Anil Kumble reflects on India's sporting success at the MAK Pataudi Lecture

Anil Kumble delivering the MAK Pataudi memorial lecture in Mumbai — Agency

Indian spin legend, Anil Kumble, on Wednesday said India has become a sporting nation in the last decade and asked other sports to take a cue from cricket on how to market the game in various parts of the country. The former Indian captain said that is was not just cricket, but also the success of athletes in other sports viz. tennis, archery, boxing and badminton have helped India become a sporting nation.

“For years, we thought we are a sporting nation but we had little to show. In the last decade, India’s sporting success has changed all that.The improved performances at Commonwealth Games, London Olympics and world tournaments by chess, billiards, snooker badminton and tennis players are evidence of the improved progress that we have made,” said Kumble, who was delivering the second MAK Pataudi Lecture in Mumbai.

The leg-spinning great, whose skills were initially doubted by the legendry Indian captain Mr Pataudi, asserted that other sporting federations should follow in the footsteps of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in promoting their respective games. “Other sports can take a cue from cricket too. A generation ago, if anybody had suggested that a player from Ranchi would lead India one day, he would have been laughed at,” said Kumble referring to one of the successful persons to lead the Indian cricket team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

“The game has spread across the country, taking in areas like Rai Bareli, Baruch which had little connection to the game. The reason is simple; the infrastructure is now available and so too coaching and inceptive. We owe to our youngsters to provide them with facilities,” he said.

Kumble also used the opportunity to recall his moments with Pataudi as he shared few instincts involving the Nawab. “In 1990 as a teenager I took my first step in cricket and was eager for some kind words in the cricketing world and I then I came across a comment from an accomplished Indian cricket. I quote This lad I don’t see him winning Test match for India either at home or abroad. He rarely turns the ball, at best he can be restrictive. The assessment came from Mr Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi. Two decades of international cricket and 619 Test wicket later, it is indeed a great honour to address this lecture,” Kumble said.

The president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) also took the opportunity to appreciate Mr Pataudi for his contribution to Indian cricket. “Pataudi was acutely aware of perception. He was in some ways an Englishman but he had an Indian heart. He was the first Indian to lead India. He was a management guru, he understood the meaning of symbolism. Pataudi had the balance right and has been the beacon of Indian captain since,” he said.

Jumbo, as Kumble is fondly known as, said that he was proud to have played a key role in contributing to the success Indian Cricket has enjoyed over the years. “India cricket team realised its number one status, we won the Twenty20 World Cup, The 50-over World Cup and the Champions Trophy. I am proud to be a part of the core group that laid the foundation,” he said.

(Quotes borrowed from BCCI’s official website)