It was hardly a surprise when Anil Kumble engineered a remarkable turnaround in the fortunes of Royal Challengers Bangalore in the second edition of the Indian Premier League. His insatiable hunger for victory has for long been his hallmark.
But touching the tape behind Deccan Chargers might have really hurt him, as the leg-spinner had never settled for anything less than the best during his 19 years of international cricket. Now, the veteran leggie will be eager to lay his hands on the glittering IPL trophy when the third edition starts. That Kumble will be back on familiar Indian surfaces will make him doubly dangerous. The Bangalorean does not need any tutoring on how to bowl on sub-continental pitches; there are a train of images that comes to mind while thinking of Kumble's dance of destruction.
Frontrunners in that long list are: the famous Perfect 10 against Pakistan, six for 12 against the West Indies in the Hero Cup final and then the vivid pictures of him teasing and tormenting English batsmen, especially Richard Blakey, in the 1993 series.
After all those tall deeds, there still might have been some doubts about him coping with the frenetic pace Twenty20. But on that magical night of April 18 2009 in Cape Town, all the scepticism was erased. The leggie bowled a wonderful spell (3.1-1-5-5) to derail the then defending champions Rajasthan Royals. After that Kumble never looked back, finishing as the second highest-wicket taker behind Deccan Chargers' Rudra Pratap Singh.
Jacques Kallis was widely tipped to take over RCB captaincy once Kevin Pietersen returned to England for the series against the West Indies, but Kumble pipped the South African for the post, and it proved to be the right move for the team. The 39-year old former Indian captian cajoled, pepped up and pushed his team-mates to give their best in the remaining matches.
Under Kumble's stewardship they looked a totally changed outfit, fearless and determined to walk that extra mile for a win. Importantly, local players like B Akhil and R Vinay Kumar too began to chip in more consistently under his guidance. It was a thrilling sight to see Kumble carrying the dual responsibility of captain and premier bowler with ease on his broad shoulders.
Now, in all probability, he will be the full-time skipper of RCB in IPL III, and all eyes will be on Kumble, captain superb and bowler magnificent.
Royal Challengers Bangalore Players - 
