Akhila Ranganna: John, as the coach of the Indian team, knowing the setting and build up to the World Cup in South Africa, who according to you were the favourites to win the World Cup?
John Wright: We had started building up and thinking about the World Cup for at least 12 to 15 months before the actual event - Sourav [Ganguly] and myself, and the other senior players like Rahul [Dravid] and Sachin Tendulkar. We thought we had a team which would be very competitive at the World Cup and with the addition of the youngsters such as Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh, and the talent that we knew we possessed in Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble and Virender Sehwag, we though that we could do pretty well. We'd been playing good cricket throughout the year. We had gone to West Indies and won the one-day series there. Then we had a very good win in England in the NatWest final - there we beat both England and Sri Lanka. Then we went to the ICC Champions Trophy and finished as co-winners. We had a bad hiccup in New Zealand but we honestly felt that we had a team capable of winning in South Africa. The teams that looked the strongest and toughest to beat were going to be the South Africans at home and also the Australians. We knew a lot about them but we thought that on our day we could match them.
AR: What was the experience like playing in South Africa with them hosting the World Cup for the first time?
JW: I think the thing that we noticed about the World Cup when we toured South Africa was that that it was a very big event for South Africa. They went out of their way to make sure that it was well organised - the practice facilities, we had a training camp at Durban for 10 odd days, were well organised. The travel arrangements were excellent, our security was first class, and we got a feeling that nothing was too much trouble. So looking back at the 2003 World Cup it was just a very well run tournament.
AR: India had a tough tour of New Zealand just before the World Cup, and then they did not start on a very promising note in their opening game against Holland and then the thrashing at the hands of Aussies. With expectations weighing the team down and hostile reactions back home, how difficult was it for the Indian team to pick themselves up?
JW: Well, we had a pretty tough time in New Zealand leading up to the World Cup and lot of our key batters had lost their form. We tried to rectify that by putting special emphasis on batting in our 10-day warm up camp in Durban. We spent a lot of time in nets. But we weren't quite back to form and that was pretty evident when we played Holland. It was a game we won comfortably but from the runs perspective we did not score much over 200. Then when we were bowled out pretty cheaply against the Aussies and there was a huge reaction back in India and it was pretty tough on all of us. We knew that we had reached a point in the tournament, almost a crisis point. We had Zimbabwe next and we knew that if we did not win that game then we wouldn't be going very far in the tournament. I remember having a press conference along with Sourav Ganguly, and the seriousness of the media, who let us know, in no uncertain terms, about the reaction back in India was fairly hostile. And then Sachin Tendulkar gave a short one statement in the press conference assuring the Indian cricket-loving fans that we were doing our best. That was about it, we were doing out best, but we had reached a crisis point and we knew when we flew to Harare we had to turn our batting form around.
We tried to keep things in perspective, it was difficult. We knew about the reactions back home and some of them were extreme and I think Mohammad Kaif and Rahul Dravid were affected. Sourav and some of us had our effigies burnt. You are a little bit isolated because you are away from India but you know that it is serious. We just got close, we worked harder, we knew that if we kept working and kept being positive then we could get it back. We particularly targeted the Zimbabwe game as the must win game. Immediately after that we had Namibia, which was a good game for us because we got some confidence out of Zimbawe. Sachin led the way with a very good opening innings and also Sehwag. We caught and bowled well and so that was a convincing win. Then we played against Namibia and we got big runs there, Sourav got a hundred and we started to grow from that point. We just kept close, we'd had criticism before and it's part of playing with the pressure and expectation of the great Indian public and that's just one of the things that you have to cope with. As I said at the start, we were always very confident that once we found our batting form then we would start to win games again.
AR: The game against Pakistan had to be the mother of all games. Going into the game how were the odds stacked up and what was pressure like on the team? John, could you run us through that match?
JW: I suppose for all of us there was the World Cup but there was also the match against Pakistan. We were all tremendously keen to play this game. It had been a long time that some of the boys had played Pakistan and it was certainly my first experience of Indo-Pak rivalry. It was such a thrilling atmosphere when we got to the ground because there were thousands of Indian supporters who seemed to have arrived for the match, out-numbering the Pakistan supporters but they were there in good numbers as well. And there was something, an edge, it's hard to describe, a sort of atmosphere building up to the game - it was super charged. You could tell that it was something special. The ground was full when we arrived about two hours before the match. It was just a very special game to be part of. Pakistan batted first and batted very well. I think the thing that runs through these matches is the excitement; every ball seems to be important to the spectators particularly. It was very competitive; the thing about India-Pakistan game is that there is no motivation needed from a coaching point of view and every player down to a man strives to give his best because it means so much to the particular fans.
When we went to lunch you could tell from the manner and the body language of the Pakistan team that they were very confident, they had made a good score and we would have to bat well to beat them. And particularly since the last time we had been to that ground, we were humbled by the Aussies when we were bowled out for just over 100. So they were very confident. In my mind, on that afternoon, I saw perhaps one of the finest displays of attacking batting when Sachin and Sehwag strode out to bat. I think they really set the tempo in the first two or three overs and the game was almost decided then. There was still a long way to go but I think Pakistan were rocked by that salvo from Tendulkar and Sehwag. Sehwag was out, not long after but Sachin played, what in my mind, one of the greatest one-day knocks that I have been privileged to see. And then there was a little bit of a hiccup when he was dismissed, a little uneasy feeling that goes through your changing room. But then after a good innings from Kaif, Dravid and Yuvraj took over. We seemed to just coast home. The closer we got the happier out changing-room became. I will never forget arriving back to the hotel and there was a large crowd waiting to meet us as we got of the bus. Walking into the foyer of our hotel one elderly Indian gentleman grabbed me in an embrace and said, it doesn't matter we have beaten Pakistan and that's enough. So it was a very special day.
AR: South Africa, the host nation, was knocked out of the World Cup once again hard done by rain and a miscalculation resulted in misfortune. How did you look at South Africa's exit?
JW: Well from a purely Indian perspective we were pleased to see them go, they were obviously a team that was playing at home, although there was a lot of pressure they looked a very good side. It was a surprise when they went, and also it was good lesson in making sure that you have done your planning and you had every fine detail. It seems such a waste that you should go out of the tournament because you are not quite sure which score you have to get to actually win or tie a game. And I can never forget watching on the television the dismay on the faces, particularly Shaun Pollock and the players, when they realised what had actually taken place and they hadn't done enough. But from our point of view we would have preferred to play Sri Lanka than South Africa.
AR: One of the classic games of the Super Six stage was between the trans-Tasmanian rivals. Do you have any memories of that match?
JW: I can remember watching that match on the television in my room and we all expected a performance from Michael Bevan, and at that stage Andy Bichel had had a magnificent tournament. He was probably the most valuable player Australia had because he got them home against England in the previous game. So, I suppose from a New Zealand perspective, New Zealanders always like watching Australia lose to New Zealand but you had to admire the tenacity and the skill of both Bevan and Bichel. And particularly in Bichel's case, he probably exemplifies the attitude that makes Australia a hard team to beat - they are never down and you can never count them out.
AR: Andrew Symonds, over the years, has become a mercurial part of the Australian one-day side. What do you make of him as a player?
JW: Well Andrew Symonds is one of the best one-day players in the world today and his game has developed. I had the pleasure of coaching him when I was at Kent. You could see, always, a player with the right attitude, very tough competitor, very uncompromising, and who has tremendous talent particularly athletic ability. I think he has learnt a lot about his game and he can turn the game on his own. He intimidates opponent, particularly in the field. He brings great attitude to the team and with of course his batting he can change the match very quickly, so he is an integral part.
AR: In the semis, Australia played against Sri Lanka. An easy win for Australia but it must have been something to see a player like Adam Gilchrist walk in a match as big as semis.
JW: I can remember watching that match. Adam Gilchrist walked which was a great piece of sportsmanship particularly in a very big match like that. There was a feeling that playing at Port Elizabeth might just suit Sri Lanka. And the Sri Lankans had a very good record against Australia on the wickets that turn. So an upset could have been on the cards. It was the game that we anticipated to be much closer. But Australia play those big matches very well and in the end it was easy for them.
AR: India had to face Kenya in the semis, an easy match but how did the team approach that game?
When we approached the semi-finals, it was one of the games where, more than anything else, you have to just respect your opposition and try and do the simple things right. If we batted first then we had to get big runs from our three four players, someone had to get a hundred. And by that stage we've been implementing and succeeding and following our game plan. So we just tried to keep things simple and stick to what we've been doing.
AR: An unbeaten run and Australia was the team to beat in the World Cup. John as an opposition coach what did you make of the Australian side?
JW: The thing about Australians was that they were very consistent throughout the tournament. They can do all the three things well. They had an excellent bowling attack, even with the events surrounding Shane Warne, they covered that very well. I think the thing that turned their tournament and got them going was the game against Pakistan where Andrew Symonds made that magnificent hundred; they seemed to grow in confidence. The other thing that had happened is that they had played a couple of games at Port Elizabeth and they were very close games. And somewhere along the line they would always have a Bevan or Bichel. They could find someone to get them home, over the line. They were always a very tough competitive side, and when we look back at it, perhaps to break them down and beat them - maybe runs on the board might be the best way to go.
Well, the Australians are very tough opponents, but from an Indian perspective we went on to play a lot of games against them. We knew that on our day we could beat them. We'd done that in India and in Australia, but I think the thing that marks them out is that they are very consistent. They don't seem to have too many off days; they are very well-organised and extremely competitive. And their bowling, over a last decade or so, with people like Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, who have been world class, has always been strong. They've been well served by brilliance of Gilchrist upfront and the emergence of Ponting. So they have always been a very very tough side.
AR: Nothing seemed to be going right for India in the final. Could you talk us through that final against Australia?
JW: When you look back at the final there are two things that we could have changed. We could have batted first, but when we looked at the wicket there were lot of damp spots of dew over it and the groundsmen were drying it with the hair-dryer. Sourav in the end, after discussions, decided that we would bowl. We felt that if we could get the top three wickets of Adam Gilchrist, Mathew Hayden and Ricky Ponting early, with what looked like there would be some movement, and having chatted some of the locals, ex-players and the likes, we thought and they thought that there would be some early movement. Everyone was fired up, everyone was keen. When you look back at it perhaps we could have opened with Javagal Srinath, who had a little bit more experience. Zaheer Khan was keyed up, very keen. Unfortunately things did not go well in that first over and it set the tone, but it's just one of those things.
When you look back, it was one of the worst innings from an Indian coaching point of view that you'd like watch, and the reason for that was that it was one of the best innings that you would see. The captain playing the World Cup final - the thing that I remember so much about it was how cleanly he hit the ball, he hit a lot of sixes that day and his clean hitting was the feature of that innings. The other thing that was impressive was Damien Martyn at the other end complemented him beautifully, he fed the strike, they ran well between the wickets and they did not let up, they kept going and really did not give us a look in. So it was a big partnership that set Australia on to win the World Cup.
AR: Australia piled on a huge score in the final, and it was clearly evident that the bowlers did not deliver for India on that day. With such a huge total to chase did the team give itself a realistic chance of winning that match?
JW: Initially the team was a little bit disappointed, bowlers particularly. Perhaps things could have gone better on the day. Then we sat down, we knew we chased big totals, but we'd never chased 360. There were a few clouds about so the Duckworth-Lewis might have come into the picture. We knew that we had to get off to a big start and I can remember that the early loss of Sachin Tendulkar was a very big blow. To his great credit Sehwag kept playing and at one stage when there looked to be rain around, he was going so well, you thought, well, another half an hour of Sehwag and then a huge thunderstorm then we might get lucky but we knew we had to be very lucky. But in the end it was too big a total and we'd lost too many wickets.
AR: What was the mood in the team and how did the team feel about their World Cup campaign?
JW: Well, to lose a World Cup final is not much fun but we were comprehensively beaten on that day and we had no excuses. We knew we had played well to get there. I think the biggest disappointment was that we knew we could probably have bowled and fielded a little bit better. But really Ponting's innings was magnificent. I think there was a quite disappointed feeling amongst the players, there was a silence and a sombre mood.
AR: Who according to you who were the star performers in the 2003 World Cup?
JW: Players who did well for us - you'd have to pick the seam bowling quartet. Ajit Agarkar did not play many games but he was always there. The bowling of Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra and Javagal Srinath was outstanding right through the tournament. They got into good form on the green wickets that we played on in New Zealand and that form continued right through the tournament, well, apart from the final. We always looked to take wickets in the first 10 overs, and invariably they came up with wickets. Harbhajan Singh was preferred over Anil Kumble, and that was always a tough decision to make because they are both world class spinners. It was very tough on Anil. With our batting we knew that if we were to do well in the World Cup then Sachin had to bat where he preferred and he had to bat to his potential, which he did. He really set up our batting, when we were in difficulty he played a magnificent leaders innings against Zimbabwe, I think he got 80 odd. And certainly that innings against Pakistan was very special. Sehwag brought his own explosiveness. He had a wonderful match against Sri Lanka the two were an intimidating opening pair. Sourav Ganguly's leadership went from strength to strength, once his batting form returned against Namibia. He batted at No. 3 from the team's point of view though he would have preferred to open. Then Kaif, at times, played some valuable innings. Also the partnership of Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh was pivotal in many games, because whenever they came together, quite often we were under pressure, they generally finished the job for us.
AR: As it often happens, a lot of careers came to an end after the World Cup, John what are you thoughts on the players who retired after the 2003 World Cup?
JW: Well one of the features of any World Cup is that generally you have players that have hung in to play that World Cup some of them are getting on and some of them maybe have just past their best. And you know that you are never going to see them again. World Cup 2003 was no different. From India's point of view, we lost Javagal Srinath. Srinath and I have had a special time; he was one of India's great fast bowlers. Certainly, having been the first foreign coach to coach India, Javagal was one of the older players who certainly made my path a lot easier. He was a true leader, and a wonderful ambassador for India. Just from a team point of view he was one of the guys who kept our spirits up.
Then you look at Aravinda De Silva, who actually won a World Cup for Sri Lanka and they certainly missed him in that tournament. And then, I suppose sometimes there are no happy endings and it was not so for that wonderful trio from South Africa - Jonty Rodhes, Allan Donald and Gary Kirsten. All great cricketers for their country and it is always tough when you have to go out like they had to go out at Durban. Warne was his own man and it was disappointing that he missed 2003 World Cup. I am sure he was disappointed about that. And lastly Waqar Younis, who has been such a champion and that, was the last we saw of him. So I suppose it will be same in this World Cup, there will be great players and it will be their last, and that's just one of the things. You hope, as a player, to go out on a winning note
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