When it comes to cricket, India is known for its spinners. India, right from the beginning have produced great, world class spinners who have spinned the opposition out meekly. Some spinners of yore that we can really count upon are Subash Gupte, that extraordinary leg-spinner, EAS Prasanna, the best off-spinner of India to-date in my opinion, BS Chandrashekar, the mystery man, S. Venkatraghavan, style personified, B.S. Bedi, perseverance personified and to an extent Narendra Hirwani and Maninder Singh. All have made themselves shine with their ability to turn the ball at will.
But one man, one man who in my opinion is not basically a spinner but even then, has stood out among all other Indian spinners in India is the silent and gentle assasin from Bangalore, Anil Kumble, who has made every single Indian proud. He has proved time and again that he is a man with immense capabilities and surely he is one of the very few match winners that India has produced. Now I say this because there are so many occassions in which Kumble has brought victory to India single-handedly. So I would take this opportunity out here and add a few honest thoughts of mine about Anil Kumble.
Looking back at Kumble’s entry into the Indian team there is very little that I can recall. He toured to England in 91, I believe, for I did watch a 55 over a side match in Cricket Classics. But Kumble really shot into limelight after the 92 World Cup. The Hero Cup was the turning point in Kumble’s one-day career as he hit a high at that point. Taking wickets at will, he shot into fame with the Hero Cup finals were he bowled an unbelievable spell to fetch a career best figures of 6/12 which still remains his best one-day performance.
Came the home series against England and came the time for Kumble to shine. He rattled the England batsman with the bounce and penetration he got and that was the time the world stopped and said, ’’Hey, this man means business’’. From then on Kumble became an integral form of this Indian test and one-day team. Then came the high point in his career when he took all ten wickets against Pakistan. And he has continued to deliver until off late where he is going through a lean patch. But then, Kumble truly is a great bowler and has had a wonderful career indeed.
Some Discussions:
Bowling: Kumble for name sake is a Leg-Break bowler. But I have never seen him turn the cherry as visciously as Shane Warne or Murali. According to my analysis, Kumble is a modified form of a medium fast bowler. Well, I am not saying that he doesn’t belong to the spin bowlers category. Kumble relies on pace, penetration and the bounce. Although he very rarely (does he?) bowls the classical leg-spin, he bowls his googlies, flippers and the Warne creation, Zooters at will. His secret of success is to bowl straight. A tidy line and length will test the patience of the batsman and any improvization would prove bad for the batsman. This has worked wonders for him as the batsman have always had trouble with his pace and bounce.
As a test bowler, there is no doubt that he stands as the great wall of gibraltor between the opposition and their victory in India. Yes, Kumble is the deciding and decisive factor as far as the visiting team is concerned. The helpful conditions in India make him unplayable out here. Give him a dry-as-a-desert pitches and that’ll be the funeral of the visiting side’s batsmen. With over 300 wickets in test matches, Kumble has achieved something only one other bowler has achieved in Test History. Taking 10/74 in an innings is no mean job and Kumble deserves his due credit. There are so many times he has made the opposition fall like pins and if given the right support from the other end, Kumble is a hard nut to crack.
As a one-day bowler, he has concentrated on the containing job which has given him mixed result. That is the reason why you see him as a rather inconsistent fellow in the shorter version of this game. But that doesn’t mean he can be taken lightly. Definitely not. With over 300 wickets, Kumble is India’s leading one-day wicket taker, mind you. So there is no doubt about Kumble’s superiority as a bowler.
Batting: Kumble himself has admitted that, he wanted to become a middle order batsman. Rightly so, he came into the Karnataka team as a batsman. But then, Cricket wanted him to be a bowler and that is fate. But that doesn’t mean Kumble is a weak batsman. He has the capability for sure. If you can remember his innings with Azhar at the Eden Gardens against SA in 96 you’ll know how good a batsman he is. He scored 81 and gave Azhar ample support. He certainly has the technique and is not a slogger by a long way. In tests, he has been a useful night-watchman in the past and even now, there is no doubt about his batting abilities in trying circumstances. He can easily hold one end up.
Fielding and temperment: Kumble is definitely a good fielder with the ability to throw flat. He would certainly qualify as a decent fielder. Coming to his temperment, he might look as if he is soft and quiet but I tell you what, he is certainly aggressive. He just looks to be soft. Not that he sledges but then, that look in his eyes when he picks up a wicket or the disappointment in his face when a fielder mis-fields or so, speak volumes of his temperment and instinct. Indians are often criticized for not having killer instincts but I would not agree to this statement when it comes to Kumble. He is as intelligent as a fox and as aggressive as a tiger. What is man but his mind. When it all boils down to the mind game, Kumble emerges a winner.
Well, the World Cup season is near and we are all speaking about prospects for the World Cup. The question is that whether Kumble can be a useful customer in SA or not? See, you just can’t picturize South African pitches to be fast and hard. Its the World Cup and one is bound to expect flat pitches although the conditions will remain same. It would be upto Kumble to really adjust his mind to the conditions. His experience will be invaluable in SA and as I said, it is all about mind over matter. Since Kumble is not a big spinner, his job would be to contain the batsmen and apply pressure. He will have to put all his experience to use which I think he will. If this happens, Kumble would definitely fit into the scheme of things. Accessing the situation, one has got to utilize Kumble and exploit him to the fullest.
Concluding the review, I would like to add that Kumble has shown time and again as to what he is capable of and there shall be no doubt in anyone’s mind about his abilities. He, at any given moment is a match winner and he shall rattle the batsman as long as he is around. Anil Kumble is one of my favourite cricketers and shall rank among the top for the respect he gains world over. I hereby wish this gentle assasin, success, till the end of his career.