the hands of Pakistan in the one-day series. To make matters worse, there is the four-game ban yet to to be served by captain Sourav Ganguly and his miserable fall in form in the series against Pakistan.

In his first interaction with the media after being named the coach, Chappell highlighted the importance of the captain. Ganguly is one Indian player who has not only interacted with the Australian great but has also picked up useful batting tips from him. If Ganguly is able to retain his captaincy (and there have been no indications to the contrary from the selectors) then Chappell can get along with his job with some amount of ease. But if the selectors go in for a change at the top (read Rahul Dravid, who seems to be Ganguly’s logical successor) then the new coach would have to write a new script, thereby forcing him to waste some more valuable time.

Chappell’s towering stature in the world of cricket can do Indian cricket a world of good. The difference between John Wright and Chappell is obvious. The Australian can guide the team through his experience and his cricketing credentials are much more impressive than those of the Kiwi. This, of course, is not meant to belittle Wright’s great contribution to Indian cricket, but with Chappell in control, time has come to look forward instead of harping on the "good old days".

It has often been said that Team India has far more superstars than players. Greg’s stature should help him to rein in these superstars — or superbrats, as some people say — and get along with the task of rebuilding the team. Players are likely to show him respect and there shouldn’t be the kind of verbal abuse indicated by reports regarding Wright.

If Team India is to improve, then Chappell might have to crack the whip and put the players in their place. In this endeavour, he must have the wholehearted support of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and more so the national selectors, who have a major say in team selection.

This is easier said than done. The Australian, who has never played in India, would have to learn to deal with the pulls and pressures of Indian cricket. He would also need time to understand the requirements of each player, be it senior or junior. He should benefit from the help of the team physio and the physical trainer, who have been retained.

Chappell has already highlighted his priorities. Making individual stars shine brightly together would be his key task. In his own words, "Cricket is an intriguing game. There are a lot of individual efforts that go towards team effort, but the individual performance comes secondary to team requirements". For this he needs the support of everybody — the administration (read BCCI), the players, the media and all those who have an interest in Indian cricket and Team India.

Chappell’s job would definitely not be a bed of roses. The Indian cricket fan has a tendency to go gaga whenever the team tastes success but makes a total u-turn whenever it suffers defeat. It is indeed a very difficult task, but probably the most important that Greg Chappell has undertaken ever since he quit active cricket.

IN THE NEWS
Demolition Man
Vikramdeep Johal

Shahid Afridi bagged the man of the series award as Pakistan whitewashed the West Indies in all three one-dayers

HE is a swashbuckler to the core. Wielding his bat like a scimitar, he can tear to shreds any pace attack in the world. With the ball, he can rattle the stumps of the best batsmen with his leg-spin missiles. Shahid Afridi may not be very consistent, but he is always dangerous. A lethal weapon that can do irreparable damage to the opposition.

After pulverising Indian bowlers on their home soil, Afridi is busy giving the West Indians a torrid time. He played a key role in Pakistan’s first series triumph in 47 years in the Caribbean. In the second one-dayer, Afridi claimed four wickets for 38 runs — three of them clean bowled — as Pakistan won by 40 runs.

In the third match, he smashed 56 off 30 balls, including six fours and two sixes, to lay the foundation for his team’s 300-plus score. He was not only declared the man of the match but also the man of the series.

Earlier, in a practice one-day match against Antigua and Barbuda, Afridi had blazed his way to 104 off 46 balls and then taken four wickets for just six runs.

Afridi is continuing from where he left off in India. His 45-ball hundred in the fifth one-dayer at Kanpur was a blitzkrieg that Indian bowlers would like to forget in a hurry. However, they may not succeed, so hard were they hit.

The 25-year-old Pathan is undoubtedly one of the most explosive one-day batsmen in the world today. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to cement his place in the Test side. Afridi has played only 17 Tests since his debut against Australia in 1998. His vulnerability against spin has been a major stumbling block. Nevertheless, it must be remembered that he has a magnificent hundred to his name in Tests — 141 off 191 balls against India at Chennai in 1999, a match which Pakistan went on to win.

Groom them young
Neeraj Bagga

IT has the makings of another Sansarpur, the village famous for producing renowned hockey players. The Maharaja Ranjit Singh Hockey Academy in Amritsar, formed a year ago, is proving to be a launching pad for budding players of the border belt.

Former hockey veterans of the Majha region, along with businessmen and religious leaders, had joined hands last year to set up the academy.

It was the brainchild of Balwinder Singh Shammi, himself an Olympian. Shammi approached two affluent persons of the city and they agreed to support him. Dr Shivinder Singh Sandhu, chairman of the Amritsar Hockey Club (AHC), decided to provide education to all players of the academy at his Spring Dale School. Dr Avtar Singh chipped in with financial assistance.

The academy is being run under the aegis of the AHC. Twentysix players were chosen out of 500 from across Punjab at its inception. All players were selected in the under-14 age group and would be imparted education till they complete matriculation.

Baba Gurdev Singh Kulliwale is providing board and lodging to the budding players at his village, Pathan Nangal, 12 km from Amritsar.

To provide exposure of Astro-Turf to youngsters, Guru Nanak Dev University has allowed them to play there thrice a week.

The aim of the academy is to catch talented youths and groom them. They are imparted training to play under pressure and trying conditions without losing their composure.

The services of experts are solicited from time to time and they are invited to visit the academy. Shammi says that the encouragement given by them helps boost the morale of youngsters.

They gain knowledge about the trends and requirements of the sport at the international level. K. Jothikumaran, Secretary, Indian Hockey Federation, visited the academy in April and spoke to the players.

The results are plainly visible. The academy team clinched last year’s CBSE national championship in New Delhi. One of its players, Navjot Singh, has been selected for the camp to select the Indian under-16 team.

The academy also holds the annual Maharaja Ranjit Singh Junior Hockey Gold Cup, which is telecast on DD Sports.

The team coach, Dev Raj, a former international player, is confident that the academy would achieve its goals and prove instrumental in moulding the best available talent into quality players.

Apart from the coach, noted players of the region, who played a vital role in setting up the academy, provide tips to hone skills of youngsters. They include internationals Balbir Singh Randhawa, Nirmal Singh and Shammi himself.

The academy has the potential to serve Indian hockey and this endeavour needs to be emulated in other parts of the country.

SPORTS MAIL

Kudos to the South Africa cricket team for their brilliant performance against the West Indies. They defeated the Caribbeans comprehensively in both Tests and one-dayers. South Africa have been in good form this season, quite contrary to their showing last year. The credit for this success goes to the fine performance of Jacques Kallis, Makhaya Ntini and captain Graeme Smith.

The present Springbok team seems to be the best they have produced in the past few years. It has a good combination of youth and experience.

Kapil Mohan Pal, Shimla

Congratulations to the Indian women’s cricket team for a marvellous performance in the World Cup. Though they lost to Australia in the final, the team has certainly laid the foundation for a group that can very well compete with its male counterparts.

Neetu David performed brilliantly by bagging 20 wickets. Mithali Raj proved to be a very fine player and a dedicated captain. She showed her commitment by opting to play in the final despite a knee injury.

The team is not short of talent or experience. Veteran players like Anjum Chopra and Hemlata Kala are there to guide the team. Even some of the new players were impressive.

The team is playing well and also getting some attention in the media, but the latter has to do a lot more to make women’s cricket popular in India.

Tarika, Patiala

The Pakistan cricket team hit the last nail in the Indian coffin by defeating them by 159 runs in the last one-day international at New Delhi. No Indian fan would have imagined a 4-2 verdict against their team after they went 2-0 up in the series.

It was a very shameful show by the so-called best batting line-up in the world. The way our team surrendered meekly is hard to understand. The big guns — Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif — failed to fire.

Vipin Sehgal, Ladwa