The Surfer

Speaking of which, I would like us to have a look at allowing every county to play two four-day games per year in India around March and April. It would expose every player, not just the elite 15 who get into a national performance squad, a chance to experience those conditions and learn some of the methods required to take wickets there. It would encourage spin and real pace and the kind of skills needed at the highest level. It would be a test of the guys’ characters and I am sure there must be commercial opportunities in it as well.

Contrary to all appearances, the ICC is not entirely incapable of learning from its mistakes. The 2011 world cup, for example, will be shorter than the moribund 2007 edition. By all of two games. Where it once had 51 fixtures it will now have 49, a reduction akin to taking your socks off when you stand on the bathroom scales. You don't cure obesity by trimming toenails.

What hope have we then that they will be able to effectively tackle the single largest problem facing the game, the complete redesign and rationalisation of the international, and domestic, calendars?

In one such chase against Pakistan in 2004, Kaif and Rahul Dravid had a long partnership to take India from 162 for five, to 294 and victory. In the middle of that knock, Kaif played a shot that split his bat in two. After the game, Dravid had the pieces of Kaif's broken bat collected, scribbled a `thank you' note and gifted them to him. The pieces still lie in Kaif's trophy cabinet, along with the five man-of-the-match awards in 125 ODIs.

"Keeping things in perspective is the only way to do it. Training and playing as if it's life and death, but in the real knowledge that it's not, and that there are actually more important things about," said Flower.

"You can be obsessed with your sport, and obsessed with your skill, obsessed with the art of what you do, but also realise that it's not life and death and that the love of your family, or whatever your values are, are actually more important."

if the brief for SRT — or more likely, the brief he has prescribed for himself — is to bat long, he needs to come in at number three, ceding the opening slot to Gautam Gambhir, who works well with Sehwag, is tuned to turning the strike over rapidly, and is temperamentally tuned to using the power play overs to optimum. One of the odd faults of SRT, among many good qualities, is his insistence on picking his slot in the batting order; IMHO, that will need to change if the team is to fire as a batting unit.

If NZC wants to take the approach of selecting up-and-coming coaches then they must look very carefully or risk taking a punt.

Perhaps they would do better not to advertise the role but just target the ones they want - to avoid the scenario that may have occurred had they said no to Moles even though he was the final applicant in the race.