Published: Feb 19, 2016, 06:24 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 20, 2016, 05:17 PM (IST)
A lot of things can happen when you are captaining the ship. (a.) Your ship may stutter, struggle and stall, (b.) there might be a complete wreck, (c.) you could facilitate a wonderful voyage for your team while feeling nauseated and sick yourself or (d.) you could embark on a spectacular cruise, while also enabling buoyancy in your team. In Brendon McCullum‘s case, as captain of the Kiwi-ship, only the latter-most is true. Not only does New Zealand boast a spectacular record under his watch, but individually his records were far superior when he was at the helm. ALSO READ: Brendon McCullum’s moment of harsh realisation
As crew member, McCullum never felt the same amount of liberty in his dealings. While he does have some fairly memorable knocks without the captaincy garb on, they are significantly paled in comparison to his achievements as captain. ALSO READ: Brendon McCullum deservedly won the Halberg leadership Award and here’s why
He gave himself the liberty to go hammer and tongs each time he set out to bat. Throughout the career that was the only way he knew, but perhaps under other skippers he felt the need to tone down a bit as the dismissals that come from aggressive shots often get labelled as irresponsible and immature, even if that method brings a certain batsman far more runs. RELATED: New Zealand need a Jesse Ryder to cope in aftermath of Brendon McCullum retirement
Relieved from the duties of being answerable to other captains, McCullum did what he knew best. Hit oppositions into submission. He unleashed the ferocious cuts and pulls, the frequency of the slogs and muscle-fuelled drives increased. It is no wonder that often scores of 40-50 from McCullum often set the course for an entire match, for such was the impact.
There are very telling numbers of how much McCullum enjoyed the freedom only he afforded himself. Let’s shift focus to a small table that speaks of the dynamic impact captaincy had on McCullum’s batting. This table alludes to the Test format.
| Brendon McCullum | M | I | R | Avg | SR | 100s | 50s | Fours | Sixes |
| As captain | 31* | 53 | 2330 | 45.68 | 73.61 | 6 | 7 | 278 | 58 |
| As non-captain | 70 | 122 | 4098 | 35.63 | 60.29 | 6 | 24 | 495 | 48 |
*Match is still in progress. McCullum could potentially bat another innings.
It is abundantly clear that McCullum was not only more consistent (average) as Test skipper, but also had a greater impact (strike-rate). He preferred dealing in sixes and in just the 30 matches as skipper he hit four more sixes than he did in 70 games as non-skipper!
A look at the ODI segregation reveals similar traits about B.Mac.
| Brendon McCullum | M | I | R | Avg | SR | 100s | 50s | Fours | Sixes |
| is captain |
62 |
59 |
1887 |
33.69 |
120.11 |
2 |
13 |
198 |
82 |
| is not captain |
198 |
169 |
4196 |
29.13 |
88.5 |
3 |
19 |
379 |
118 |
The difference in averages in the two periods is not so significant here, but the strike-rate more than makes up for that! As captain, McCullum scored almost 32 more runs per hundred balls he faced, adding to an already phenomenal strike-rate he had otherwise. The fear he inflicted in bowling attacks stems from that number. Once again, a disproportionately high number of sixes came his way as skipper.
A look at the shortest format however says a different story, here’s the table:
| Brendon McCullum | M | I | R | Avg | SR | 100s | 50s | Fours | Sixes |
| As captain | 28 | 27 | 735 | 29.4 | 130.78 | 0 | 5 | 63 | 29 |
| As non-captain | 43 | 43 | 1405 | 40.14 | 139.24 | 2 | 8 | 136 | 62 |
However, it is not really as surprising when you consider the fact that T20 was always suited to the style McCullum made his own, even before the popularisation of the format. Hence, he could always express himself in that format to the maximum extent, regardless of the captain. The dip in numbers can be attributed to a genuine dip in flair, or maybe the fact that bowlers devised new ways of containing batsman as the T20 game progressed, and were significantly better in the format by the time McCullum took over.
All in all, McCullum loved the freedom to be his own self. Unfortunately, his way of expression is one frowned upon by the puritanical lot which forced McCullum, under other skippers, to play a more sedate game in Tests and ODI even though it may not have suited his style. As skipper, he shed all inhibitions and did what was best for him and his team.
(Rishad D’Souza, a reporter with CricketCountry, gave up hopes of playing Test cricket after a poor gully-cricket career. He now reports on the sport. You can follow @RDcric on Twitter)
