Because Australia have got the fast bowlers and the pitches. Not
only India, Pakistan, they lost three Test matches, West Indies and New Zealand have also
struggled in Australia.Talent players, gel
What do you think is really
going wrong?
Once, we start winning, things will
change. This losing has carried on a little bit too far and everything looks disorganised.
Winning is the formula. It is too soon for Kapil to do anything. Now he can sit down and
work on what is lacking. Given time, I am sure he will find something that is good for the
side. We are getting only 220s, which is not enough. Today, in one-day games, we talk
about 260s and 270s as safe scores. Our batsmen are not getting enough runs.
How do we improve India’s
peformance outside the country?
Of course, the wickets have to
change. This talk has been going on for years, nothing has happened. People have given
suggestions. A lot has happened in the last two years, still there is no change at all.
Our training methods have got to change. Our pitches have got to change. We need to put a
little more thought into that.
Do these changes have to be
implemented in the domestic circuit?
Yes, the changes have to occur
from the Ranji Trophy stage. The concept of the super league has not helped at all. Some
teams which were not worth their salt were playing in the super league. The old system was
much better and would help to bring better cricketers.
In the light of Sachin’s
young international debut, can some of the youngsters from the under-19 team blooded into
the senior squad?
Sachin is an extra ordinary
cricketer. It is very difficult to get a player who would be ready for international
exposure at such a young age as Sachin. But, we can have a few youngsters from the present
under-19 in the Indian squad. Reetinder Singh Sodhi, a brilliant allrounder and deceptive
bowler, and Mohammed Kaif, a very sound batsmen against fast bowlers, can make an impact
in the senior team. In eight to 10 months Salabh Srivatasav can also be considered and he
is very decent left arm fast bowler. He is not quick, but he has got a lot of movement.
But there is not much in the spinning department in the present under-19 team. The
wicketkeeper was also very impressive. He kept very well and was a sensible batsman. He
was an excellent team man.
Did you find anything lacking in
the under-19 team when you took over?
They were not positive at all.
They were too defensive. The bowlers especially were bowling too short of a length. They
were not trying to get wickets and were only trying to contain the batsman. I changed that
and told them that they had to go for the wickets. Later on when the batsmen are going for
the slog, the bowlers can go on the defensive. A side can be opened by taking early
wickets.
What was the secret of success at
Sri Lanka?
It was an unchanged team from
game one. We played the same 11 in all the matches. We had the options of two extra
bowlers. We had Venugopal, who didn’t bowl in two games. He was an allrounder, who
bowled in three other games. We had Yuvaraj Singh, Reetender Sodhi, Mohammed Kaif and
Dheeraj Patel, who could bat and bowl. We had a keeper who could bat. The allround aspect
of the side helped me get the team into the one-day mould. They had all just finished
their three-day and four-day cricket in the Ranji Trophy.
What about the bench strength?
The first three game were rain
affected. I wanted to give everybody a chance in the league stage before we got into the
super eights. We had rain in the first game, the second game was washed out completely and
the third game was also rain affected and reduced to 40 overs. So, I didn’t get an
opportunity to give the reserves a chance. In the reserves, we had Vidyut
Sivaramakrishnan, left arm spinner and batsmen, but Yuvaraj was our main left arm spinner
and a batsman. Arjun Devaiah was the reserve off spinner with Venugopal being the first
choice and then we had Mir Diwakar, a fast bowler, but the team already had three fast
bowlers. There was no reason for changing the players unless there was an injury. It
helped in the end that the same 11 played all the matches because they gelled as a unit.
Did you have enough time to coach
the boys?
I had exactly two days with the
14 at Madras and a week at Colombo. During that week, we concentrated a lot on our
fielding and basically I was trying to make them understand the concept of One-day
cricket. I was trying to make them understand the strengths of One-day cricket like
fielding, batting and bowling.
What would be the ideal
preparation time?
We need at least two weeks before we
go on a tour. We need to practice together and get to know the boys. Even at this age, I
found that some of them had problems in catching. Some of them had falls while catching.
Some of the players couldn’t pick up the balls behind them. Some of them had to be
taught this even at 19 and that shows that not all of them are being coached properly
along the way. These sort of things could have been sorted out if I had two weeks with
them.
How did you like your stint as
under-19 coach?
I really enjoyed this stint of mine.
Working with the under-19 was a fantastic experience, especially to see them perform. They
grasped things so quickly. If I can work with these guys for another two years and take
them out on more tours, I am sure they will do well in the future. They need to be exposed
a little more by playing in different conditions such as Australia, England and South
Africa.
Which was your tough match at Sri
Lanka?
New Zealand was a tight match.
They gave us the best fight in the league game. The wicket had a little bounce. Ultimately
our spinners won the match as the New Zealanders had no clue to play spin. Australia and
New Zealand had no clue where the ball was going when the spinners came on. Even the
Australians played poorly against us. That was quite disappointing. I expected the
Australia to be a good side, seeing their national team. But, they were not all that
brilliant.
What do you perceive for the India
"A" and under-19 teams?
The board should have age
restrictions on the India "A" team because there were players around 30 or 31
years old. That’s not the right age to be playing Test cricket. At least 50 per cent
of the India "A" team should be from the under-19. The rest should be not more
than 22 or 23. It is tough to train people at the age of 30. It is a bit far going and
player lacks motivation. Under-19 is very important for the India "A" sides.
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