If cricketers were F.R.I.E.N.D.S. characters

Anil Kumble as Monica Geller

Slightly serious and sombre, Monica Geller is a character who remains detail-oriented, logical and clear about what she wants in her life. On occasions, she turns into an annoying hindrance for the other five, who constantly complain about her obsessive compulsion to clean and fine-tune the apartment at all times.

With the ugly saga that spanned Indian cricket a few months ago where Anil Kumble resigned as the Indian coach after reports of him being a tough taskmaster doing the rounds, there can possibly be no other replacement of Monica than Jumbo himself.

By strictly implementing a disciplinary routine in the dressing room and by harping on a fitness test for players returning to the national side after injury, Kumble’s ways was soon seen as too obtrusive. However, like Monica, Kumble too managed to get the best results from the squad, taking the team to victories in series after another.

Kumble’s passion towards his game, which was witnessed when he bowled with a broken jaw in 2002 stands with Monica’s enthusiasm for her cooking and her competitive streak which was on full display during the Geller Family Thanksgiving Football Game, contains flashes of aggression which Kumble too wore with an emphatic pride.