One of the most successful all-rounders of all time, Shane Watson opened up about his playing experience with various captains. In a video on Youtube, he also spoke at length about the best five captains that he has played under and how he ranks them and their impact on his cricketing life.
He started with Ricky Ponting ranking him in the ace. Watson acknowledged the fact that he started his cricketing career under the leadership of Ponting. According to the Australian all-rounder, Ponting is the ultimate team man. Ricky Ponting always led from the front with his actions and he also knew what was the exact right thing to say in order to put a team together or to an individual to bring out the best thing in him.
Punter believed in Watson immensely and also challenged him to his limits to achieve heights which he never dreamt of. Playing a Test match Punter was well aware of the fact that when exactly to put Watson in the attack so that whenever he would have come out to open the innings in a Test, he stayed absolutely fresh.
He placed the emperor of Leg-Spin, Shane Warne in the second position who captained Watson in the first four seasons of IPL. Watson claimed that Warnie was a tactical genius going by his brilliant moves. His foresight was immensely deep in T-20 cricket which saw him bringing reforms like introducing a spinner in the very first over of T-20 cricket. Warne imposed that step to avert the batsman from going all guns blazing in the opening overs.
The second most incredible thing about Shane Warner was that he was always talking to his bowlers that how he could get a wicket. For Watson, it was to bowl in the exact same areas where the batsmen couldn’t smoke him. Warne would walk up to him to elicit the strategies of how to get a batsman out.
Watson also lauded Warne’s efforts in bringing a group of diverse people together without breaking a sweat. This was like the fact that he was always talking to everyone in the team, knowing what bonds them and also talking to them about their strengths and weaknesses which made things really easy for the Australian leg spinner.
In the third place, Watson kept Rahul Dravid. He claimed that Dravid is one of the sweetest and the kindest people that you can ever meet in your life. Dravid respects his desire to win and he absolutely hates losing.
All the players around him can connect with him, irrespective of the fact that whether it is a young rookie or any formidable opponent whom he has faced previously in some other tournament. He never raised his voice and he always taps into the ability of an individual at various levels. Tactically he is also a giant and he is one of the major reasons why Royals excelled so much in the first season of the fray with Warne and Dravid joining forces.
He placed Kohli in the fourth spot. Shane Watson was fortunate enough to be a part of Kohli’s contingency for a couple of years. Kohli has several interests that are away from cricket and that is a fascinating trait of character. The Indian run-machine always ensures that he is going in his work with utmost dedication. May it be training or honing in skills, call it batting n the nest, skills, or even fielding, he never backs out from squeezing himself in the field.
Kohli is hardwired with the mentality to win. Ponting and Kohli are similar in one way and that is the fact that they hated losing. The intent to win is what drives the two captains every single team and it also evokes the best of performances from the players. Every single time Kohli goes out to practice, he drags his entire team along with him.
In the final place, he named India’s dearest, MS Dhoni. Mahi’s calm is extremely enthralling. Whenever Watson played against Dhoni, he would thank him for the game. Dhoni is extremely adept at directing players on the field in a genuinely nice way without getting upset at anyone. He is also exceptionally calm off the field too.
He forges a wonderful connection amongst his players and he believes in every single player that plays in his team. Shane Watson called himself fortunate to be a part of Dhoni’s team in the preceding IPL. According to the Aussie had he been a part of some other outfit, he would have been dropped because it took him a considerable amount of time to garner runs.
With Dhoni and Fleming’s genuine belief in his players, everyone around them gets extremely comfortable. Watson will always stay grateful to them for the number of opportunities that he got for himself. Dhoni has this amazing skill of knowing when exactly not to drop someone.
Dhoni’s love and passion for the military are highly enthralling. He knows the Indian military in and out and this knowledge makes him a fabulous person to talk to. Dhoni also has an inclination towards bikes. The varying nuances of MS make him extremely fascinating amongst his players but he knows how to get the best of his players.
