06 April,2011 12:41 PM IST | | Clayton Murzello
World Cup 2003 coach, John Wright tells MiD DAY how he followed India's progress on Saturday in Christchurch while paying tribute to his former wards
He can no longer use his favourite line to introduce himself to people, 'this is John Wright from the Indian
cricket team.'
But his heart still beats for India, a team he spent five fruitful seasons with as coach.
India's first foreign coach was lucky to catch the World Cup final on his return from Sri Lanka with the New Zealand team which lost to Sri Lanka in the semi-final. He sat in his room and cheered for his old boys. Wright accompanied the NZ team as coach for this World Cup.
MiD DAY caught up with him over the phone from Christchurch.
Where did you watch the World Cup final?
I watched it in my room when I got home on Saturday. I watched as fanatically as the rest of the audience (laughs). I was thrilled. I know what this means to the country, fans and players. We wanted the World Cup badly in 2003, but were not good enough on the day.
Here, India was the best team in the tournament.
They beat the tough sides - Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. My only regret is that NZ didn't make it to Mumbai (for the final).
Several reckon the World Cup triumph is a culmination of the process that started with your appointment as coach in 2000...
I was privileged to play a role in helping them achieve something over a period of time. I think the team has been taken to another level.
The boys developed the belief to win from tough situations. I worked with a fantastic set of players and I am thrilled for them. I am particularly thrilled for Sachin Tendulkar; the whole cricketing world is thrilled
for him.
The core of this team played when you were coach...
Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Zaheer and Viru ufffd there were four youngsters when I started and they've gone on and done wonderful things for their country. I couldn't be happier.
Dhoni came into the team in my last series as coach. What a player, what an innings in the final!
Your take on Virat Kohli?
He has played to full potential. His form was very good even before the World Cup and his partnership (83 runs for the third wicket) with Gambhir was a critical one in the final. If you lost another wicket early, it would have been a lot tougher.
Gambhir's impact on this team is often unheralded...
It appears to me that he is the glue in the team. He reminds me of Rahul Dravid. He's a different player and he's a bit more attacking than Rahul, but he seems to be the glue and you need that. He has had a rough time, but he can come good in big matches like he did in the final. He got a good 50 against Australia.
How do you analyse Gary Kirsten's contribution?
I think they got back together as a family and it is very important for the players to be happy, learning and enjoying the atmosphere. Gary helped create that.
The challenge now is for everyone to keep their feet on the ground and maintain that level. What we saw on Saturday was what India was always capable of. All credit to them!
