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VIEWPOINT: CRICKET TALK
Making It Happen
An exclusive
column from the man behind the world's most successful cricket team.
By
John Buchanan
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COOLING OFF: Glenn
McGrath (centre) does drinks duty as Langer (left) and Ponting take
a break during the Australian tour Opener in Nagpur |
What
do you do as coach of this highly successful Australian side?" It
is a question I am frequently asked, and the answer lies in something
as basic as processes and systems. I'll explain. For some of the current
tour party, this particular journey had its birth in previous cricket
adventures and misadventures to India. For others among us who are making
our initial passage through India, the mystique and the country's magnetism
were born from classroom geography assignments, Rudyard Kipling's Jungle
Book and films such as Gandhi. It is with this background plus the desire
to emulate the 1969 Australian side and possibly extend our record sequence
of Test victories that we began preparations for this series.
As far back as our New Zealand tour (March-April
2000), equipment and support needs for India were listed and built into
the overall planning process. Examples of these are our use of ice baths,
developments of ice vests (which will keep players cool when out in the
field), a range of nutritional and health products (energy drinks) and
team-room recreational activities. Combined with some of the more innovative
approaches are the now traditional preparation methods of fitness regimes,
videos and computer analysis and specific training for game conditions.
Part of the "getting ready" phase for India has been to accommodate
the expectations of the Australian public, who in a sense are being fed
on a diet of success. Such avarice has had a very positive effect on the
team, as it requires all member players and support staff to not only
maintain standards but constantly seek ways to improve all our systems
and processes.
It was interesting to watch a recent television
programme featuring Sunil Gavaskar and Geoff Boycott discussing the role
of the coach and how important it was to have played a lot of Test cricket
to be a successful coach. They too in their own words pinpointed some
of the key tasks involved in coaching. While they differed on whether
the coach should have an extensive playing background at the highest level,
they did agree that communication, gaining the respect of the players
he/she is coaching, keeping an eye on trends in technology and fitness
and having the players think for themselves were some of the major elements
of the role. I couldn't disagree with most of their comments; however,
I would add the following thoughts.
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| Steve Waugh |
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With regard to being a former Test cricketer,
there are sufficient current examples of both types coaching national
and domestic first-class teams around the world. Neither one type would
appear to be more successful than the other. The reason being that cricket,
specifically cricket coaching, is a multi-faceted activity. It could be
likened to American football where the teams comprise various units (such
as attack and defence, which are further subdivided because of the different
skills and tactics involved-goal kicking, receiving kick-offs), each with
their specific coaching expertise, co-ordinated by a head coach. While
I am not particularly in favour of heading down the coaching path of the
Americans, it does recognise that any sport has a vast range of skills
and knowledge that no one person can possibly possess, no matter how much
they have played the game.
There is more to coaching than just the technical
components of the game. There is the need to develop appropriate physical/fitness
regimes for individuals and teams, the need to have effective planning
and strategy approaches to gain competitive advantage, the very difficult
task of improving the decision-making capacity and ability of players
and ensuring that players and support staff, all with different backgrounds
and personalities, exist harmoniously within a "family" environment.
You can now begin to get an appreciation of the coach's role and why systems
and processes, for me, are crucial. Having said what the coach's role
is, most of those systems and processes take time to put in place. In
the meantime, the team, and ultimately the coach, is judged on how they
perform. Consequently the coach, along with the captain, must have an
eye on the future but deal with the here and now. I am extremely fortunate
to be coaching at a time when Steve Waugh is captain. I believe we complement
each other very well, with Stephen's leadership being one of the outstanding
features in the way we play our cricket.
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SPIRITED:
Skills and a great team mood--witness Fleming, Gillespie and Warne---drive
the Aussies |
It is fair to say we play our cricket as hard
as we can and try to give ourselves the edge that may help the side win.
However, we abide by the rules, traditions and spirit of the game and
cherish the privileges and opportunities we have been offered. The lead-up
to any series, especially for the visiting team, is a crucial period in
the context of a three-Test schedule. Our first match in Nagpur, a town
of friendly people and a drying atmosphere, required a quality opposition
on a wicket and ground that would give us a quick appreciation of Indian
conditions. India A, the Vidarbha Cricket Association and an indifferent
first innings batting performance from ourselves (notable exceptions being
Michael Kasprowicz and Jason Gillespie) provided the necessary ingredients.
We were made to work hard on day two and three through the batting of
V.V.S. Laxman, Sadagopan Ramesh and Nayan Mongia, while the promising
trio of Ashish Nehra, Harbhajan Singh and Rahul Sanghvi gave our batsmen
enough to think about.
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The coach must
ensure players exist within a "family" environment.
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At the same time I have enjoyed reading about
and watching the pre-series work of the Indian squad under the guidance
of John Wright. He is a man of strong principles, has a wealth of experience
and is a person willing to learn and listen. The impact of his leadership
to the approach of the Indian camp is already very evident and his partnership
with the triumvirate of former Kent county protege Rahul Dravid, captain
Ganguly and Tendulkar will be an important factor throughout the Test
matches and into the one-day tournament.
As we enter the shadows of the first Test and
the customary tingling and tension levels increase, it is important to
place in perspective what this series means. It is first and foremost
about watching two quality teams parry and thrust for the right to be
crowned champion in the heaving coliseums of cricket. Secondly, it is
about restoring faith in the great game of cricket-a game which has had
its image severely tarnished in recent times. Cricket is a unique game
but no less subject to all the good and bad influences which permeate
our social fabric. I am certain both teams are very aware of the roles
they will play in repairing and preserving the "specialness"
of the game. And finally, sport, cricket in this case, provides a "lighthouse"
to those less fortunate by way of social or personal circumstance. It
is to be hoped that those suffering in Gujarat can have time to draw some
inspiration from the contest between both sets of "flannelled fools".
John Buchanan is the coach of the current
Australian cricket team.
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