Warne is showing rare courage as captain

The Rajasthan Royals have been the team to watch and have been the favourites of the analysts. They have played, or have been forced to play, an interesting strategy. While most teams have preferred to play a couple of batting all-rounders, the Royals have been quite happy to go in with just five batsmen. And quite astonishingly, two of them have been given the licence to slog. Both Swapnil Asnodkar and Yusuf Pathan are only going to come off occasionally, given the style they adopt, and that means a lot has been asked of the other three in the top five; Graeme Smith, Shane Watson and Mohd Kaif. It can work both ways. When empowered, players find new strengths within themselves, though on the odd day, the batting can look quite thin.

But Warne’s approach has always been positive and you can see that in the way he has encouraged young Ravindra Jadeja to rediscover himself. Jadeja has been around for a while and we knew him as a spinner who batted down the order and who fielded well. Here, in higher company, he has played as a batsman who really hasn’t needed to bowl and his fielding has been top drawer. I doubt if another captain would have had the courage to do so, for the easier alternative would have been to play another batsman at No 6, in place of one of the seamers, maybe Trivedi. Maybe there isn’t another batsman they trust, certainly Kaif should be getting pushed a bit more, but Warne, as usual, has been willing to walk on the infrequently tread path.

And in his wonderful, cultured, understated way, Shaun Pollock is emerging as one of the personalities of the tournament. Pollock is a more studied cricketer than Warne is, more process driven and yet, is starting to have a huge impact on a young team too. He was a reluctant captain, for he didn’t know the younger players in the team too well, but after the Harbhajan incident when it became clear that either he or the wonderfully bubbly Sanath Jayasuriya would have to lead the side, he put his hand up. And he has been wonderful with the younger players, often reminding them that they must not be obsessed with the outcome but should concentrate more on the process. You can see he has been that kind of cricketer himself and has led from the front.

Around him there is a nice bunch of young cricketers and for two in particular, Dhawal Kulkarni and Rohan Raje, this must be a dream come true. Pollock and Glenn McGrath have been the two great method bowlers of our times, two completely contrasting personalities on the field but alike in their adherence to the timeless qualities of line and length. They are great role models as bowlers and it is fantastic for the young men in Delhi and Mumbai to be learning from such masters.

Soon, even the Harbhajan-Sreesanth episode will come to an end. Some of us, who were shown the video of the incident as part of the hearing, and were rightfully asked to keep the contents of the footage confidential, are feeling very disappointed that those that are meant to investigate do not feel a similar need. And even though I am part of the industry, I cannot understand the urgency with which everyone feels the need to be seen on the small screen. Sometimes we need to get our priorities right.

(Commentator Harsha Bhogle is an advisor for the Mumbai IPL team)