Srinath's column - Dharma and Greg

[King]

http://www.outlookindia.com/full.asp?fodname=20061009&fname=CSrinath+%28F%29&sid=1 This article was written by Srinath during the Champions Trophy tourney. Srinath writes his article himself and does not use a ghost writer. Srinath referred to this article for a lot of questions that were asked by our members. You will need to register to read the original article on outlook but am pasting here the content of the article : Dharma And Greg The criteria for coach selection must be reassessed. Player status can't play a role. JAVAGAL SRINATH | e-mail | one page format | feedback: send - read | Special Issue: Champions Trophy Special A home series success had buoyed the Indian team six months ago, but it's hit a rough patch again in one-day internationals with sub-par performances in recent months. Success at home is no true indicator of a team's potential. In fact, on the basis of what was on show at the DLF Cup in Kuala Lumpur, India's performance continues typically on ever same lines?thumping wins on home soil and more defeats in away series. It does look like a solution to the deep-rooted problem of winning abroad?and consistently?remains elusive as ever. Since it is the coaches who stitch the very fabric of international sides, and with the Indian team's ODI form on a downward spiral, it's time to reflect on their contribution and also on our system of coach selection. Wright let the seniors be, gave them purpose. He was hands-on with the juniors. Winning breeds a lot of good habits, but to be constantly told that we are learning lessons from defeats sounds cliched and lame. Coach Greg Chappell and his support staff have not found anything new with the team, as far as sealing victories abroad is concerned. Barring Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the core of the Indian batting is the same as what we saw at the 2003 World Cup in Africa. Still, there is hope that India's vastly experienced batting might find its form in time. The same, however, cannot be said for the rookie bowlers still struggling to find their feet. Among the current crop, besides Harbhajan Singh there is not one bowler who has held a regular place. With just six months left for the World Cup, the team is yet to streamline its bowlers. Ironically, Anil Kumble (our senior-most bowler) and left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan (perhaps the best bowler in the English county circuit this season) are still lurking on the sidelines. Even if Anil is believed too old for ODIs in terms of speed and agility, his wealth of experience alone must stand him in good stead for a spot on the bowlers' bench. The presence of a senior member like him can be reassuring for the other bowlers. When it comes to bowling and its nuances, neither Chappell nor his devoted assistant has a clue. Nothing reflects this more than the fact that over 10 fast bowlers have been "experimented" with in the last year. And still the team does not seem to be in any position to name our best three bowlers. If India's bowling has to grow at a sustained rate without too much chopping and changing, someone like Anil should don the role of player-coach. The current management, for unknown reasons, seems quite allergic to the concept of having a bowling coach, and it's now too late to have one. Let's go back half a decade to the time when the Indian team first realised the need for an overseas coach. Everyone was convinced that this could be the answer to our age-old problem of not winning abroad. Rahul Dravid's inputs, stemming from his experience with John Wright while playing for Kent, weighed heavily in the New Zealander's favour and he became coach of the Indian team. Media-shy and a cricketer of humble stature, Wright mostly worked behind the scenes to gain the confidence of the players?juniors as well as seniors. And the results started showing. We won Test matches in the West Indies and England, nearly pulled off a series win in Australia, reached the World Cup final and beat Pakistan in Pakistan?all commendable achievements. So how did the unglamorous Wright achieve reasonable success in helping India win overseas? To begin with, the senior players were told to take on more responsibility?and he did not get involved in their activities. Wright worked hard with the youngsters and was hands-on in facilitating the basics. Working closely with the boys also helped him dissipate the intimidation factor, which otherwise exists between players and coaches. This enabled the youngsters to be more innovative, as he believed that players grow faster when they are allowed to operate with freedom. India made the transition from Wright to Greg Chappell, who got the job after a great presentation to an elite panel. He made them believe in his transformational ideologies. Whether the panel was given all the data to pick the right candidate or whether it was a decision taken because of his stature, or a spur-of-the-moment choice is something we may never know. But it does appear that India has not been able to make the switch seamlessly. Now, in the highly competitive world of cricket, no side can afford to lag during the transition period?from one coach to another or from one captain to another. Predictably, in the name of blooding youngsters, many coaches have made attempts to bleed seniors while also seeking more time to establish the side. This is a crucial period, and when the team sees more defeats than wins, the confidence and growth of youngsters can be hampered. Having said all this, we must get the criteria on national coach selection right. Many a time a coach is selected more because of his stature as a cricketer rather than his ability to develop a team. The selection panel should know and listen to the coach's ideology, but it is more important to do a due diligence on the candidate as well. The coach should give an account of himself, expound his cricketing philosophy, explain the art of coaching with relevance to his previous experience, identify his heroes, defend his past opinions and views, and should reason out his successes and failures. A bit of a probe into eliciting his views on world cricket as well as his local knowledge of the game is a must. His style, wisdom, vision, skills and temperament have to be confirmed. To set the tone, the interview could begin with a few probing questions. Getting the right coach to assist the Indian team is critical to its success, especially overseas.

[gator]

Re: Srinath's column - Dharma and Greg terrific writeup by Srinath... though i feel, he is a lil too harsh on Greggie...

[DesiChap]

Re: Srinath's column - Dharma and Greg He hit the nail on the bowling part.

[Guest dada_rocks]

Re: Srinath's column - Dharma and Greg :wtg: unfortunately this article is not going to help win him popularity contest here :hic: