Cricinfo - Blogs - Rob's Lobs

So, is that old saw, about returns diminishing as duties increase, really borne out by the evidence? Take a look at the following list of current or recent batsmen-captains:

Average as captain

Ponting 65.83 (up from 55.97 not as captain)
Jayawardene 60.41 (47.80)
Lara 57.83 (50.12)
Inzamam 52.10 (48.73)
Dravid 44.51 (59.30)
Fleming 40.59 (36.77)
Vaughan 39.18 (50.98)
Smith 45.25 (55.09)

Smith is an awkward case – all but eight of his 66 Tests have been as captain, in which capacity he was averaging 72 after his first seven matches, thanks primarily to those successive double-tons against England in 2003. The decline, though, has been steady, long and virtually uninterrupted. As for Vaughan, he became captain amid the glow of one of the purplest patches the modern game has witnessed, so again, the only way was down. (Indeed, he was averaging more, 50.98, than at any time in his career when he assumed the reins against South Africa at Lord’s in 2003.) Given that helming India is probably the most demanding job in sport, and that he, too, was surfing the crest of a wave when he inherited it, Dravid’s waning is even more forgivable. The surprise, to many, will be that as many as five of the eight players above became more productive with responsibility, Jayawardene, Ponting and Lara appreciably so.

Now let’s toss in, at something akin to random, 12 notables of distant and recent yesteryear who doubled as skippers:

Bradman 101.51 (98.69)
Hammond 55.23 (59.48)
Sobers 58.80 (57.01)
Gavaskar 50.72 (51.33)
Javed Miandad 50.08 (53.53)
Hutton 52.14 (58.47)
Lloyd 51.30 (38.67)
Richards 45.11 (53.64)
Ian Chappell 50.00 (37.26)
Steve Waugh 52.30 (50.44)
Hussain 36.04 (38.10)
M Taylor 39.63 (46.97)

Almost 60% of the above (seven out of 12) endured a decline in productivity as leaders, yes, but of rather more significance is the fact that more than 40% (five) improved, Chappell and Lloyd especially.

Merging these two lists, moreover, demonstrates the relatively insignificant negative impact captaincy can have:

Biggest rise

Chappell + 12.74
Lloyd + 12.63
Jayawardene + 12.61
Ponting + 9.86
Lara + 7.71
Fleming + 3.82
Inzamam + 3.37
Bradman + 2.82
Waugh + 1.86
Sobers + 1.79

Biggest fall

Dravid – 14.79
Vaughan – 11.80
Smith – 9.84
Richards – 8.53
Taylor -7.34
Hutton – 6.33
Hammond – 4.25
Miandad – 3.45
Hussain – 2.06
Gavaskar – 0.61

Those least touched by the cares of leadership have been Gavaskar (0.61 difference), Sobers (1.79), Waugh (1.86), Hussain (2.06) and Bradman (2.82). Of the 20 batsmen under examination, furthermore, only six can be said to have suffered in any substantive way (average reduced by more than 5%) from carrying the extra burden – Dravid, Vaughan, Smith, Richards, Hutton and Taylor. Since they all averaged 39-plus, moreover, none can be said to have been conspicuously unworthy batting selections in the way that, say, Mike Brearley (22.48) or even Jeremy Coney (30.19) were. So much, then, for received wisdom.

Vaughan, though, has something else to commend him. Lara’s retirement from the five-day arena may have left a vast void on the aesthetic front, but the Sheriff of Sheffield’s post-knee-op rebirth has plugged a few gaps. VVS Laxman aside, does any contemporary player penetrate the off side quite so effortlessly, quite so regally? Not to these eyes. Throw in a follow-through that might have inspired Rembrandt and the artistic impression is nigh-on Gowerian. Or, come to that, Azharuddin. Six-point-zeroes all round.

Which prompted another mischievous thought. How about picking a current XI to satisfy the senses, and one on whom, despite their collective eyesoreness and/or greyness, you might wager your last penny not to lose? All right, all right, since you insist…

Sensual XI: Michael Vaughan (capt), Chris Gayle, Ricky Ponting, Mohammad Yousuf, VVS Laxman, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Stuart MacGill, Shoaib Akhtar, Brett Lee, Shane Bond, Danish Kaneria.

Undemonstrative XI: Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), Michael Hussey, Rahul Dravid, Jacques Kallis, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Paul Collingwood, Anil Kumble, Shaun Pollock, Matthew Hoggard, Stuart Clark, Paul Harris.

I could not agree more...I have always believed Vaughan has underperformed relative to his talents. In my eyes, at his best he is a better all-round player than Ponting - he can play spin and the moving ball for a start. But there is a big difference - Ponting has a hunger for runs which Vaughan seems to lack, knee problems aside. One of the most revealing comments i heard from him was in an interview (with Atherton i think), where he said he believed he was not like Sachin or Lara and was more a "low forties average player". Shocking! You won't hear an Aussie or Pieterson talk like that - they want greatness. It is also nonsense - at his best, MV is the technical equal of kallis and Dravid, as superior player of spin and swing than Ponting, the best offside player in the world, as good as anyone on the backfoot against genuine pace and imperiously elegant - he should be averaging 60! Let's hope he does a gooch or waugh and starts realising his talent now

I could not agree more. I have always believed Vaughan has underperformed relative to his talents. In my eyes, at his best he is a better all-round player than Ponting - he can play spin and the moving ball for a start. But there is a big difference - Ponting has a hunger for runs which Vaughan seems to lack, knee problems aside. One of the most revealing comments I heard from him was in an interview (with Atherton I think), where he said he believed he was not like Sachin or Lara and was more a "low forties average player". Shocking! You won't hear an Aussie or Pietersen talk like that - they want greatness. It is also nonsense - at his best, Vaughan is the technical equal of Kallis and Dravid, as superior player of spin and swing than Ponting, the best offside player in the world, as good as anyone on the back foot against genuine pace and imperiously elegant - he should be averaging 60. Let's hope he does a Gooch or Waugh and starts realising his talent now

Sangakkara? Eyesore? You're kidding right, mate? The more I see of this guy, the more classy and elegant I think he is- this guy is blossoming as a batsman (Hobart 192 case in point), and for me, a batsman who is getting better to watch by the year is a lot more exciting than someone who used to be good, oh I don't know, about three years ago but now rarely lasts long enough to really entertain you (Vaughn). Dravid doesn't deserve 'undemonstrative' either.

For me, the list doesn't work because it seems to imply that these guys are either classy or consistent. Clearly this doesn't work for batsmen like Ponting, Sangakkara or Yousuf, who are both. Maybe you should have three categories- Sensual, Surefire, and Superhuman.

And Prasanna Jayawardene has not established himself enough to deserve a place in the first group, in my opinion. How did Gilchrist miss out in this category? And Tendulkar? Jayawardena is also a real class act to watch...

What I think is noticeable is not the amount of runs Vaughan is currently scoring but the manner in which he is getting them. He looks fluent, the timing is there, the pull is confident and the drive (the drive, THE DRIVE!) is smooth as ever. In short, the touch of class that has been lacking in recent years is back. I think the break has done him good He has cleared his mind, allowed him to take stock and he seems relaxed because he knows that he will go down as a great player no matter what else he does / does not do in his career.

I don't think his captaincy has been at fault. True, recent results haven't gone England's way but they competed well at Kandy and were even in a winning at position at one point, a considerable improvement on many other subcontinent tours. I have preferred the more recent (losing) England performances under Vaughan to some of the dross between Ashes series where the opponents were disrepectfully viewed as a warm-up for the tour Down Under.