By CricketCountry Staff:
Former South Africa captain Kepler Wessels feels that Indian coach finds himself in a difficult situation where he has to decide whether he should adopt former Indian coach Gary Kirsten’s lenient approach or a typical hard line approach.
Published: Aug 27, 2011, 11:05 AM (IST)
Edited: Aug 27, 2011, 11:05 AM (IST)
Former South Africa captain Kepler Wessels believes that the Indian team arrived in England totally unprepared; and there was no dedicated approach © Getty Images
By CricketCountry Staff:
Johannesburg: Aug 27, 2011
Indian coach Duncan Fletcher’s first major overseas tour has been a major disappointment. Former South Africa captain Kepler Wessels feels that Indian coach finds himself in a difficult situation where he has to decide whether he should adopt former Indian coach Gary Kirsten’s lenient approach or a typical hard line approach.
Wessels was quoted in Times of India on Thursday as saying, “The general consensus is that Fletcher was appointed as long as he continued with the same coaching style as Gary Kirsten. The senior players wanted that, they wanted Gary to stay on, but when that didn’t happen, they wanted a like-for-like replacement.
“Gary allowed the senior players and superstars to run the show and do their own thing. But then the team arrived in England totally unprepared, there was no dedicated approach and no hunger there. India need a much firmer hand, superstars or not.”
Wessels believes right now Indian team needs a hard task master to maintain discipline in the team.
He said, “If he agreed to go with the Kirsten approach, he can’t change now. The situation is crying out for more control and a firm hand, but if he does flex his muscles, the players won’t like it and it is unclear whether the board will sanction a different approach.
“Flower takes a hard line, he’s meticulous on fitness, and there are no short cuts and he sets very high standards. The players and management can either buy into it or not be part of the team. He runs a very tight ship and the players have bought into it.”
“The England players are technically very good at the moment in all three disciplines of the game. Due to their superior fitness and technical expertise, they have become used to winning, which has made them mentally strong and ruthless in their pursuit of excellence,” he added.
