Anil Kumble after being appointed as India’s new coach said that he would follow the footsteps pf his predecessors, John Wright and Gary Kirsten, and keep a low profile in the job. Kumble said on Friday.
The 45-year-old Indian cricketer, who played under the coaching of John Wright and Gary Kirsten, wants to emulate the success of that duos during his one year term.
John Wright was India’s head coach from 2000 to 2005 and held a similar position at his Indian Premier League side Mumbai Indians in 2013-14 when Kumble served as the team’s mentor.
“I played a lot under John Wright, he’s been a great influence on how I’ll go about (the role), in terms of being in the background, Kumble told the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) website.
“When I became a mentor for (the) Mumbai Indians, I brought John in because he understood a lot about Indian culture and then the way coaches work. So I’ll pick his brain,” said Kumble, who was appointed to the high-profile post on Thursday.
Kumble also shares a good rapport with Kirsten from 2008 to 2011 during the leg spinner’s last year of international cricket.
Kumble played his final Test in November 2008.
“I was involved with Gary Kirsten only for the Test matches, a very short period. He was, again, someone who worked in the background and didn’t make himself visible,” said Kumble.
“Exactly how I’d like to work as well. Not in the front, but behind the scenes.”
After Kapil (1999-2000) Kumble was the first Indian to be appointed as Indian coach.
Besides Wright, India also have had Greg Chappell (2005-2007) and Duncan Fletcher (2011-15) both Fletcher and Chappell gave India contrasting results.
Ravi Shastri was Indian Team Director since August 2014 till World T20 in India.
Greg Chappell was the most controversial captain with whom Sourav Ganguly shared a willy-nilly relation.
Kumble, known for his work ethic and never-say-die attitude, stressed that a coach should be an “enabler” who takes “the burden of the captain”.
“You’re trying to build personalities, trying to build leaders. That’s how I’d like to look at this team,” said Kumble, who remains India’s highest wicket-taker with 619 scalps in 132 Tests.
Kumble, who was chosen for the high-profile job from a list of 57 applicants received by the BCCI, will join the team ahead of a gruelling season which begins with the West Indies tour in July.