As former players weighed their words carefully to describe Tendulkar's curious approach, there was one man who refused to mince words when asked to react.
"If Sachin wants to bat like this (defensively), then he should quit. But if he wants to bat like the Sachin of old, then he should keep playing. And please put this on record," Sandeep Patil, the current chief selector, had told this correspondent well before he took up this job. It highlighted Patil's no-nonsense attitude. Like his batting which was never conservative, his approach to selection has also been adventurous and bold.
Patil's plan has been simple: reward consistent performers at the domestic level and remove the deadweight from the team. It worked at two levels: one, it helped India get out of the rut following the calamitous tours of England and Australia in 2011; two, it has given fans plenty of reason to be optimistic about the future.
Even Michael Vaughan, not exactly known for hyperbole when it comes to praising Indian cricket or its cricketers, doffed his hat to MS Dhoni and his men. "They are a fearless, aggressive bunch and I have not seen that from India before. This team is better than the World Cup-winning side in 2011," the former Ashes winning captain wrote in a recent column.
Sanjay Jagdale, the former BCCI secretary who has convened many a selection committee meeting with the current panel, credits Patil for scripting India's success story in the Champions Trophy.
"A lot of credit should go to Patil," says Jagdale. "As a chairman he is excellent. His thought process is clear and he has good knowledge about domestic players and believes in rewarding them," he added.
Giving a sense of how the 56-year-old former dasher operates, Jagdale says, "Ever since he took over, he has kept his eye firmly on the future. It is with this view that he picks or drops a player."
Wasim Jaffer's case is a classic example. The Mumbai opener may have got tons of runs but Patil didn't pick him, backing the younger Shikhar Dhawan instead. It was a decision that saw the mighty Australians getting humbled 4-0 and India winning the Champions Trophy, with the adventurous left-hander emerging as the man-of-the-tournament.
Another facet of Patil's tenure was the axing of senior players. Some would argue that given Yuvraj Singh and Virender Shewag's deteriorating game, it was an easy call to make. It would be prudent here to remind that the previous committee headed by K Srikkanth chose to drag its feet over phasing out the stars.
Not many selectors would have had the gumption to call up Tendulkar and say that he wasn't guaranteed a place in the playing XI or send Gautam Gambhir back to the grind of domestic cricket.
Picking it right
Indian selectors have often failed to take bold decisions even when they were sorely needed. Sandeep Patil & Co have, at least for the time being, changed that perception with some forthright moves involving some top stars. Most of these decisions have worked well for Dhoni's team...
Sachin Tendulkar
There was ambiguity over the legend's ODI career. Apparently, Tendulkar wanted to keep picking and choosing One-day events. But Sandeep Patil told him that he couldn't guarantee him a place in the playing XI, after which Tendulkar called time on his ODI career. Not many selectors would have had the nerve to do that.
Dhawan for Sehwag
That Sehwag's powers were on the wane was getting clearer with every game. Patil and colleagues had the option of falling back on the tried and tested Wasim Jaffer. Instead, Patil endorsed Shikhar Dhawan as Sehwag's replacement and the move has worked wonders.
Jadeja for Yuvraj
As India went down meekly to England in the Test series, the selectors backed their instinct and drafted Ravindra Jadeja into the Test squad in place of an out-of-form Yuvraj. Jadeja came in primarily as a batsman after scoring two Ranji triple hundreds but it is his bowling that is winning India games.
Exit Harbhajan
With hundred Test matches and 400-plus wickets, Harbhajan Singh would walk into any side. Patil & Co did recall him for the England series but the offie disappointed and was soon cast aside. He has not been missed since then.
Vijay for Gambhir
There were not many who doubted Vijay's worth. But the TN batsman batted with derring-do against the visiting Australians to virtually seal his spot in the Test team.
0 comments:
Post a Comment