Smith8217;s Learning Curve

Two of his predecessors, Hansie Cronje and Shaun Pollock were dismissed amid notorious incidents involving South Asian teams. Cronje8217;s case is well-known; Pollock was forced to resign after the World Cup debacle where the Safs failed to qualify for the Super Sixes through a breakdown in communication and what amounted to a simple arithmetic equation that a 10-year-old would understand.

Rice was relieved of the captaincy in a highly publicised and contentious move by the selectors after the historic nine-day whistle-stop 8216;political8217; tour of India in November 1991. It was that tournament that launched the careers of Jonty Rhodes, Allan Donald, Cronje and Brian McMillan. And, as the ICC Champions Trophy 2004 looms, Smith has admitted to his own shortcomings and a reminder that South Africa don8217;t presently have similar players to give the side a fresh look.

In a lengthy, freewheeling interview on the sidelines of a disastrous series in Sri Lanka, Smith candidly admitted to making mistakes on this tour, yet learning from those mistakes. At which point he made the 8216;8216;when you are at the top of the tree, the wind always blows strongest8217;8217; comment to indicate that he was being buffeted by criticism of his captaincy and was mindful of what was being said.

Signs that the Safs and their young captain were in trouble emerged as early as February and March this year when the tour of New Zealand went awry. They lost the limited overs series 5-1 8212; after winning the first game in Auckland. From that point it was a struggle to maintain momentum as Fleming8217;s leadership skills proved to be just a little too streetwise for Smith and the touring team management failed to pick up on it.

The tour of Sri Lanka was one step too far for the tourists as they came up against a sharp, motivated side led by Atapattu. As was the case in New Zealand, the Safs were bushwhacked by their own inconsistencies and Sri Lanka fed well on their failures, as they did with Pakistan and then India in the Asia Cup. India haven8217;t improved too much since then. Just as South Africa has slipped down the rankings, India are in danger of doing the same.

And the two teams meet in India in November, a series Smith is looking forward to. What the Safs have long realised is that playing on the sub-continent requires adjustment to the conditions. Fleming 8212; who led the Kiwis to India last year 8212; made the point about how important is mental and physical adjustment to playing in India and South Asia.

The region presents a different cauldron of mulligatawny: it is colourful, rich and spicy and representative of any number of dialects and with a history and culture spread across six millennia.

8216;8216;We need to start embracing the culture and embracing the country we are touring as a way to understanding these conditions. They are so different to what we have at home8217;8217;, Smith says. 8216;8216;It is something we seriously need to look at in the future and work out how best to perform in such conditions. I know that we can play in such conditions. We did it when we toured as part of the under-19 and youth teams.8221;

This is the New Age way of approaching the game from outside the comfort zone of home and knowing the all-too-important facets of a region that has left an indelible imprint on the mind. India is not so much the last frontier for Smith to cross but one more to understand and learn from the experience of travel in a region that needs careful thought and appreciation. It is why the term 8216;8216;embracing the culture and embracing the people8217;8217; adds insight into his meaning.

Dealing with the Indian cricketers is another matter. There is a thought that India have become too pampered and sleek through over-confidence. They need to take a hard look at their game plan and, as with South Africa8217;s senior players, take a hard look at themselves. They are far better than their results, but something is missing: it is called 8216;8216;clear assessment8217;8217; and an ability to move forward as Australia seem to do and now Sri Lanka.

India have become a conundrum and Ganguly is paying for their inconsistency as much as is Smith for South Africa8217;s woebegone bowling performances on their tour of Sri Lanka. The captain can take some of the blame, but when the troops let you down through inferior performances, it is time to examine the reasons behind the failures.

Blown away at Trent Bridge by Steve Harmison8217;s swing and pace as well as bounce, and by Andrew Flintoff at The Oval, India need to seriously revaluate their Champions Trophy game plan. As joint holders with Sri Lanka after the washed-out finals in 2002, India limped in the latter stages of the Asia Cup and their European tour has so far lacked initiative.

Of serious concern is the fact 8212; noticeable during the Asia Cup, and the rain-wrecked tournament in Holland 8212; that India have not been the side that lifted their performances against Australia. Equally disturbing are the injuries to the fast bowlers and the complaints about the team8217;s physical preparedness.

Coach John Wright once suggested that he is trying to follow a formula that takes them to the next level through an attitude that bespeaks independence and strength of mind. This is not going to take place at the ICC Champions Trophy without a consistent performance from the bowlers and the top-order. It was one of the factors missing during the Asia Cup.

Smith finds himself leader of a side that contains a former captain in Pollock and as with India, a bowling attack bereft of any outstanding bowlers, apart from Pollock. There is no Donald with the trademark white stripe across the bridge of the nose staring menacingly at the batsman and often brought back mid-innings to destroy a partnership from prospering.

He is brave enough to admit that captaincy is also a matter of finding out for himself what works and what doesn8217;t. He did get to spend a few minutes in Colombo with Ian Chappell, as part of what he calls a 8216;8216;sounding board8217;8217; method of discovery. In this sense, it is similar to the route followed by the New Zealand captain Fleming when he took over. He8217;ll be hoping the results are similar.