'Better Late Than Never'

Only the third spinner afterBishen Singh Bedi and S Venkataraghvan to become the captain of Indian Test team, Anil Kumble says as a bowler he knows thesubtleties of thegame well and can use that knowledge while leading the country in Testmatches. Kumble said he isaware of the responsibility associated with the job and captaincy hascome at a time in his career when he can "relish thechallenge." Kumble also feels that the new-found aggression inthe young Indian team was always there.  Regarded as a fighteron the field, the 37-year-old sees nothing wrong in the younger lotshowing their emotions on the ground  India's most successfulbowler speaks about the new challenge, his expectations from the teamand the forthcoming three-match Test series againstPakistan.

Sutram Suresh: Nice Diwali gift foryou?

Anil Kumble: I think it has come on a nice auspicious day.It is a nice feeling.

Was it a surprise toyou?

I don't think it was a surprise. People werediscussing about me as a contender. There were lot of discussionshappening. Yeah, I mean it was only after actually Sachin pulled outthat the likelihood of they (selectors) looking at me as a captainhappened. 

Do you feel that Test captaincy comingafter 17 long years has happened too late towards the fag end of your career

Better late than never. I thinkit has come at a time when I think I can relish this challenge. Iensure that I go out there and enjoy my cricket and enjoy being captainof India.

Do you think the selectors have gone fora stop-gap arrangement?

No, I haven't really satdown and spoken to them. I really don't know what they have in mind. Soit's a bit too early for me to say anything onthat.

Do you hope to continue as captain for theforthcoming Australian tour and also the home series against SouthAfrica early next year?

I would like to take onestep at a time. So I still have not really sat down with the selectorsand found out what exactly they have in mind. But I'm sure that willhappen very soon.

You are the 30th captain andthird spinner after Bishen Singh Bedi and Venkatraghavan in Indian Testcricket? How does it feel?

I think it's a greatchallenge for a bowler to be captain of India and it is not looked atvery positively in India for some strange reasons. I am happy that theselectors and the people have shown a lot of faith in me and I hope tolive up to those expectations. As a bowler I understand the subtletiesof the game. Hopefully I would be able to use that knowledge when itcomes to captaining.

As a captain what are your expectations from the Indian team now?

I don't think expectations would change as a player or as a captain.We have discussions and people who have played the game for longdefinitely express their views in a team meeting and I don't see thatchanging much. But the expectations would be to ensure that we areconsistent. We try and build a team that will be consistent over aperiod of time.

How do you see this new-found aggression in Team India now?Do you feel this Indian team after their T20 success hastransformed?

I think we've always been aggressive.I don't think Team India has found any new aggression after T20triumph. It's just that there has been a lot of presence on the field.I mean it's just that the younger lot show flare and emotions on thefield which is good

Personally have you set anytarget now that you have 566 Test wickets, third behind Shane Warne(708) and Muttiah Muralitharan (702)?

Absolutelynone. I just want to go out and enjoy my game and ensure that Icontribute to the team's success, to whatever I was doing before. Iwould like to continue that if not better whatever I was doing. It'simportant for me to ensure that we win every time we go out, that's thepersonal target and team goal.

How do you see this Pakistan team touring India now?

They have a good side. They have always done well whenever they haveplayed us and we respect that. I think we have the potential and theteam to win. I am hopeful and pretty confident that we will be able todo that.

In Inzamam's absence, post-retirement, do you see India holding anupperhand?

I think Inzy is a great player. It is very difficult to replace aplayer like him within a matter of couple of matches. But having saidthat Pakistan still have Md Yousuf and Younus Khan while Misbah-ul-Haqlooks pretty good and then they have Shoaib Malik. (Shahid) Afridi andSalman Butt can be dangerous. So they still have a pretty good battingorder. It will be an evenly-contested series.