His partners may come and go, but Anil Kumble goes on forever.
The World Cup severely dented the reputation of many
an established player in the Indian team, but with the exception of Kumble.
The 35-year-old leggie has come through several crises in his
17-year-long playing career. Post-World Cup, his experience and reliable craft
make him one of the pillars around whom India can starts its rebuilding
process.
There is no Harbhajan Singh to tweak the ball from the
other end. Nor Ajit Agarkar to reverse swing when the leather has lost
its shine. For Kumble, however, these are but names - like Venkatapathy Raju,
Venkatesh Prasad and Javagal Srinath before them.
The quadrennial event in the Caribbean was Kumble's last ODI
tournament, but there could be no denying the fact that he has still a lot to
offer in the traditional version of the game.
"I feel more relaxed now. There is no problem with focusing.
I am concentrating on the longer version full time," said Kumble who joined
the India team two days ago for the upcoming two Tests against Bangladesh.
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