Skippers and slippers - TeluguPeople.com News

HYDERABAD: A general is one who not only inspires confidence but also gets the best out of his soldiers. Formulating strategies, getting ideas from teammates, executing plans and man management are important prerequisites of an influential leader. So are patience, perseverance and persistence. He also has to lead from the front.

This year, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings), Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Rahul Dravid (Rajasthan Royals) and to some extent Gautam Gambhir (Kolkata Knight Riders) have made significant contributions with the bat. Of the four, Gambhir's team is struggling but the other three are in contention for last-four berths.

Former Australia star Tom Moody thinks Dhoni is an asset to CSK as well as India. According to him, both CSK and India are lucky to have a player and leader of his calibre. Keeping his cool and leading from the front, Dhoni has guided his team to glory on a number of occasions. CSK continue to ride high on his able shoulders.

The young Kohli (366 runs in 10 matches), tipped to take over as captain of the Indian team someday, is fourth on the list of scorers behind Chris Gayle (484), Mike Hussey (450) and Rohit Sharma (375). Apart from his brilliant form with the bat, Kohli has shown admirable leadership qualities.

Dravid, too, is showing hunger and passion even at the age of 40. Taking a break from commentary during the India-Australia Test series, Dravid worked hard to regain his fitness. He has shone as a batsman and been actively involved in shaping the fortunes of his young team.

Gambhir is heading KKR's batting averages. The left-hander has accumulated 308 runs from ten matches although his team is in the bottom half of the table.

The same cannot be said of the other captains. Most of them are not among the runs and their poor form is a concern for their teams. Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting was chosen to lead Mumbai Indians, but managed a mere 52 runs in six matches. So the team owners were forced to hand the crown to Rohit Sharma.

Ponting's colleague in the Australian team, Adam Gilchrist, seems to be following in his footsteps. A fearsome batsman in his heyday, Gilchrist has been a big letdown, both in front of the stumps and behind, for Kings XI Punjab.

He is averaging 11.75, with 94 runs from eight matches. David Hussey has since taken over from him. In fact, Gilchrist wanted to step down, but stayed on after being voted 3-1 to power.

Sunrisers Hyderabad have seen two captains, Kumar Sangakkara and Cameron White, in nine matches so far. Sangakkara was in the hot seat for the first three games before White took over for a few matches.

The Sri Lankan is now back in power. Neither Sangakakara nor White have been exceptional with the the bat, but the team has not done badly. For that, credit goes to the bowlers.

Mahela Jayawardene of Delhi Daredevils cuts a sorry figure. The Sri Lankan is struggling for runs and his team is failing to put things together.

Pune Warriors have seen three captains ' Angelo Mathews, Ross Taylor and Aaron Finch ' but the results have not been encouraging. Finch has got runs (227 from six matches) but Mathews and Taylor have been disappointing thus far.