Is leadership a dilemma looming large for the Australian side? - Opinion
For now things aren’t lying in a limbo for the Australian Team. Michael Clarke is doing a fine job as a captain and trying to revive the once-formidable Aussies who ruled the world of cricket. While the 31-year-old stood up for the leadership following a
rough 2010-11, apparently there seems no one to take the reins from Clarke once he decides to call it a day, leaving the Kangaroos in a predicament to find an heir to the Australian cricket team.
One attribute of true leadership is the ability to create leaders, not followers. He never allows a leadership vacuum to take place in his absence and ensures the nurturing, mentoring and upbringing of the young talent to come forward and fill his http://www.senore.com/Cricket/James-Peter-Hewitt-c66001.
In cricket, a captain has the onus of leading the ten men from the front, and is responsible for setting the tone for the team, putting them in a positive frame of mind while keeping the opposition guessing with his tactics.
For any player captaining his nation is the most privileged position however, the Australian captain wearing a ‘baggy green’ is one of the most iconic symbols of cricket, which once compelled an Australian Prime Minister to say that he would have loved to
captain his cricket side just to wear the baggy green.
Australian Cricket has a rich history of when it comes to the flamboyancy, aggressiveness and a tough character of their leaders. The likes of Donald Bradman, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Stephen-Rodger-Waugh-c91216 are just the few names that drew both,
awe and inspiration from the millions who watched these cricketing giants walk the field over the years.
What stood out for these greats was their ability to leave behind able successors to lead the team. A cursory look at recent times reveal why Waugh is today considered as one of the greatest captains of all times, because like his predecessors, he shared
the trait of mentoring players, the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/RT-Ponting-c2377.
There was never a doubt that when Waugh will hang his boots, the Aussies would still be in safe hands. Had Warne not involved himself into various controversies, he would have made a wonderful captain, but still Ponting was there to take the reins, leading
his side to even greater heights – making them the most successful Test side in the game’s history.
In later years, however, Ponting’s bad patch had a serious affect on his ability to lead the side and paved the way for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/SR-Watson-c2558
has been doing a good job as the vice-captain for now but given his age and injuries, considering him as a long-term prospect for the job is likely to be impossible.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DA-Warner-c1301 has been recently appointed as the vice-captain for the ODI format, but one should hope that the development does not turn out to be a premature and un-thoughtful move for the most important job.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Clarke-c51120 has already set his intentions clear that he does not want to linger on till his late-thirties, and there’s a need for him to groom and prepare a new leader, who could take on the roll for the long-term. But who, among the current lot, fills the bill
and what kind of a player should they be? It’s a question that still needs to be answered.
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