Kumble's Legacy lives on by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Scorecard:	India v Australia
Player:	A Kumble
Event:	Australia in India 2008/09

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DateLine: 3rd November 2008

 

As tributes pour in post Kumble's retirement the man himself was unassuming. His down to earth attitude was reflected in the post match press conference where he played down his achievements. There was no hype or hoopla surrounding his retirement. Even though the players carried him on his shoulder he felt extremely uncomfortable. He preferred to walk on the Kotla ground where he had a terrific time over the past two decades.

Addressing the press conference Anil Kumble as usual reiterated the fact that he would always want to be remembered as a person who gave 100 percent. There was no mention of his glittering statistics. A great team man that he is, he always spoke about the future of Indian cricket being in safe hands, his contribution to getting the team forward in the last two decades.

Commitment the key to his longevity
For a bloke who played with a broken jaw in the test match at Antigua against West indies and got the wicket of Brian Lara. He finished his career playing with eleven stitches on his broken little finger of his left hand and took the catch of Johnson whereas everybody else were dropping catches. It just showed the commitment of the man. No wonder his career spanned two decades 132 test matches and 619 test wickets apart from 271 Odis and 337 wickets. A total of close to 1000 international wickets. A monumental achievement.

Took Criticism in his stride
For a person whom everybody criticized as someone who couldn't spin the ball and would never even play two test matches. Kumble was a sportsmen who always took criticism in his stride. The last one year has been extremely tough on him with the media lashing out at his form and fitness. Sometimes it was too hot to handle with questions raised about his retirement. But the way he carried himself on and of the field showed that he was a thorough gentleman and a great ambassador for the game. He was truly a great sport.

He will always be remembered as a match winner
To have got 10 Man of the Match awards only one behind Sachin is a great achievement in itself. But one fails to recognize the amount of matches he has won for the country. In a total of 43 wins he has had playing for India he averages 18. 77 with 288 wickets. The wickets that he got in the wins that India got abroad are the ones he would be extremely pleased about. If India have a great record at home for the past two decades they have only one man to thank for and that is Anil Kumble. Truly a match winner in every sense of the word.

Kumble's legacy lives on
Young cricketers have a lot to emulate. Kumble has left a huge legacy behind. He was a great leader of men. The Sydney fiasco which left two nations almost at logger heads against each other. But Kumble was like an elderly statesman who had a calming influence taking care of the entire situation and bringing it under control. He did something which even the Maharashtra government is struggling to do today. That whole issue could have actually blown away many individuals but Kumble was a tough nut to crack. He rallied the Team around for the next test match at perth to be the first subcontinent team to win a test match at the WACA.
His legacy will live on as young cricketers will find it extremely hard to emulate. His contribution to Indian cricket will be hard to beat. There can never be another Anil Kumble. He was one of a kind. The baton has been passed for the next person to take. Indian cricket will miss him.

ADIOS JUMBO. HAVE A GREAT LIFE. YOU TRULY DESERVE IT