'My best came under his captaincy' - Venkatesh Prasad names the best captain he played under

Former pacer Venkatesh Prasad named the best India captain he has played under in a recent chat with the Grade Cricketer Podcast. Prasad might have played only 33 Tests for the nation, but he has the distinction of being the fifth-highest wicket-taker in 50-overs cricket for the country, where he represented the country in 161 games for 196 wickets.

Alongside Javgal Srinath, Prasad formed one of the best pace duos of India in the 90s and continued to reap rewards consistently. Despite not being an express pacer, it was his ability to swing the ball both ways that made him a lethal pacer. Having started his career in 1994 under the leadership of Mohammad Azharuddin, Prasad represented the country under two other leaders, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.

However, on being asked who was the best captain he played under, the former pacer named Azharuddin. “I can be very diplomatic here. I can easily say that ‘look, everybody is different in their own way’. But I was always comfortable when Azhar was the captain because he used to just throw the ball at you and would ask what field do you want. And when I set a field, I own the responsibility to bowl to that field, isn’t it? So that’s how it was,” Prasad said on The Grade Cricketer Podcast.

My best came when Azhar was the captain: Venkatesh Prasad

Prasad played under Azharuddin from 1994 to 1996, before Sachin Tendulkar was named captain for the first time. The captaincy shifted between Azharuddin and Tendulkar once more, before finally, in the year 2000, Ganguly was named the new India skipper.

“It wasn’t as if I was not comfortable with Sachin or Ganguly either but I guess my best performances came when Azhar was the captain and that’s how it was. Also, Azhar happens to come from Hyderabad, and Karnataka and Hyderabad aren’t very far so we knew each other very well. We used to play against each other, also together when there were zonal teams. So that’s how the rapport and understanding was much better,” Prasad added.

He even drew a comparison between Virat Kohli, the current Indian leader, and Sachin Tendulkar. “They are both brilliant individuals honestly speaking. On one side, Sachin was very soft, and of course, Virat comes out aggressive, but it’s not his nature. It’s just on the field because he wants to win and perform in every single game,” he said.

“So did Sachin. He wanted to do well in every single game. You don’t really see much emotion from Sachin. We never say any, whether he scored a hundred or got out for a duck… whatever. Even when he gets hit, we don’t see much emotion, whereas Virat is someone who likes to express himself,” he added.