Vengsarkar marks a new line on debut

Mohali, October 30 After facing the deadliest of pacers in his 116-Test career and leading the country on tough assignments, one didn’t expect Dilip Vengsarkar to be overawed or intimidated by a hostile media contingent within hours of India’s exit from the Champions Trophy. And if one goes by the 16-member squad that he announced for the one-day series in South Africa starting November 19, and the poise with which he justified the inclusions and omissions, it was clear that the new selection committee chairman had not forgotten how to handle pressure.

Though it remains to be seen if those experienced hands have shuffled the pack right — Anil Kumble is back, so is Zaheer Khan and Wasim Jaffer finds a one-day slot — a new line of thought certainly has been initiated in Team India’s selection meetings.

Since the day Vengsarkar got the hot seat, there was speculation about the changing dynamics of the committee which, besides the zonal representatives, also includes captain Rahul Dravid and coach Greg Chappell. The word was Vengsarkar the batsman had the credentials to debate any selection matter with the assurance of having ‘been there, done that’. With the last selection committee, led by Kiran More, severely low on Test count, the inclusion of Vengsarkar and Venkatapathy Raju meant things were due for a change.

Today, after his first media briefing, it was clear that though his hairline may have receded, his face more wrinkled, Vengsarkar, like in his playing days, still maintains the no-nonsense style. Asked about VVS Laxman, he said, “He has a fitness problem right now and also has a fitness problem to play international ODIs”. Asked whether Sourav Ganguly’s name was discussed, there wasn’t the usual “doors are open for all” line but a straight big “No”.

Another answer that went beyond the usual clichés was on India’s talent pool. “At the Challenger (series) we saw a lot of players. To be honest with you, there is not much talent. They are players who are good at first class level but they are yet to come up at the international level. I haven’t seen any exceptional talent,” he said.

First impression, says the former BCCI Chief Talent Research Development Officer, is tough to impress. And that was the reason rookies Robin Uthappa and Rohit Sharma didn’t make it, while “the technically sound” Test opener Jaffer did. It was Jaffer’s transition to ODIs that showed the...

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Vengsarkar marks a new line on debut

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