Wright was ideal India coach, he gave players free-hand unlike Chappell, Kumble: Sandeep Patil

Sandeep Patil. Pic/mid-day archives

The 1983 World Cup-winning Team India player Sandeep Patil feels that John Wright's approach of giving a free hand to players led to his successful coaching stint with India, which his successors Anil Kumble and Greg Chappell failed to reproduce.

In his autobiography, "Beyond Boundaries" launched on Wednesday, Sandeep Patil has given deep insights about the reason behind John Wright's success as India's coach versus that of Chappell and Kumble. The book has been co-authored by Mid-Day's senior journalist Clayton Murzello.

Patil was privy to several developments of the tumultuous Chappell era as he used to attend selection and board meetings in his capacity as the then India A coach. "Since 2000, India have had an array of international coaches and support staff. This has paid rich dividends, because India's overseas record has improved steadily. It all started with John Wright becoming India's first foreign coach. "I think John was the ideal coach for India. He was soft spoken, polite, well-mannered, always kept to himself, and was happy to be in Sourav Ganguly's shadow. "In addition to all that, he kept a distance from the Press. He managed that so well, that he was hardly in the news " unlike what happened in the Greg Chappell years," Sandeep Patil wrote in his book.

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"With Chappell, he was in the news every day. It is very important for a coach to first understand the policy of that particular board, the thinking of the board members, and the President. He should have a good rapport with the President and the Secretary, and of course the captain and the team. John did that wonderfully." Patil observed that every player was equal and the team came first for Wright. "...during his tenure, there was no 'seniors' and juniors' business. It was one team. He believed all seniors were leaders in some way, He gave them respect, and a free hand, which l feel Anil Kumble didn't do. Greg Chappell too," he wrote.

Further, Sandeep Patil stated that Greg Chappell's aggressive approach did not suit Team India's dressing room.

"Greg is a very strong personality; very aggressive. The moment Jagmohan Dalmiya said you have a free hand, he thought that he can change everything overnight. John waited, and learnt the system. Greg wanted to change the entire system, the entire thinking, and the selection process," Patil elaborated.

"He introduced flexibility in the Indian team, and he spoiled things for Rahul Dravid, who took over from Ganguly as captain. Irfan (Pathan) was asked to move up the order. Seniors don't like to change numbers, whether it is Sachin Tendulkar, Dravid, or Virender Sehwag."

"The other issue in the Greg Chappell saga was the presence of Ian Fraser as Assistant Coach. Most players didn't like his presence." Patil said Chappell was in a hurry to introduce the Australian culture in the Indian system. "Greg wanted to introduce the Australian culture, the Australian way of playing cricket, and the Australian way of thinking. He could've done it, but he didn't bide his time. That's where I think the rift started, and he was against a few seniors who were not toeing the line."

"Sourav is not a guy who will get up and start running and doing stretches. You need to give him time. I think Greg rubbed seniors the wrong way, though a few seniors didn't speak openly about him - some like Kumble still haven't. It's the same with Dravid. Ironically, Ganguly got him in, but was instrumental in his exit," he wrote.

Sandeep Patil in his book wrote that Gary Kirsten turned out to be the most successful Indian coach because of his closeness with the players.

"Gary Kirsten was very successful - you could say most successful because his squad won the 2011 World Cup. Gary, again, was well-respected and soft-spoken. He had played against the same players and got runs. This counts, in a way. "Having played in India, he knew what to expect. He also stayed away from the Press, and gave all his 24 hours to the team," he wrote.

(With PTI Inputs)