South Africa’s De Villiers is the man to watch out for

It is highly probable that a lot of you dear readers will brand me ‘parochial’ after reading this column. I am, however, more than confident that my stand will be vindicated when the World Cup gets under way. No, I am not saying India will win the World Cup or anything like that. Predicting the winner is a different ballgame and I don’t want to get into it right now.

Let me put on my prophecy hat for a moment. I strongly believe (just wait and watch) that wicketkeepers will play a crucial role this time around. Yes, every team has a wicketkeeper. What’s more, you can’t drop him. And even if you do, another one will take his place. The point I want to make here is that wicketkeepers will call the shots in the quadrennial showpiece.

Adam Gilchrist and Mark Boucher are no longer playing ODIs, but they have left a great legacy. I still remember — it wasn’t very long ago — the manner in which Gilly decimated the Sri Lankan attack in the World Cup final. Now that’s what an impact player like him can do.

I won’t be surprised if the likes of Kumar Sangakkara, Brendon McCullum, Brad Haddin, Matt Prior, Kamran Akmal, AB de Villiers, and, of course, our own MS Dhoni, play a crucial role in cricket’s biggest event. Two of these are, in fact, skippers of sides that have been dubbed favourites. Not an easy task, mind you.

Someone like Sanga bats at the crucial No 3 position and ‘keeps wickets to the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan. Ditto with Dhoni, who is more of a floater in the batting line-up. Akmal, on his part, can spoil any bowler’s figures while opening the innings. McCullum may have dropped down the order but opponents can’t afford to smile as he is a good finisher. And do not discount Haddin or Prior either. They may not be as good as the others — with the bat, that is — but they are nevertheless reliable.

South Africa’s De Villiers is the man to watch out for. Now here’s why I feel justified, almost seven years later. When the national selection committee, headed by yours truly, had pushed for Rahul Dravid’s ‘double role’ in 2003, a lot of former cricketers and fans had ripped us apart.

To put things in perspective, the decision to ask Rahul to keep wickets stemmed from the fact that we didn’t have a great all-rounder. Hence, we wanted that option of playing an extra batsman or bowler, depending on the requirement. Yes, the risk factor was always there. You may ask what if Rahul dropped a crucial catch or missed a stumping? Cricket is all about positive thinking. The move paid off and we made the final. De Villiers will be expected to play a similar role this time.

Graeme Smith, I am sure, will be grateful to his teammate. AB could well prove to be the game-changer for the perennially-jinxed South African side.

Some of you may think the extra responsibility will put more pressure on, say, De Villiers. Nowadays, cricket is all about multi-tasking. Even life is! Don’t you make your sandwich while listening to the iPod? AB will be doing something on those lines. Even Sanga and Dhoni are one the same boat, aren’t they?

The wicketkeepers will have to be doubly vigilant as the World Cup will be played on sub-continental wickets. The wickets in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh may excite the Muralitharans, Harbhajans and Vettoris. It will be anything but easy to don the ‘keeper’s gloves on these tracks. But wicketkeepers are never afraid of challenges. Just wait and watch. Don’t brand me ‘parochial’ just as yet.