Ian Chappell
Ian Chappell
July 15, 2012
The
Australian coach Mickey Arthur had a few choice words for his team after they
fell behind 3-0 to England in their recent ODI series. The question is, were
they well-chosen words?
Arthur
called for his batsmen to establish a "presence" at the crease.
Presence on a cricket field is like respect - it's earned. It's not something
that suddenly materialises at the behest of a coach.
Brian
Lara, Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting all established a presence in the
middle via their deeds with the bat. The opposition feared them because all
three could make a big score quickly. Players who do that can change the course
of a game in one session of bold strokeplay.
Viv
Richards used to saunter to the crease masticating a stick of gum and
delivering the occasional hefty thump to the end of his rubber handle grip.
However, it wasn't the aggressive mannerisms that worried the opposition. The
devastation he might cause with the bat was the major concern.
If
George Bailey or Peter Forrest suddenly start swaggering to the crease
whistling "Advance Australia Fair", the opposition will probably rub
their hands with glee and proceed to go about their business with renewed
vigour. Coming from Bailey or Forrest, it would be obvious false bravado and
the opposition would know as much. While the two think about how they should
act, they won't be fully focused on their batting.
There's
no shortcut to establishing a presence on the field - it can only be earned by
weight and class of performance.
At
around the same time that Arthur was reading the riot act to his team in the
UK, the former Indian run machine Rahul Dravid was carefully choosing his words
during an interview. Among his answers was the admission: "There were
times when I thought too much about technique."
Maybe
so, but that was Dravid. His belief in himself derived from the fact that he
didn't feel bowlers could break down his impenetrable barrier. Dravid had a
presence in the middle because the opposition knew they would have to work
awfully hard to dismiss him, and that meant less energy to expend on the
dangerous strokemakers around him. Aggression isn't the only weapon in the
fight to establish a "presence" in the middle.
While
he was at it, Arthur exhorted the Australian team to display more
"mongrel" in the final match at Old Trafford. Nothing changed, as
Australia responded with another lacklustre performance. Once again, was it the
right choice of word? The word "mongrel" can easily be misconstrued
as a need to display overt aggression.
A
couple of seasons ago when Mitchell Johnson was told to be more aggressive, he
started goading opposition batsmen. This clearly wasn't the "real"
Johnson, and many batsmen looked bemused rather than bothered when he commenced
a tirade.
The
two best opposition fast bowlers I faced were John Snow of England and Andy
Roberts of West Indies. I played a lot of innings against both and never once
did any words pass between us. Mind you, I was never in any doubt both were
annoyed by my presence in the middle and were hell-bent on bringing an abrupt
end to it. The bowling of both Snow and Roberts spoke volumes. They didn't need
a soliloquy to get their message across.
Australia
are currently struggling because two of their batsmen who maintain a presence
are nearing the age of retirement. Despite his skills being eroded by age,
Ponting is still a dangerous player, as he showed last summer against India. He
can still make a big score; he just doesn't do it as often or in such
dominating fashion.
Michael
Hussey makes his presence felt on arrival at the crease. He hustles runs via
sharp singles and shrewdly judged sprints, and then once his confidence is up
he produces exquisite cover drives and strong-arm pull shots. Hussey is a more
aggressive left-hand version of Dravid - he sells his wicket at well above
market rate.
Australia
can win with their strong pace attack. However, they won't win as often as they
would like to unless they can unearth some young batsmen whose presence in the
middle is a long and fruitful one.
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