5 things for which every cricket fan will always remember Anil Kumble

Anil Kumble being carried off the field after his final Test

A cricketer par excellence and a true ambassador of the gentleman’s game are probably the two best ways to describe India’s most successful bowler of all time, Anil Kumble. In a remarkable career that spanned over 18 years, the champion leg break bowler gave Indian fans various moments to cherish, most of which are still etched in their memories and will stay there for the years to come. On his 45th birthday, it is time to look at 5 things about ‘Jumbo’ for which cricket fans will always remember him.

For his unconventional bowling style

For years, Anil Kumble has been classified as a leg spinner and is included as a part of the legendary trio of spinners who dominated the 90s and the early 2000s, the other two being Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. However, those who have watched him bowl will agree that he had his own style which was loosely inspired by his idol and yet another great Indian spinner, BS Chandrashekhar.

He did not extract any real turn from the surface; what worked for him was his ability to make the ball skid through the surface and take the batsman by surprise. Another thing that made Kumble’s bowling all the more special was the way in which he could disguise his variations and trick the batsmen, the most famous one being his top spinner which left many of them clueless.

The term ‘mystery spinner’ has been thrown around a lot over the past few years, but in Anil Kumble’s mystery was something no one may have figured out even till this date.

For playing the game in its true spirit

In cricket’s so called ‘modern era’, rarely has there been a player who has lived the spirit of the game more than Kumble. And it is for this particular reason more than anything else that he is such a respected figure not only in the world of cricket, but also outside of it.

Controversy kept a distance from him throughout his career and vice versa. The best bit was that he even raised voice on certain occasions when he say that the spirit of cricket was being breached. At the post-match presentation of the infamous Sydney Test in 2008, the then Indian skipper Kumble was not holding any words back when he said “Only one team was playing in the spirit of the game, that’s all I can say,” after India was robbed of a sure shot draw in lieu of some poor umpiring decisions and shambolic levels of gamesmanship shown by the Aussies.

His true gentleman-like spirit is one of the major reasons that has helped him become a highly sought after administrator.

For being a champion cricketer

Anil Kumble is not only an Indian cricketing legend, but is also one of the all-time greats in world cricket. With 619 wickets, he is only topped by Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan in the list of the highest wicket takers in Test cricket.

Possibly the greatest feather in his cap is the fact that he is only one of two bowlers in Tests to have claimed all 10 wickets in an innings, the other being Jim Laker of England. For most cricket fans, this feat is probably the brightest shining star in Kumble’s glittering career.

For 21 long years, he also held the record for the best figures in an ODI by an Indian bowler, 6 for 12 against West Indies at the Eden Gardens, until it was broken by Stuart Binny who took 6 for 4 against Bangladesh in June 2014.

Apart from being the incredible bowler that he was, Anil Kumble was also a more than reliable batsman lower down the order and he proved it time and again. A couple of memorable moments that quickly come to mind include his maiden Test century against England in 2007 and his heroic match-winning partnership with buddy Javagal Srinath against Australia in the 1996 Titan Cup triangular series.

Anil Kumble bowling with a broken jaw was an inspiring sight

For his unparalleled commitment

If aspiring cricketers need a role model to look up to in terms of being committed to the game, they will not find a better one than Anil Kumble. He was a trier beyond boundaries throughout his career and this trait helped him a great deal in reaching where he finally did. Who can forget that effort in Antigua in 2002 where he bowled with a bandage around his fractured jaw? While bowling, he was relentless and had the ability to keep coming at the batsmen until he got the desired results.

With the bat in hand, he ensured he never threw his wicket away and used to be a trusted ally for the Dravids and the Laxmans. He was not the most acrobatic of fielders, yet he gave beyond 100 per cent on the field especially off his own bowling. His unmatched commitment was something that won him the trust of every captain he played under.

For his match-winning abilities

When you talk about winning matches for the country, there are very few Indian players that come anywhere close to Anil Kumble. Almost throughout the entire of the 90s, India had become a fortress which was nearly impossible to breach for touring teams, mainly in Test cricket. A lot of credit for this can safely be given to Kumble, who in combination with the likes of Srinath and Prasad, and later Harbhajan and Zaheer, managed to create havoc among opposition batsmen.

There were times, especially on the 4th or 5th day of a Test, when he used to become virtually unplayable and loomed as an intimidating shadow over the hapless batsmen. Towards the later part of his career, the legendary leg break bowler also found answers to those who questioned his bowling prowess on overseas pitches and produced some memorable performances. He is right there with the best in terms of match-winning capabilities.