Time to give Wright the accolades he deserves
It is now two years since John Geoffrey Wright took over as the first foreign coach of the Indian team
Partab Ramchand
18-Nov-2002
It is now two years since John Geoffrey Wright took over as the
first foreign coach of the Indian team. The inaugural Test
against Bangladesh in Dhaka in November 2000 was Anshuman
Gaekwad's last assignment in the stop-gap arrangement following
Kapil Dev's resignation and when the team came back to take on
Zimbabwe at home, Wright was in charge.
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As a player, Wright was a no-nonsense cricketer who put
efficiency above flair and served the cause of New Zealand
cricket admirably in the period 1977-1992. His figures of 82
Tests, 5334 runs, 12 hundreds, highest score 185, average 37.82
aptly convey his approach to the game. It is interesting to note
that he had a particular good record against India, notching up
three Test hundreds against them. His aggregate and number of
hundreds were a record till the more gifted Martin Crowe
surpassed them.
During his long career as opening batsman and captain, Wright was
a deep thinker of the game. A hardcore theoretician, he used to
analyse various aspects of the game from all angles and brought
this systematic approach to his successful tenure as coach of the
Kent team in the English county championship. There was no reason
to believe that he would change the attitude when he took over as
coach of the Indian team.
Two things must never be forgotten. One, Wright earned the job in
the face of competition from some big names in the game.
Secondly, when he took over, there was resentment in some
quarters. After all, an Indian had always been the coach of the
national squad and questions were openly asked about his
credentials for the job. It is to Wright's credit that he
surmounted this initial problem with his inimitable qualities - a
soft-spoken, direct, no-nonsense approach together with his
trademark impeccable behaviour that could not fail to win
admiration (After all, did not Wisden editor Matthew Engel note
on Wright's retirement that he had `the most beautiful manners of
his generation'?).
Soon, Wright won over his detractors by producing results. After
all, that's the first aspect anyone looks at when it comes to
analysing a captain, manager or coach. Let us then take a quick
look at the overall record of the Indian team since November
2000.
India has played 29 Tests, won 12, lost nine and drawn eight.
While the long awaited overseas series victory has still proved
to be elusive, the team has registered four away wins in
Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, West Indies and England. A shared series in
England, where India have won only two and lost 11 such contests,
is a record not to be scoffed at.
In addition, there is the unforgettable NatWest Trophy triumph
that would figure in anyone's list just behind the World Cup win
in 1983 and the World Championship of Cricket victory two years
later, as well as the sharing of the ICC Champions Trophy with
Sri Lanka. Over and above everything, the list of achievements is
headed by inarguably India's greatest triumph in a home Test
series against the all-conquering Australians last year.
Yes, there have been reverses. The failure to clinch a series
victory in Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, the defeat in the West Indies
this year and the 2-0 loss in South Africa last year. But it
looks like the irritating habit of faltering at the final hurdle
in one-day competitions is a thing of the past as events in the
NatWest Trophy and the Champions Trophy have proved. Also, Wright
has been responsible for making the Indians mentally tougher and
for instilling a sense of self-belief in them.
Overall, there has been an undoubted upswing in the fortunes of
Indian cricket over the last two years. Sure, there is room for
improvement still, notably in matters of ground fielding,
catching and running between wickets. But these are inherent
weaknesses that will not go away overnight. In any case, it is
good to know that Wright will be around till at least the World
Cup and that is a comforting thought.
How much credit then does Wright deserve for all the
achievements? In my opinion, quite a bit, though, he has not been
given the accolades he deserves. The 48-year-old affable Indian
coach and his laptop are now a familiar sight at cricket grounds
all over the world. He is obviously a deep thinker of the finer
points of the game. Most important, he has struck an excellent
working relationship with Ganguly and Dravid.
If Wright is a hardcore theoretician, Ganguly can be pretty
intuitive. Emotional by nature, Ganguly's bowling changes and
field placements can be pretty puzzling at times and one is sure
that the steadying hand of Wright is a sobering influence. If on
the field Dravid provides the picture of calm, off the field it
is Wright who is the symbol of equanimity. The trio make for an
exemplary think tank and the players are in good hands with such
a team management.
One is sure that Wright has had a major hand in the recent
experiments being carried out in the team composition. He is
aware that while the Indian side is a very good one, there are
still certain lacunae that have to be plugged if it is to emerge
as a serious challenger for the World Cup. To that extent he is
willing to try out various combinations and permutations that he
hopes will benefit the team in the long run. Keep up the good
work, Mr `Right' and more strength to your think pad!