The true meaning of Test Cricket: Lessons for the Indian Team

Gumption: The Willingness to Fight the Odds

Will anyone ever forget this moment?

The sight of a bandaged Anil Kumble bowling against the West Indies in Antigua more than a decade ago is perhaps the finest example of gumption seen in the 21st century. In severe pain and desperately in need of a rest, the average chap would prefer to spend time at the clinic for treatment.

The former India leg-spinner, however, was cut from a different cloth. He played through the injury, even getting a prized wicket, before finally giving in to his body’s demands. That’s what gumption is all about – you will yourself to fight despite the odds being heavily stacked against you.

However, the young turks have yet to learn this art. With the rule changes for on-field treatment, it’s no wonder that old-timers consider them to be a pampered lot. And it’s beginning to affect their game in the long version – how many of the current squad would have the courage to give up a lucrative IPL contract in order to toil away in the dust bowls of domestic cricket? They want things to come easy, and when they don’t, these boys are affected so much so that they start questioning their game and play recklessly.

Test matches have this unique ability to cut a cricketer down to size. Quite simply, if you have the stomach for a long battle, become a master of survival and manage to steer your side to safety or victory, then you belong in the highest echelons of cricket.

You just don’t give in to anything, chipping away despite knowing your team is in line for another defeat. Why? Because you’ve got the will to soldier on, eyeing triumph in the face of adversity. Fourth innings chases are tricky, more so if it’s a small target (by Test standards); however, there are no excuses if you’ve managed to buy plenty of time to reach the goal and ruin it all by surrendering meekly to the opposition.

In the end, what you will be known for is how far you were willing to go to pull your team from the depths of despair. The Blue Brigade can take heart from their ODI run in 2008 to 2012 during chases – they didn’t give up then, so why not do the same in Test matches?