Former Indian cricketers come out in support of Wright

Staff Reporter

October 9, 2001

A change in management always means a shake-up in the establishment. With Jagmohan Dalmiya taking over as the chief of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the cries of criticism against coach John Wright have steadily gained momentum. The Kiwi's contract ended a month ago and comes up for renewal shortly. Currently, Wright is in South Africa with the Indian team, playing a limited overs tri-series before heading on to a three-Test series.

A string of failures by the Indian team after their historic series win against Australia at home has meant that critics and detractors have had plenty of opportunity to sharpen their knives. A recent report from Reuters in the Indian capital, New Delhi, suggests that Wright might be under pressure to hold his job. There is however, tremendous support for India's first foreign coach from former cricketers. "Frankly, he's not been there long enough. To be fair, he should be kept for another term at least," Erapalli Prasanna, former Indian off-spin great told Reuters. "He's stressed a lot on the physical aspect of the game," Prasanna said. "Indians are known to be artistic players but have not really been the fittest. He's trying to give them that."

Other cricketers, including Delhi mediumpacer Atul Wassan, have also come out in defence of Wright. "I would certainly keep him for now. He's not done a bad job and his second year should be far more rewarding since he'll have gained experience," former Test medium-pace bowler Atul Wassan, said. "Improvements have been there and India's losing crucial matches is nothing exclusive to Wright's term. That has been happening for quite a while," Wassan added.

It must be remembered that, only recently, Dalmiya faxed a letter to Wright and physio Andrew Leipus, asking for an explanation regarding India's recent poor run. With several key players suffering from recurring injuries, the performance of Leipus too has come under the microscope. Having not won a series since the triumph at home against Australia, Wright will have a fair bit of explaining to do.

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