Anil Kumble will be intolerant towards mediocrity in Team India

Anil Kumble will be Indias new head coach for the next one year Having played with and against him over the years I can say with some authority that hell be a fighter and wont give up irrespective of the situationAnil Kumble third from right celebrates the wicket of Michael Vaughan with teammates on Day Three of the third Test between India and England at the Oval in London in 2007 PicAFPYou think of Kumble and the image of him bowling with a fractured jaw comes to mind immediately Those who know him also know that hes always been a man with strong views and he wont be shy to express the same in the dressing room too His achievements from his playing days would automatically ensure immense respect from the young team which is imperative for a new entrant in any dressing roomDifferent rolesThe days of having a coach that is extremely handson and does everything on his own are history for we live in the day and age of specialised coaching John Wright used to be the batting bowling fielding coach and also the chief tactician but thats not the case anymore The role of the head coach comes with the luxury of appointing specialised coaches of his choice and thatll be Kumbles topmost priorityEventually hell be as good as the coaching staff he chooses His primary role will be to outline the broad strategy and keeping the flock together Anyone who has played cricket with Kumble will tell you that hes been a master strategist for all his wickets came courtesy a lot of planning In any case I strongly feel that bowlers tend to strategise better than batsmenQuest for excellenceAll his life Kumble did just one thing mdash challenged conventional wisdom and proved people wrong People said that since he couldnt turn the ball as much as other legspinners he would fade away quickly But he proved that perseverance and accuracy can make up for the lack of turn and drift Then naysayers said that hes a hometrack bully and that led him to reinvent his style in the latter half of his careerKumble has always been driven with the quest to become better and if he could inculcate the same in the Indian team this outfit will become the best team in the world With Kumble at the helm there will be no scope for mediocrity to survive or thrive for hell either force them to improve or show them the door Also hell always make sure that players especially the captain views the other side of the coin too While he would never be at loggerheads with the captain he wouldnt be a yesman eitherOne year termWhile no one can dispute Kumbles credentials as a player there is nothing that we know of his coaching abilities Does he have the temperament to swallow elementary errors to maintain a healthy atmosphere Does he speak in the language that everybody understands for some would need an arm around their shoulder and some would need their screws tightened up Will he be a great manmanager because that is going to be his primary responsibility Since there is nothing concrete to answer these questions its only prudent to tread carefullyI dont think that a oneyear term is because they BCCI are unsure its to give Kumble time too For all we know he might want to relinquish this responsibility after 12 months BCCI has picked the best player amongst the candidates Lets hope that he also turns out to be as good a coach as he was a playerThe writer is a former India Test opener