Kumble gears up with his captaincy ‘Googlies’

Nov 12: India’s veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble is all set with his captaincy googlies after being given the reigns of Indian Test team for the upcoming three-match Test series against Pakistan at home.

The 37-year old Kumble time and again proved himself and stood out in the challenging conditions whenever the team needed him most. With 118 Tests and 566 wickets under his belt, the third highest in the world, and ten wickets in an innings itself is a benchmark for many of the upcoming players. No one can even have a single doubt over Kumble's credential as a player or can raise a finger on his illustrious career thus far.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) named Anil Kumble as a captain ahead of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who has not only led India to a historic victory at the Twenty20 World Cup, but has been consistently performing well as a one-day captain. The only underlying principle for overlooking Dhoni in respect to Kumble is his relative inexperience in Tests. He has played only 20 Test matches up till now.

Kumble’s appointment was purely based on the experience he has. Though his appointment is a stopgap measure but still he has got enough to serve Indian cricket. He was ready to take the hot seat at the time when Rahul Dravid relinquished from the post of captaintacy after the England tour and Sachin Tendulkar kept himself out of the race citing personal reasons.

Kumble was much pleased to become India skipper, “It was every cricketer's dream to reach there.” Kumble's sentiment is commendable for sure, as he took up the job at a time when India's experienced players are hesitant to take up this high-pressure job.

Kumble’s work ethic and his ethos have been overlooked for the last 17 years. He has been a pillar of the Indian team away as well as at home. Kumble is everything a team wants in a captain.

Kumble is a man of action and of lesser words. He speaks through his variety of balls and his deeds are inspirational. He has been given the opportunity, the honour and was also given a challenge to show his test of his character straightaway against arch-rivals Pakistan. But he will come out strongly and will surely prove his critics wrong with his captaincy googlies in the coming months ahead.