Playing It My Way: My Autobiography (42 page)

India won by 170 runs

3rd Test. Colombo (PSS). 8–11 August 2008

India 249 (G Gambhir 72, SC Ganguly 35,
SR Tendulkar 6
; BAW Mendis 5–56, KTGD Prasad 3–82) and 268 (R Dravid 68, VVS Laxman 61*,
SR Tendulkar 14
; BAW Mendis 3–81, M Muralitharan 3–99)

Sri Lanka 396 (KC Sangakkara 144, HAPW Jayawardene 49, WPUJC Vaas 47; H Singh 3–104, Z Khan 3–105, A Kumble 3–123) and 123–2 (SM Warnapura 54*, DPMD Jayawardene 50*)

Sri Lanka won by 8 wickets

Sri Lanka won the series 2–1

1st Test. Bangalore. 9–13 October 2008

Australia 430 (MEK Hussey 146, RT Ponting 123, SM Katich 66; Z Khan 5–91, I Sharma 4–77) and 228–6 dec (SR Watson 41, BJ Haddin 35*; I Sharma 3–40)

India 360 (Z Khan 57*, H Singh 54, R Dravid 51,
SR Tendulkar 13
; MG Johnson 4–70, SR Watson 3–45) and 177–4 (
SR Tendulkar 49
, VVS Laxman 42*)

Match drawn

2nd Test. Mohali. 17–21 October 2008

India 469 (SC Ganguly 102, MS Dhoni 92,
SR Tendulkar 88
, G Gambhir 67; MG Johnson 3–85, PM Siddle 3–114) and 314–3 dec (G Gambhir 104, V Sehwag 90, MS Dhoni 68*,
SR Tendulkar 10
)

Australia 268 (SR Watson 78, MEK Hussey 54; A Mishra 5–71) and 195 (MJ Clarke 69; H Singh 3–36, Z Khan 3–71)

India won by 320 runs

3rd Test. Delhi. 29 October–2 November 2008

India 613–7 dec (G Gambhir 206, VVS Laxman 200*,
SR Tendulkar 68
; MG Johnson 3–142) and 208–5 dec (VVS Laxman 59*,
SR Tendulkar 47
; B Lee 2–48)

Australia 577 (MJ Clarke 112, RT Ponting 87, ML Hayden 83, SM Katich 64, MEK Hussey 53; V Sehwag 5–104, A Kumble 3–112) and 31–0

Match drawn

4th Test. Nagpur. 6–10 November 2008

India 441 (
SR Tendulkar 109
, SC Ganguly 85, V Sehwag 66, VVS Laxman 64, MS Dhoni 56; JJ Krejza 8–215) and 295 (V Sehwag 92, MS Dhoni 55, H Singh 52,
SR Tendulkar 12
; SR Watson 4–42, JJ Krejza 4–143)

Australia 355 (SM Katich 102, MEK Hussey 90, CL White 46; H Singh 3–94) and 209 (ML Hayden 77; H Singh 4–64, A Mishra 3–27)

India won by 172 runs

India won the series 2–0

The Indian Premier League, the franchise-based Twenty20 competition that started in April 2008, has had a revolutionary impact on world cricket. It seems to have captured the imagination of the modern fan and has attracted the best players from around the world. I am convinced that the IPL will continue to be a permanent feature of the global cricket calendar, just as it has already become a part of Indian households every April and May.

Despite sometimes being played in rather adverse weather conditions and on occasions outside of India, most of the games have been played to sell-out crowds. And this is not restricted to the smaller venues. In May 2013, people came out in droves to support quality cricket, despite all the talk of spot- and match-fixing surrounding the tournament. I was disappointed, shocked and angry at the goings-on, and said so in a press release at the time. There has to be a complete zero-tolerance policy against corruption and more should be done to educate the players, but on the other hand the tournament as a whole cannot be blamed for the wrongdoings of a few.

There is little doubt that the IPL has added an entirely new dimension to Indian cricket. Not only has interest grown in domestic competitions, but there is also a spill-over effect that has helped improve general awareness about domestic cricket. It has certainly made domestic performances more significant, with players knowing that playing well on the domestic circuit may earn them an IPL contract.

When the IPL was originally launched by the BCCI in late 2007, there was, understandably, a lot of apprehension surrounding the tournament. Indian cricket had to come to terms with the club culture, and the concept of player auctions was alien to the average Indian cricket fan. No one was quite sure what standard the cricket would be or whether fans would come out to support the tournament in the oppressive heat of April and May.

A confession is in order here. While I never had any doubt that the IPL would be popular, I did not expect the tournament to take off quite so quickly. Secondly, I did not expect the standard of cricket to be so high. The matches in the IPL are played with as much intensity as international cricket and the level is very close to the highest international standard. Players turning up for the franchises always give their best and the fans appreciate this and, of course, they also enjoy seeing the world’s best players in action alongside the best of Indian domestic talent.

There are some fundamental differences between the IPL and international cricket. One is the close involvement of the team owners. Their presence adds to the character of the tournament. For example, some have their own peculiar superstitions, which they impose on the team. In one team the owner’s priest decides when the players should leave their hotel rooms on match days, and the players go along with this. Whatever state the players are in, they have to leave the room.

Another team owner believes in ‘vastu’ (which is a little like feng shui) and their dressing room is always organized in a particular manner, with mirrors set at specific angles. Once in a match against us this team even went ahead and changed our dressing room, putting in mirrors just as they did at their home venue. In turn, we changed this arrangement late at night and all the mirrors were covered with towels to unsettle the opposition.

On another occasion we were told by one team management not to use a washroom in our dressing room and a sign was placed outside it declaring ‘
BATHROOM OUT OF ORDER
’. One of the players couldn’t resist going in, just to have a look, only to discover that it was working perfectly. Eventually, the team made a point of using that particular bathroom and we even went on to win the game!

Another key difference from international cricket concerns culture. Almost all the players in the Indian team come from a similar background and are well versed in the Indian system of playing the game by the time they make the national team. In the IPL, there can be vast cultural differences between a rookie Indian youngster and an established international stalwart, which makes the need for team bonding all the more important. Looking after the youngsters and making sure they are not overawed are added responsibilities for team owners, senior management and senior players. I have particularly enjoyed mentoring young Indian talent and trying to act as a bridge between them and the international professionals playing for the Mumbai Indians.

That the IPL has had a profound impact on Indian cricket is beyond doubt. The benefits are obvious, but there are also a few concerns that need to be taken seriously if the tournament is to evolve further in the years to come.

On the plus side, the IPL has contributed to improving international player relations. The best example is the case of Andrew Symonds and Harbhajan Singh. In the fourth season of the IPL in 2011, Symonds and Bhajji played for the Mumbai Indians. I clearly remember our first meeting with Andrew when he joined the team. I told him that the Sydney controversy of 2008 was in the past and that neither I nor Harbhajan would ever refer to the incident in our dealings with Andrew. Andrew, for his part, reciprocated the camaraderie and we became good friends. We played some really good matches side by side and I am sure when we meet next we will share the same chemistry.

Since the start of the IPL, none of the India–Australia series have featured the kind of acrimony on show during the 2008 tour. In IPL season six in 2013, for example, I had the opportunity to play with Ricky Ponting. Ricky and I had played international cricket against each other for years but the only interaction we had had before playing together for the Mumbai Indians was the occasional hello. Suddenly we were sharing the same dressing room and opening the batting together. It was enriching to get to know Ricky better and understand his perspectives on the game. I also enjoyed opening the batting with Sanath Jayasuriya in IPL season two, Shikhar Dhawan in season three and Dwayne Smith in season five.

The transformation in player relations has also had a knock-on effect on spectator behaviour at IPL matches. For example, when Shane Warne, playing for the Rajasthan Royals, rushed to congratulate the Indian all-rounder Yusuf Pathan after his Super Over heroics against the Kolkata Knight Riders in South Africa in 2009, the large Indian diaspora at the stadium was spontaneous in applauding Warne for his gesture.

Perhaps the biggest benefit of the IPL, however, is that it offers the Indian domestic cricketer an opportunity to play with the best in the world. There are plenty of players in India who are good but have narrowly missed the opportunity to represent their country. Some of them might be on the wrong side of thirty and have little hope of playing for their country. The IPL has given a lot of these players recognition unthinkable a few years earlier, as well as respect and a good income. The IPL is the best platform after international cricket at the moment, with a massive presence of international stars, and the Indian domestic players get a share of the glory associated with the international game by playing in the IPL. IPL performances are covered in detail in the media and the status of the domestic Indian cricketer has improved as a result.

Young rookies cutting their teeth in Twenty20 cricket have also benefited from the competition. To be able to face up to Dale Steyn or Morne Morkel in the nets, share a dressing room with Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers or Kevin Pietersen, practise and play alongside the likes of Chris Gayle or Michael Hussey is a dream come true for Indian youngsters. They have a chance to learn from the greats of the contemporary game. In the Mumbai Indians, the youngsters can play in the nets against one of the best Twenty20 bowlers in the world in Lasith Malinga, rub shoulders with the likes of Kieron Pollard and discuss bowling techniques with Anil Kumble, the mentor of the team. I absolutely loved it when Malinga, fielding at mid on, walked up to Dhawal Kulkarni, the Mumbai medium-fast bowler, and offered him tips. These are gains that go far beyond the monetary riches offered by the IPL. For established Indian players, there are other benefits to be had. Invaluable knowledge about the strengths and weaknesses of players from other countries can be gained from playing with and against them in the IPL.

The IPL has enabled many an Indian player to get noticed and subsequently make it to the national team and many others to come back into the reckoning. It was by virtue of their standout performances in the first season of the IPL that Yusuf Pathan and Ravindra Jadeja caught the attention of the Indian selectors. Similarly, Irfan Pathan made a comeback to the national side by doing well in the fourth IPL season and there are countless other examples.

While I agree that IPL performances are important enough to open doors to the national team, I am sure that IPL performances should only be used as a reason to pick a player for the Twenty20 format or, in exceptional cases, for ODI cricket. Playing well in the IPL does not make a player good enough for Test cricket, and arguably not fifty-over one-day cricket, for they require completely different skill sets. For those formats, selectors should continue to look at performances in the Ranji and Duleep trophies, the Irani Trophy and other domestic competitions.

One of the best legacies of the IPL is that it has allowed the BCCI to reward former cricketers who played for India at a time when there wasn’t much money on offer. While every player in the IPL is assured of a decent standard of living, many former Indian greats had to suffer hardship in old age. In a fantastic gesture during the fifth season of the IPL in May 2012, the BCCI decided to use the revenues generated by the competition to reward every player who had ever played for India. Even domestic players who had played a certain number of first-class games were brought within the ambit of this scheme. Such a gesture serves as huge encouragement for aspiring cricketers, who know that if they make the national team they will never have to worry about the basic necessities of life.

It was a nice touch that these special payments were presented during the play-off stages of the tournament in front of full stadiums, highlighting the achievements of these former servants of Indian cricket. This certainly wouldn’t have been possible without the IPL.

A major apprehension concerning the IPL is that its riches will make playing for India somewhat less significant and correspondingly less appealing. Many say that a lot of Indian youngsters are content to earn substantial sums of money and lead a good life playing Twenty20. For me personally there is nothing that compares to playing for India, but it depends on the individual: is he prepared to put in the extra work required to play for his country, or is he satisfied with a couple of months of fame a year? Someone who is determined to play for his country will inevitably strive towards his goal, while those who aren’t motivated enough to do so don’t really deserve to don India colours.

Another concern is that the IPL might cause burn-out in Indian players. I don’t quite agree with this proposition. While I am not debating the need to control the number of Twenty20 games played each year, putting all the blame for injuries on the IPL isn’t always correct. The best players from all countries play the IPL and every country, at the moment, has a similar schedule. Given the amount of cricket being played around the world, injuries are now part of a cricketer’s life. Australian players who haven’t played the IPL have also been out for months injured, even though Australia has one of the best injury-management programmes in the world. Most international cricketers play with niggles and ultimately players themselves are the best judges of their bodies, and they have to be sensible and responsible when deciding whether to play or not.