Oct 27, 2001 03:46 PM
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Ever since independence, during each and every era, Indian Cricket team has always had 2 or 3 players who have been amongst best FIVE players of the world.
Starting with …..
Ranjit Shinghji – After whom our domestic competition, Ranji Trophy is named.
Duleep Shinghji – After whom our domestic competition, Duleep Trophy is named
Vijay Merchant – One of top five batsmen in the world in his time.
Vinoo Mankad – One of the best spinners of his time, the stingiest spinner of his time.
Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi – The best Captain India has ever produced, one of the best Captains of his time.
Farookh Engineer – The best wicket-keeper in the world during his time.
Bishensingh Bedi, E A S Prasanna, B S Chandrashekhar, S. Venkatraghavan – Un-arguably the Best spinning quartet of ALL times.
Sunil Gavaskar – The master batsman, world record holder for highest centuries in Test Cricket.
G.R.Vishwanath – The artist. Among the best five batsmen of his era.
Kapil Dev – The best all-rounder India ever produced, one of the top three in his times.
Sayed Kirmani – Arguably, but the best wicket-keeper of his time.
And presently,
Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly – Two batsmen who have always remained among the best FIVE batsmen of the world.
Anil Kumble – The only Indian bowler to have taken 10 wickets in an innings.
AND YET….Indian Team’s performance has always I repeat ALWAYS remained poor as far as winning matches is concerned. Be it Test-Cricket or ODI’s Indian Team’s winning record has ALWAYS been very poor.
THE REASON????? In MY opinion (I am no expert, this is only my humble opinion as an ordinary fan and follower the most artistic game of Cricket), there are TWO major reasons.
First…..SELECTION :
For as long as I can remember, the selection of Indian Cricket team has always been plagued with ZONALISM The selection committee has always had a representation from each of the five, West, East, North, South and Central Zones. And each representative has always pressed for a player from his zone to be included in the National team. In an attempt to have an equal representation from each zone, on several occasions, a lesser deserving player has been included in the National Team instead of a more deserving one. It is only NOW since past 1 or 2 years that the selection committee has started mending their ways and have started selecting players on their merits, rather than their zonal affiliation.
Second…..(more importantly) DOMESTIC COMPETITION
As far as the format of the domestic competitions is concerned, there seems to be nothing wrong with it. Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy formats are very effective for spotting a new talent. However, the problem arises with a gifted and talented player ‘s inclusion in the National Team. Once selected, the player almost STOPS playing domestic cricket. And it’s not always the fault of the player himself. So much International is being played round the year that either the schedule of an International Series clashes with the schedule of Domestic Competition, orthat the players have just returned from a International Series is too tired to gear up for Domestic Competition. As a result a new and upcoming player seldom or never faces a competition of international level. For example a new, upcoming talented bowler never gets to bowl to the likes of Tendulkar or Ganguly. Similarly, a new, upcoming talented batsman never gets to face the bowling of a Srinath or an Agarkar or a Kumble. All the players in OUR Domestic Competition play among players of their own caliber and experience, getting little or no chance at experiencing what international competition can be and also losing out on the vital experience that he can gain through the senior players. Moreover, he almost never gets the chance of mingling with the senior players and learning from their experiences. Hence a new entrant to the national team is always raw, and takes a long time to get aquatinted with the senior team-mates resulting in poor team-spirit and poor joint-team-effort on the field.
I think this is most vital. If we want Indian Cricket Team to WIN more often, they must play as a TEAM, rather than a compilation of individual ‘STARS’, it is most important that the BOARD stops staging international series that clash with the domestic competition, and makes it compulsory for all National Team players to PLAY for their domestic teams each and every year.
