There was a time when Sachin Tendulkar
had virtually cut out all his big shots, becoming more of a grafter and
accumulator. Like most things attached to the batting icon, his new
style too had become a national issue. There weren't many who tried to
understand why he had changed his game so dramatically though.
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 Shikar 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
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...
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. 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 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 Enter Ashwin
With hundred Test matches and 400-plus wickets, Harbhanjan 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.
If you look at the current players, there is no doubt that Gayle is the most destructive player as of now. He is not just destructive but also a consistent performer. He not only scores an occasional century but also regularly scores runs at a good rate. It is his consistency which is one of his major strengths. Gayle is a player on whom one can depend.
He is also a good bowler and fielder. He is a player who cheers up his teammates and people like him having around. His casual and relaxed nature makes him favourite among the fans and teammates. It is not fair to say that he is the most destructive batsman of all time because there are always good players who will come after him. Gayle will go down in history as one of the best players in T20 cricket and a role model for others.
One cannot compare cricketers across different eras
It is not correct to say that he is the most destructive batsman that we have ever seen. One cannot make comparisons across eras. In the past, we had Vivian Richards, who was a good player, and a fast scorer but he lived in an era where there was no T20 and one-day internationals were still in their infancy. There were also Gary Sobers, Graham Pollock and Brian Lara who never had a chance to play in T20s.
Gayle is a destructive batsman. His sheer height and physical strength make him an intimidating player. He is like Matthew Hayden, who intimidates bowlers with his strength. It is also wrong to compare him to other players of the same era, like Afridi or Jayasuriya, because he is at the top of his form at present. Afridi scored a 37-ball 100 in an ODI while Gayle scored his century in a T20 match. In the past seven or eight years, he has matured as a player. Earlier, he used to play recklessly and throw his wicket away, but now he plays responsibly and doesn’t start attacking till he gets his eye in.
Gayle is also better than Afridi and Sehwag, but not Dhoni
Gayle is not the most destructive batsman. Dhoni is a better player than him, though Gayle has more experience. He scored a century in T20 cricket and not in one-day or Test matches. T20 is more challenging as one has less balls to score a century and there are wickets falling all the time at the other end. Gayle is also better than Afridi and Sehwag because he is a more consistent performer. He is relaxed and down to earth.
He never gets involved in any unnecessary controversies
Gayle’s performance in IPL was once in a lifetime. He never scored anything like this before and he will never score anything like it in future. It was also a good batting track, which was completely flat and this helped him score runs as fast as he could. However, he is not the most destructive batsman in the history of the game. One can say he is the best batsman in the T20 version but not in all versions. In T20, he is an asset to any team. He is also a team player and focuses on the game.
He never gets involved in any unnecessary controversies or badmouths other players. His focus is always on doing well in the game. His main strengths are his timing and power. He is not the most destructive batsman because he has only a few such explosive knocks. There are players like Saeed Anwar, who were also destructive. He scored 194 against India in a 50-over match. Such players never got a chance to play in T20 cricket.
Score against Warriors was a once-in-a-lifetime occasion
Chris Gayle is not the most destructive batsman in the history of the game. In T20 cricket, he is one of the most destructive players but not such a good performer in the Test and ODIs. His performance against Warriors was once-in-a-lifetime occasion. There is no way that such a thing can ever happen again. Gayle’s strength is his powerful hitting.
In IPL, there is nobody who has dominated the way he has. He has adapted to different pitches in different countries. It is said that foreign players find it difficult to score runs on Indian pitches but Gayle has done it with ease. This shows his ability to adapt. His modesty stands out. Even after his 175 knock on Tuesday, he was modest about it.
