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| October 29, 2006 | Sunday | Shawwal 5, 1427 |
No crunch time for captaincy: Dravid
MUMBAI, Oct 28: Indian captain Rahul Dravid says his captaincy is not confronted with confusion despite game plans faltering repeatedly. Dravid's team this year completed a world record of 17 consecutive successful target chases, but has stumbled to frequent losses during the past six months.
After recording a 4-1 one-day series triumph against England, the Indians suffered a 4-1 drubbing by the West Indies and then failed to make the final of last month's tri-series in Kuala Lumpur.
Dravid is facing a crunch time as batsman and captain when India goes into Sunday's match against world champion Australia, the winner of which will advance to the semifinals of the limited-overs Champions Trophy.
In its two previous preliminary league matches, India managed to overcome England by four wickets in a low-scoring match and then lost to the West Indies by three wickets.
''Losing isn't a nice feeling, no one wants to lose matches,'' Dravid said Saturday, insisting that he his captaincy was not caught amid confusion even as plans failed to click.
“I'm not worried about the plans coming unstuck, it's that our key batsmen are not performing,” said Dravid, who is termed ‘The Wall’ in recognition of his consistency as a batsman.
“I can't claim that we're playing good cricket, we need to play better,” said Dravid.
India's famed batting lineup has repeatedly crumbled.
“If our batsmen strike form a lot of questions will be answered,” he said. “As a batting unit, we have to do better.
Dravid said he was “conscious of the fact that runs from me are important.''
“Scoring runs is my role, I've not had success as a batsman and it hasn't helped the team,” he said. “At a personal level, it hurts if you don't contribute and the team loses.”
The Indian captain said entertaining cricket wins matches.
“You can discuss a lot about strategy, but matches are won by people performing ... standing up to be counted when it matters,” he said.“Its a question of holding your nerve,” said Dravid, exhorting his players to make an impact in pressure situations.
Several Indian players have been going through a lean patch, prompting hints they should be dropped from the lineup. Critics say the team management had been too indulgent with non-performers. But Dravid said there were no set procedure for cricketers who are out of form.
“You can't have a set formula for dealing with teams, players or individuals,” said Dravid.
“The management makes a decision if any player should be given a break or be allowed the chance to strike form,'' he said. ''You take it case by case.”—AP
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