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India has always been a nation which has idolized it’s cricketers more than any political leaders, movie stars or business leaders. So much so, that if a certain cricketer were to run for Prime Minister tomorrow, few would bet against him. However, this means the man who captains the Indian cricket team is exposed to heavy media scrutiny in cricketing and personal matters and literally becomes the instant love or hate child of the 1.2 billion Indians who inhabit the planet today.

Focusing on some of the great captains we’ve had, here are my personal views on some of these leaders I rate highly (chronological order):

Kapil Dev: The first Indian captain to announce India as a nation of cricketing significance with the 1983 world cup and the world series following that. A captain who lead by example, and the one who embodied the ‘never-say-die’ spirit while he was surrounded by a team comprised of old timers struggling to let go of the test cricket era. A man of great passion, personal integrity and who literally took the game to his heart. He was not afraid to show his emotions on world television (http://newsrss.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/cricket/743321.stm) when stones were thrown at things he gave the most value to in his life. Besides that, he is arguably the finest all-rounder India has ever produced. Nevertheless, his success as a captain was mostly limited to One day cricket and his relentless pursuit of a world record in his latter years when he was probably not an automatic choice in the playing XI dampened the respect he commanded with the fans. He also did not have the best of relationships with the superstars who were a regular part of his team, often failing to get the best out of them.

M. Azharuddin: A man who divided opinion in Indian cricket like no one before. A smart chap, a great reader of the game, but lacked the inspirational qualities to energize his team in pressure situations, did not have the media presence to win the fans over, and was unable to protect himself when the nation demanded he be replaced by the superstar who was his best performer . He was strong at home, if not indomitable, but his teams crumbled far too often away from home. Tainted by match fixing allegations, and the one tactical blunder in Kolkata in 1996 will forever put a black mark on this man, who was probably the most tactically astute captain India had.

Sourav Ganguly: A crowd favorite, an outspoken captain and one who backed himself all the way. His earlier setbacks as a cricketer made him focused on success, highly competitive as a captain and a cricketer, and one who was never afraid to speak out against the hypocrisy that plagued world and Indian cricket. He backed his selection of youngsters, which supplemented by his enormous talent as a batsmen on one side of the wicket and his ability to manage the superstars on his team made him a man I admired, respected and loved to watch carry the hopes of a nation on his thin frame. He took India to a world cup final, he famously bared his chest on that Lord’s balcony like a true gentleman would and changed Indian cricket in a fundamental way – we were not the sissies anymore, we could give back as good as we got. His legacy will probably be a one which will be least remembered, but one which will impact Indian cricket for the next 10 years.

M.S. Dhoni: In my opinion the finest captain we’ve had since I was born (regardless of what happens in Mumbai on April 2, 2011). A cricketer who was blooded by Ganguly, and one who has not only learnt from his predecessor, but has a personality which oozes charisma in a very confident, nonchalant and inspirational manner. He is not the one who will take off his shirt, not the one who will give an earful to a rival, but a captain who will read the game and the players with a vision that almost makes you believe there is a supercomputer inside his head. He has won a T-20 world cup with an Indian team without any superstars, and will probably be idolized forever if the team wins on April 2. But, for me, his crowning achievement has been making India the #1 side in Test cricket – something which none of his predecessors could come close to. He has learnt from his mentor (Ganguly), and has taken captaincy to a level which will not only please the fans, but his maturity makes him safe against the administrators that run Indian cricket like a village panchayat.

Looking forward to thoughts and comments as we continue to countdown to Mumbai.

Cheers

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