So, it’s official at last
Sankhya Krishnan16-Jan-2001So, it’s official at last. Anil Kumble is out of the game for the nextfour months. BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele has announced that Kumble will beoperated on by South African orthopaedic surgeon Mark Fergusson inJohannesburg on Wednesday. The 30-year-old leg spinner has been rendered hors de combat since the opening game of the Coca Cola Champions Trophy in Sharjah against Sri Lanka on October 20.In that game, he aggravated a right shoulder injury, caused by a fall several months earlier, which had not been allowed to heal due to constant activity. With the symptoms of pain and stiffness felt during bowling and throwing not subsiding, Kumble flew to South Africa last week for consultation with Fergusson, the surgeon who treated Javagal Srinath and Ajit Agarkar, also forshoulder problems.Indian coach John Wright, who returned to India on Sunday, reacted with disappointment to the news in Mumbai. The news is a huge setback to India’s chances against Australia in the three match Test series which takes off on February 27. To put India’s dependence on Kumble in perspective, one just has to recall the last Australian visit to India exactly three years ago. India won 2-1 and who was their matchwinner? If you thought Sachin Tendulkar, thinkagain. It takes twenty opposition wickets to win a Test match. On thattour Kumble took 23 at 18.26 in three Tests while seven other bowlersput together took 27. Amidst the carnage wreaked by Tendulkar and Co.,perhaps the most defining contribution was Kumble’s.So where does that leave the Indians? Right behind the eight ball, onewould imagine. There is hardly any other spinner in the land whoinspires a fraction of the confidence Kumble does. The options beforethe selectors are limited. Left armers Sunil Joshi and Murali Kartikand off spinner Sharandeep Singh were the three slow bowlers tried outin the three Tests this season. Sharandeep took six wickets on debutin Nagpur without really looking special but both Joshi and Kartikwere disappointments.Among the slow bowlers seen in action this domestic season, HarbhajanSingh and Sairaj Bahutule have perhaps had the best of the exchanges.The 20-year-old Harbhajan, who has played eight Tests, took a bagfulof wickets in Punjab’s triumphant march in the Ranji Trophy. Havingbeen dumped from the National Cricket Academy for disciplinary reasonslast June, it is unclear if he has returned into the good books of theBoard.Leg spinner Bahutule, who played seven one-dayers for India in1997-98, missed most of last season through injury but has been in themidst of a satisfying run with Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy zonalleague. Whether he is still too early on the comeback trail isdebatable. By the time the Aussies arrive, he should have had thebenefit of a full complement of games in the Duleep Trophy. His fellowleg spinner WD Balaji Rao has also been reasonably successful forTamil Nadu but suffers the disadvantage of not being in the Duleepsquad.And then, 19-year-old Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan has been getting underthe skin of the visiting English colts, but again Test cricket mightbe too great a gap for him to bridge, especially with limited firstclass experience. There is also the option of veteran left armerVenkatapathy Raju who was Kumble’s spin twin the last time the Aussiescame visiting. He did not enjoy the greatest of series, scalping 7wickets at 42.42. But he bowled at a niggardly rate right through andkept things tight for Kumble at the other end, which may have played asignificant part in the latter’s own success.The Duleep Trophy, currently underway and which will continue tillFebruary 4, is a ready reckoner of the current depth of talent, orlack of it. Besides the national selectors, coach John Wright is setto watch some of the matches, beginning with the West-South clash inSurat from January 18. But as always, the kind of wickets that havebeen laid out in the competition have been way too discouraging forthe bowlers, and especially the slower ones, so the lessons learnt maybe few.