Leadership: Important for captains to instill belief in young talent

Leadership is a very talked about topic in modern-day¬†cricket. When I first started playing, we were very used to the term ‚’captain’, whose basic role was to lead the team on the field and his role was very limited. In modern-day cricket, this has happened more in the last 10 years, the focus on international teams has become very intense. As a result, there has been a huge development and increase in this particular department. It has changed from not just leading teams or doing team meetings, but looking at all aspects of the game.

Players who come in to the team look up to the captain for support, which includes confidence enhancement, which to me is the most important feature in the development of a player at the beginning of his career. A player trying to find his feet at the international level walks in to a dressing-room, sees the biggest cricketing names of his country and the world. At times, he gets lost and caught up in everything. This is where a captain has an important role to play. A little bit of attention to that player or a quiet word of encouragement makes him feel, he belongs here and is the most important ingredient for success.

Many a time a captain might have a different view point about a player in a selection meeting, but once he walks in to a dressing-room, his focus and priority of the job in regard to that player changes. One generally doesn’t do that with senior players, who find a way out most of the time to deal with their problems. But they also at some stage of their career need that personal care.

The role of media has hugely grown in all aspects of life, leave aside sports and the captain and his players at times face a lot of heat depending on the team’s performance. Thus the captain’s job has magnified over the years. His handling of the media is so important for the image of the team and his players and this is where his capability is tested the most. How he reacts to negativity sends a strong message to the world, about his mental make-up and his reactions under pressure.

The advantage a captain has today is that with the advent of television, cricketers have become street-smart and are aware of responsibilities. They see how the successful players go about their business and develop their own way of dealing with the circumstances. This is a huge advantage to a lot of captains in modern day cricket. The players, the captains are not restricted to grounds only, but are also looked up as role models.

They are expected to show responsibility in daily life, friends-family and close-quarters keep a check on how they go about their job. So even when they are not on the ground, they have an automatic appraisal of this ability. With so much of attention and so much of focus on players, it has become a must that players should not restrict themselves to playing only. More importantly, the captain has to develop leadership qualities.