In cricket, partnerships are critical, with the bat as well as the ball. Within a partnership, the understanding and support between two batsmen and bowlers at the middle is critical. From the recesses of my memory, here are a few instances (of course, there are many more) that I can count where support from the other end was crucial.
a)KL Rahul and Virat Kohli , Melbourne, 2014 — This was a very short-lived partnership and it also happened to be KL Rahul’s test debut, albeit a very forgettable one. Kohli had just ascended to captaincy after Dhoni’s shock retirement in tests. KL Rahul was nervy and edgy when he came to the middle and also a little unprepared to face hostile Australian bowlers in their backyard. He responded in the only way he knew -he started going for the big hits. Sensing that the debutant was nervy, Kohli walked up to him and told him not to go for half-hearted shots. The wet-behind-the-ears Rahul took his advice to heart and hoicked the next ball towards the leg side where he was promptly caught.
The point isn’t that Rahul got out. Or that Kohli’s advice to him didn’t serve its purpose. The point is Kohli, as captain, understood that his partner, a debutant at that, was not comfortable in the middle so he took it upon himself to calm his nerves and asked him not to hold back. No doubt Rahul was disappointed with the shot and he made up for letting the team down by scoring a century in the next match at Adelaide.
b) Pragyan Ojha and VVS Laxman, Nagpur, 2010: India were 9 wickets down against Australia and the only person standing between them and victory was a familiar foe — VVS Laxman. Giving him company was number 10 batsman Pragyan Ojha. As the match went down to the wire, Pragyan Ojha set off for a single without pausing to see where the ball was going. He was quickly sent back.
Fans remember this match for many reasons and one of them is the sight of the normally calm VVS Laxman losing his cool and berating Ojha for being careless. India went on to win the match and set up a historic win. It’s entirely possible that hadn’t VVS Laxman been around to guide the inexperienced Ojha, the match would have been lost.
c) Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, Multan 2004: This match is one for the history books as it featured India’s first triple centurion and a small controversy on Sachin Tendulkar being called off the field six runs before his double century. A generation of batsmen grew up idolizing Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag being one of them. In some quarters, he was also touted as Sachin’s successor for his bold and aggressive style of play.
On this day, he was clobbering a hapless Pakistan bowling attack in their own backyard while Tendulkar watched from the other end. Aghast at how Sehwag was playing shots without a care in the world, Sachin told him to go easy on the sixes, lest he go for a rash shot and throw away his wicket. Sehwag, who just couldn’t resist having a go at spinners, kept his promise until Pakistan gave the ball to a spinner — Saqlain Mushtaq.
If the nervous 90s gives batsmen jitters, imagine being on 295. Much to the utter shock of not just his partner but everyone who was watching, Sehwag went down the track and smashed Saqlain for a six towards the midwicket region. Everyone had their hearts in their mouths but that’s just how Sehwag played the game. In this case, though his partner was guiding him and was trying to rein him back so that he didn’t do anything stupid, he laid waste to Tendulkar’s caution and advice and went for a big shot.
d) Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble, Delhi, 1999: Very rarely do you see a bowler trying his best not to get a wicket. That’s exactly what Javagal Srinath did to help his partner Anil Kumble secure a perfect 10. Chasing 420 to win, Pakistan scored about a 100 runs without losing a wicket. Enter Anil Kumble. One by one the wickets began to tumble and after he took his ninth wicket, he was just one wicket away from taking all ten wickets in an innings, only the second bowler to do so after Jim Laker. The Pakistan cricket team aren’t the most sportive and when they realised this, they tried their best to deny him the 10th wicket.
Realising this, Javagal Srinath purposely bowled wides from the other end so that Kumble could get his perfect 10. This is one of the best moments of sportsmanship and camaraderie that I have witnessed on a cricket field. Of course, Anil Kumble secured the perfect 10 and carved a place for himself in the the history books.
Each of these partnerships tell a story of their own— one resulted in a wicket, one in a victory, one in an audacious triple century and one in creating history.
Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman and Javagal Srinath truly cared about the partner at the other and wanted them to succeed.
In our lives, we can replace the partner at the other end with any support that we lean on — bosses, colleagues, family. When they want the best for us, our task becomes somewhat easier. We can tide over challenging situations and find that extra thrust when our backs are against the wall. When people want the best for others, everyone raises their game.
It goes without saying that when that support is absent, a lot of things become seemingly impossible. This is one of the problems in dysfunctional teams and organisations.
In the same vein, many people count on us for support too. It works both ways.
With the right support at the other end, anything is possible.
