A rare Gem

It is often said ''the value of something is seldom realised until it is lost''. This is a saying which would go very well with Indian cricket.We celebrate our cricketers when they do well,and criticise them when their performances do not meet out never ending expectations.However, when it comes to recognising the performances of our players over a period of time, little credit is given to the genuine champions.
Anil Kumble is one such cricketer who has hardly got his due from Indian fans.The words 'commitment' and 'determination' fit Kumble better than anyonelse.He has now reached a very significant milestone in his career. When he dismissed Mohammad Rafique leg before Anil Kumble became the leading wicket taker for India in test cricket,to add to the achievement of him being the leading wicket taker in odis too.Kumble has been through many ups and downs in his career,but the single common factor in all these experiences is his fighting spirit.A gentleman to the core,he channelises all the aggression and energy into his bowling,as he sets up the trap for many a batsman.

An Indian win at home has almost always been associated with an Anil Kumble 5 wicket haul at home. True,Tendulkar and Azzharuddin played a major role in the 1990s when it came to putting up runs on the board, but they always had the comfort factor that Kumble would never fail the team when it came to delivering when they needed it the most.It all began at home with Gooch's Englishmen,who ignored him at their own peril.Kumble,Raju and Chauhan spun a web around the Englishmen, and before they knew what had happened,the series was 3-0 in Indias favour.A whitewash of Srilanka then followed as India went through a golden period when they were invincible at home.It must be noted here that India have never lost a home series under the captaincy of Azharuddin,a very proud record to have indeed.When the Australians arrived in 1998,Kumble was the key bowler.Ricky Ponting had no clue as to how to play his quicket one,and finished the tour with just a single half century.The same happened to Flintoff when England toured under Hussain.

The icing on the cake is definitely the 10-74 he took against Pakistan in Delhi.I have a collectors edition of that bowling performance,which displays photographs of each of the batsman he dismissed that day.Everytime I look at this it fills me with pride. Pride that we as a cricketing nation have such a fine performer amongst us.Kumble bowling with a broken jaw in Antigua is one of the bravest acts in cricketing history without a doubt. Such gems are rare and come few and far in between.We need to learn to cherish these moments and appreciate our cricketers for what they are. Shane Warne may have a bigger fan following,but then there are few cricketers who have a reputation as tarnished as Warnes! Some day soon,maybe in a couple of years,Anil Kumble will call it a day.When he does,Indian cricket will be poorer for it,believe you me.