IN recent days, there has been much talk in international cricket of new coaches. India and Sri Lanka have already gone ahead and made their choices known, while South Africa is also believed to be on the lookout. I have never been a great supporter of the idea of hiring foreign coaches, and my thoughts on the matter have bee clearly and unambiguously documented in my columns. Any segment of the life of a nation, be it politics or sports, has its peculiarities which can only be understood fully by the locals. An alien remains just that; an alien, specially when there is a language barrier as well.
Tom Moody, who has been lapped up by Sri Lanka, falls under that category. He has been part of two Word Cup winning units — in 1987 and 1999 — and was a decent One Day player who had almost nothing to do with Test cricket. What he might be able to do with the Sri Lankans is yet to be seen, but I don’t think it will be much of substance. The Lankans have been an up-and-down side in world cricket, and that I don’t see any change coming in that status in the near future. They are a much-respected side in the shorter version of the game, and that would continue to be the case as well, Moody or no Moody.
The appointment of Greg Chappell. however, is in a different class altogether. He has the stature, the knowledge, the skill and the potential to make a change, especially because English happens to be the link language in India and there will be no language barriers separating the coach and the players, and that is a key factor in all such cases. The appointment of Chappell as such will find few opponents, if at all.
Incidentally, I and Greg started off on the international scene more or less at the same time, and hung up our boots likewise. He was a gutsy player of immense potential, and it was only a matter of time before he became a nightmare for the bowlers of all shades and hues. He commanded much respect among his opponents not just as a batsman, but also as a sound allrounder who could turn his arm over when needed, and could be depended on to come up with literal blinders in the field. But, above all, he was respected as an influential captain on and off the field.
All these qualities would naturally come handy when he physically takes over the charge in India. In the initial phase, I guess, it will be his reputation as a former great that will make the players listen to him rather than his coaching skills, and that would give him ample time to adjust and command respect. His initial comments about the need to find a new role for Sachin Tendulkar in the team and to redefine his future targets in terms of career make a lot of sense, and I am sure that Greg, the character that he is, will waste little time in getting started.
The appointments of Greg Chappell and Tom Moody also reflect an emerging scenario in world cricket where cricket boards appear to be eying an Australian import to effect a change in the fortunes of their respective teams. In addition to Chappell and Moody, Dav Whatmore and Bennett King have been with Bangladesh and the West Indies, respectively. Other than that, John Dyson was with the Lankans till recently, while Steve Rixon was in charge of New Zealand. Geoff Marsh and Carl Rackemann have also done short-term assignments with Zimbabwe. In fact, Chappell himself had done a short stint with Pakistan even though he was not with the national team, and then we have had bowling coaches and fitness trainers from Down Under. That leaves only South Africa and England as the two sides that have yet resisted the temptation, but for how long?
IN recent days, there has been much talk in international cricket of new coaches. India and Sri Lanka have already gone ahead and made their choices known, while South Africa is also believed to be on the lookout. I have never been a great supporter of the idea of hiring foreign coaches, and my thoughts on the matter have bee clearly and unambiguously documented in my columns. Any segment of the life of a nation, be it politics or sports, has its peculiarities which can only be understood fully by the locals. An alien remains just that; an alien, specially when there is a language barrier as well.
Incidentally, I and Greg started off on the international scene more or less at the same time, and hung up our boots likewise. He was a gutsy player of immense potential, and it was only a matter of time before he became a nightmare for the bowlers of all shades and hues. He commanded much respect among his opponents not just as a batsman, but also as a sound allrounder who could turn his arm over when needed, and could be depended on to come up with literal blinders in the field. But, above all, he was respected as an influential captain on and off the field.
