Siva and Robin advocate changes at domestic level

By Vijay Lokapally

NEW DELHI, OCT 31. Can you win a match without picking 20 wickets ? And who, pray, will take those 20 wickets. Very interesting observation made by Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, one of the finest attacking bowlers to have graced the game of cricket.

``I don't know how one can win without taking wickets?'' was a simple poser from this mean leg-spinner who baffled the best of batsmen in business. Picture a determined Javed Miandad groping against the tantalising flight as Siva unfolded his magic from 22 yards. The genial Siva can take pride in the fact that he bowled his best against batsmen, reputed to be the best players of spin.

Siva was a matchwinner, a tribe that has become scarce these days. The coffers of the Board may be swelling but the talent flow has dried up; the system has simply stopped producing matchwinners.

``Matchwinners are born,'' says Robin Singh, the Tamil Nadu captain who remained on trial till the selectors drove him away in the name of grooming youngsters. Reetender Singh Sodhi replaced Robin, who is still one of the fittest cricketers in the country, to give a new definition to the word `all-rounder.' It is similar to calling Ajit Agarkar an all-rounder, in the same breathe after Kapil Dev.

Siva is right when he points out that it is the system which does not provide scope for the development of matchwinners. ``We're fielding the best side but there's too much pessimism attached to it. I think things will not change unless the attitude in domestic cricket changes.''

``Who goes for a win in domestic cricket?'' queries Siva. ``A lot depends on your grooming and unless you are taught to win you can't develop this habit. Winning is a habit and we grew up developing this habit.''

Robin agrees, ``you have to inculcate the winning habit into your system right from the lower level of cricket. It's all a matter of confidence. It depends on what sort of cricketer you want to become. Do you want to be a matchwinner or just another member of the team. It also depends on your game no doubt but then you have to develop yourself into a matchwinner from an early age.''

There are many factors that determine matchwinners-talent, discipline and mental strength. In Siva's opinion, the most important aspect is aggression.

``You should have a strong desire to dominate, and take wickets. Even in today's limited overs cricket, you have to take wickets to put pressure on the opposition to get the right results. We must learn to make things happen,'' Siva says.

Over the years, as Siva rightly analysed, the Indians had got into a defensive groove, with bowlers waiting for the batsmen to make mistakes. ``This tendency has to change. You can't progress far with this attitude of playing the waiting game. It can fetch you results sometimes in domestic cricket but not in the international circuit. Only bowlers who have the attitude of bowling to take wickets can make the difference.''

Siva should know his cricket, having produced some sensational spells in limited overs contests, not to forget his craft in Test matches too. Critics like Richie Benaud, Ian Chappell and Bill Lawry lavished great praise on this leg-spinner from Chennai during the World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985 when Siva bowled with a silly point and a short leg in a limited overs competition.

What puzzles Siva is the negative attitude prevailing among the cricketers today. ``I don't want to sound critical but we seem to suffer from a negative attitude. I would love to see Indian cricket grow and I know efforts are being made, but then the players must understand that they have to learn to win matches at a young age. Win matches for their club, State, zone and then the country obviously will take care of itself.''

How important a role does a captain play? ``The most,'' says Siva, ``because captain is the man who gives confidence to the bowler. He's the one who gives the bowlers the field he wants. If you look at history, you'll notice that great captains always had matchwinners because they groomed and supported them. For example, look at how Imran Khan moulded Abdul Qadir. It was a brilliant association. I was lucky too, because Sunny (Gavaskar) never asked me to bowl a negative or defensive line. He supported me all the way with an attacking field and gave me the freedom of choosing my way of attack.''

Siva and Robin advocate changes at the domestic level to enable the Indian team regain its winning ways. ``A bonus for a victory,'' suggests Siva. ``Some incentive in the form of money or points,'' says Robin, who can be a good coach or a motivator for the young cricketers if his services were to be utilised by the Board.

There have been few positive-minded cricketers like Robin. And very few attacking bowlers with a mindset of a matchwinner like Siva, who is making news as an analytical television commentator.

The matchwinners will have to be spotted and protected. Bowlers have to be encouraged to take wickets and not just contain the flow of runs. ``In today's cricket, you can't win a one-day game by just trying to contain the opposition. You have to fire them out,'' stresses Siva.

The focus, Siva and Robin maintain, should only be on a performance-oriented policy, a point that finds favour with Madan Lal. ``I agree that the system doesn't encourage players to look for a win. The difference between India and the top teams is this approach to the game. We are not producing aggressive cricketers,'' says Madan Lal.

It will not be a bad idea to provide an impressive incentive scheme in domestic cricket, to attract teams to go for a win. Good habits have to be inculcated at the base, and good all- rounders need to be groomed from a young age. Attacking cricket has to be played at every level, if we aspire to excel in the international arena, the way we did in the 1983 World Cup.

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