Kumble feels he is taken for granted, rues ODI omission

New Delhi, July 30 (UNI) Sixteen years in the business and with a bag of 862 scalps in both versions of the game, Anil Kumble is not yet considered good enough for the ODI squad but the seasoned leggie is not exactly shattered even though he can't help but feel that he has always been taken for granted.

In an interview with Sportstar magazine, Kumble admits it hit him where it hurts most when he was dropped from the ODI squad and also is amused at the recent demands for his inclusion in the one day squad.

''It (Omission from ODI squad) hurt a lot three years ago (2003 World Cup) but I have got used to it. To tell you the truth, I don't think much about it. Why worry when such things can affect your performance? Initially I used to get worked up, but not now.

''Look at how some people want me to play one-day cricket now.

Strange they said nothing when I was dropped from the one-day team,'' he said.

Always under pressure to perform despite his yeoman service over 16 long years, Kumble nurses a feeling that he has been taken for granted.

''I don't think the demands (to perform) are unreasonable, but often I think am taken for granted. I find it strange that when I take five wickets, it is considered no big deal because I am expected to do so. But if I finish with two or three wickets, it is said that I have had a poor game. That is not fair. Can a batsman score a century every time he walks to the middle?'' he asks.

Kumble also sulks at not being offered the captain's job but added, he never worried about it either.

''Who does not want to lead the country? But frankly, I have not worried at all about not being given the captaincy. It is something that is not within my control.

''I must have had some skills to have survived 16 years in international cricket. There was some possibility of leading sometime ago, but not now. It is too late,'' he said.

Asked how he keeps himself motivated, Kumble said, ''To survive in today's cricket, you have to innovate or else you can lose your motivation. I try and come up with new grips, new angles, change my run-up, wrist positions, try and bowl differently. I have been working on my flipper even though I have not yet got a wicket with it. I have been trying to improve my googly (three fingers and tennis ball grip).

''I keep telling myself that I have to keep trying. The (shoulder) injury has taught me a lot on preserving myself and contributing more to the team,'' Kumble remarked.

Asked whether the art of leg spin was being exposed by the ever-increasing use of television cameras, Kumble said, ''The exposure adds to the challenge because often the batsman, having studied you, knows what you are going to ball. Earlier, the seniors used to guide the newcomers on how to face the bowlers but now the video recordings come handy. It helps the bowlers too to study the batsmen.'' UNI AY VP1225