Anil Kumble reflects on his cricketing journey

How do you look back on the last 25 years?
It has been a privilege to have represented the country. Very few get those opportunities. Having done that for that long and to have been successful, I have been blessed. Looking back, I didn't realise it has already been 25 years. It seems like it all happened recently. So, it has been quite a journey.

What does it actually mean to you?
It is a great feeling. Whatever I am doing at the moment is because of what I have been able to achieve over the last so many years in the game. I am glad that once I finished my international cricket (in 2008), I was able to give back to the game, be it in administration or being part of the cricketing fraternity itself. So, that is something I am really proud of. It's really satisfying. Looking back, it certainly feels great to have done what I have been able to. It feels like when all those accolades are showered upon you, it is the love of the people. The people in India have a very special place for cricket and even more special place for cricketers. In that sense, I have chosen a sport that is very dear and very close to millions of people in this country and across the world.

A team-mate of yours nearly completed 25 years playing international cricket. Would you have preferred a similar way, though your body has taken a toll between 1990 and 2008?
Oh no. Eighteen years itself felt like a lot more than 18 years. Hats off to Sachin Tendulkar for having that kind of longevity in international cricket. To me, 18 years was pretty hard on the body and by the time I finished, it was quite challenging to go out there and bowl. Along this journey, I have met, played with, enjoyed the company of, a lot of fantastic cricketers and great human beings. It is a dream for anyone to have a career that coincided with such great cricketers. Rahul (Dravid), Sachin, (VVS) Laxman, Sourav (Ganguly), Sri (Javagal Srinath) at my time and people finishing their careers – Kapil (Dev), Ravi (Shastri), (Md) Azharuddin, a whole lot of people who I managed to play with. I saw an era of three generations in Indian cricket as I went along. It's been really fantastic to have played alongside cricketers who are now possibly slowly getting to the later part of their careers. To see them come up the ranks, and also now, since I am involved still, I see the younger lot coming through, which is great for any sportsman.

How tense were you before your Test debut (against England at Old Trafford, Manchester)?
I was extremely tense. Obviously, leading up that game, although that was my first series, I had a little bit of a sore back. When I was told I'll be playing in that Test, I was only hoping that we win the toss and bat first. But I was actually bowling in the 40th minute on the first day. I was only hoping I'd be able to get through the Test without any problem. You cannot call it a great debut but I had my moments. It was really nice to pick up a quality player in Allan Lamb as my first wicket. He later on became my team-mate and captain (at Northamptonshire) and we had a bit of a banter about that. We drew that Test, which, perhaps, is more famous for Sachin's first Test century. I picked up three wickets (3/105), which was reasonable for a debut Test.

You waited for 26 months to play your second Test and during that period, India toured Australia for the five-Test series and the World Cup (1991-92). We know you badly wanted to be part of that tour. What were you going through during that period?
Obviously, I was disappointed that having done reasonably well in my first Test, I was dropped or sidelined for an Australian series. Whoever I came across, especially former cricketers who have toured Australia before, said that the Australian pitches have bounce and will suit my type of bowling. When those kind of comments were coming through and you miss out, you certainly feel disappointed. But, I also knew that I was still not ready in terms of trying to establish myself at the international level, I had to literally do a whole lot of other things in terms of ensuring my fitness levels were up to the mark, my fielding levels were up to the mark and even my own bowling. I certainly put in a lot of effort during that time. Daljit Singh, then coach of Karnataka, helped me. He was a great influence during the time I was out of the Indian side. It also helped me complete my engineering. So, it was a blessing in disguise because that one-and-a-half-years' break actually made me a tougher cricketer and understand what it takes to do well at the international level and what it takes to sustain the kind of performance over a period of time.

You said that 26 months made you tougher. In hindsight, had you played continuously for India during that period, would you have achieved what you eventually did?
I have never really looked at the times that I have been dropped or not playing for whatever reason, whether it was injuries or for any other. I have always taken that in my stride. I am not the type who will sit and brood about why I was dropped. I have always taken it in the positive sense and have always thought that this was the area that I had to improve on and utilised the time to do such things. I have never really thought about in that way. Whatever happened, happened at the right time. I can't find fault with anything.

You played under different captains? How were each one to you?
I have played with some wonderful players. Azhar was my first captain. He had a lot of confidence in me right from the first game I played. He threw the ball to me and allowed me to set the field and do my things. Sachin was very involved. He'd come up to you, give his ideas as a captain. He was very different to Azhar. Although people talk about Sachin's record as captain (4 win, 9 losses in 25 Tests), you have to also look at the time when he was captain and the teams we played against. We perhaps played against two or three best teams in that era – Australia, South Africa. Even the West Indies were at their best in the 1990s before their decline began. It was quite a challenge. Sourav was obviously very different. I never had any issues or any problems with any of the captains regarding my own bowling or with what I wanted on the field. I have been lucky and the rapport I had with all my colleagues has been such that they have always allowed me to do what I wanted to do on the field. Rahul and I played together from the Karnataka days. We shared a very special rapport. There was never an issue at all with any of the captains. You go out there, give your best and try to help the team along, and all the captains have been very forthcoming.

Was leading the country the highest point of your career?
It was very special for me to lead the country, although it came pretty late in my career. It was always nice to lead a team and be called the captain of the team. I had my moments and am very grateful for all the support that I received during my time as captain. That was something special for me.

You played cricket aggressively, be it as a player or as a captain. Do you see shades of yourself in Virat Kohli?
Virat is certainly aggressive. I certainly played to win every game. From any position, I never thought we will lose or draw the game. I always had one thought – that was to win. And, if that doesn't happen, it will automatically be a draw rather than going into a game thinking we should not lose. I never had that thought. That's probably one of the reasons why in the 14 Tests that I captained, we lost a lot more (5 losses, 3 wins) than we won. But that's fine.
The advantage Virat has is that he has a whole lot of years ahead of him, something that I did not have. I certainly knew that mine was a transition moment and my job was to hold on to the team together so that eventually when the next captain takes over, it would be a very smooth transition. Virat has a team that he has to build. I certainly feel he has all the capabilities. He has matured a lot over the last couple of years that I have seen him. So, it is nice to see someone really aggressive. Each one has his own methods and ultimately you have to work around a strategy with the personnel that you have. It is good to be aggressive but at the same time, you also need the right type of personnel to deliver whatever your strategies are.

In your days, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and you dominated world cricket and are the top three wicket-takers in Tests. How do you look at the current situation?
During the time that I was playing, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and myself were the leading bowlers. We were the key bowlers for our respective teams. In that sense, in world cricket, you don't have the same sort. For example, Australia do not have someone like Warne, somebody who has succeeded him and is leading the bowling attack. Although we were spinners, we were leading the bowling attacks in some sort of way. I don't see that currently.

Are you pleased with the spin talent in India?
You still have a good bunch of spinners in terms of experience. Look at Ashwin. He has done a fair bit for someone who has played only 25 Test matches. His record is really impressive. He can only get better, which is a great thing for Indian cricket. Bhajji (Harbhajan Singh) has made a comeback. Someone with 400-plus wickets, that kind of experience is never easy to pick up from a cabinet and say, 'okay, we have that experience'. Bhajji is still playing. And, playing really well. It will be good to see them both in the current series (against Sri Lanka). (Pragyan) Ojha, with his changed action, is bowling well and has picked up wickets. Amit Mishra has a wealth of experience, he has quality and a lot of variations. Amit and Bhajji are the senior bowlers followed by Ashwin and Ojha, who have a long future ahead of them. If you look at the younger lot, people like Shreyas Gopal, Karn Sharma and Axar Patel have quality. But, I don't think they are bowling enough in domestic cricket because of the conditions. It all boils down to the number of overs that you bowl in domestic cricket to get better.

Do the pitch conditions in India bother you as chairman of the BCCI technical committee?
No. We did discuss this at length in the meetings and at various platforms that we had. We did share suggesting to the key people who manage pitches and grounds to make the wickets a lot more bouncier. The bounce is good enough for both fast bowlers as well as spinners. It is not that you need to prepare turning tracks. It is not that you need to prepare wickets with grass on for fast bowlers. All you need is bounce and that message has gone through. Am hopeful that this season we will have wickets that will bounce a lot more rather than have grass on the pitch. Basically, the tendency is to say 'there is grass on the pitch, it will help fast bowlers'. But if you have bounce on the pitch, it will be good for batting as well as bowling.

How much influence does T20 have on spinners in the longer format. Is it good or bad?
You can't say good or bad. Every aspect of the game is influenced by whatever format you are playing. As a player, you adapt to every situation in your own way. People have adapted differently to different situations. You cannot expect every player to adapt to one situation in particularly the same way as the norm is. I don't think there is a bad influence. The influence is there. You can see a lot more games that are result oriented now. Even as a bowler, you try a lot more things in T20. Those trials have also helped you become better as a bowler. Am sure all these formats only help you get better as a cricketer and adapt better to situations.

Which was the most enjoyable phase of your career and which was the toughest?
Obviously, the start was always challenging. You always try and find your feet around when you come in. Once I got dropped after the first Test, it was even more challenging to get back. So, that was quite tough. Personally for me, when I had that shoulder surgery (2001), that was another moment of challenge for me to come back. There was a doubt whether I would be able to come back and bowl. All those doubts make one think as to what he needed to start doing on the way forward. That was quite challenging. When I eventually came back in 2001-02, and that was the second innings of my career, it was perhaps the best of my career in terms of the results that we had overseas. And the way we started dominating teams in certain aspects of the game, it was very satisfying. Although I had great moments right through my career, literally winning every series against every other team, it would have been great if we had won a series in South Africa and in Australia. That perhaps would have been the icing on the cake. Nonetheless, you cannot ask for everything. I perhaps did everything that was possible for a cricketer on the cricket field. It has been a great journey.

And of course, your 10 wickets in an innings (10/74 vs Pakistan in New Delhi, 1999) and you bowled with a broken jaw in the West Indies in 2002 will never be forgotten.
I don't think they were all planned. I was destined to get 10 wickets. And the jaw was something that I always felt 'if my shoulder was fine, I would try to bowl'. That's all. And my shoulder was fine. It was quite painful, though. The thought of getting injured again and not having to play a part perhaps made me go there and bowl.

Post retirement, have you been able to do the normal father's chores?
Oh yes, of course. I drop the kids in school and pick them up from school. I attend the parent-teacher meetings. They make me feel special but I certainly go there. All the kids' stuff – doing their projects, taking print-outs, helping my son with his Maths. All these I try and do like a normal parent.

guru.krishnan@dnaindia.net
@GKspts on Twitter


QUOTE BOXES

It is good to be aggressive but at the same time, you also need the right type of personnel to deliver whatever your strategies are.
Anil Kumble, on captaincy


The people in India have a very special place for cricket and even more special place for cricketers. In that sense, I have chosen a sport that is very dear and very close to millions of people in this country and across the world.
Anil Kumble, on his career


Kumble in figures:

Tests ODIs
M 132 271
Wickets 619 337
Best (inngs) 10/74 6/12
Best (match) 14/149 6/12
Ave 29.65 30.89
5WI 35 2
10WM 8 0

Test debut: vs England at Old Trafford, Manchester, Aug 9-14, 1990
Took 3/105 & 0/65 in drawn match

Last Test: vs Australia at Ferozshah Kotla, New Delhi, Oct 29-Nov 2, 2008 in drawn match

DID YOU KNOW?

* Kumble is the third highest wicket-taker in world with 619 sticks, behind Muttiah Muralitharan's (SL) 800 and Shane Warne's (Aus) 708

* Became only the second bowler in Test history to take all 10 wickets in an innings when he cleaned up Pakistan for figures of 10/74 in New Delhi in February 1999. England's Jim Laker (10/53) was the only other to achieve this feat, against Australia in Manchester in 1956