Captain (cricket)

In cricket, the captain is the most important member of the team. He calls the shots on the field, directing the fielders and bowlers. His acumen is vital to the team's success. As in other sports, the captain is usually an experienced player with good communication skills whose place in the team is usually guaranteed. The captain is aided by the vice-captain. Cricket is a complex game and a captain's knowledge of the game and his shrewdness in the field are vital to the team's success. Here are the roles of the captain.

Toss

Before the start of a match the captain calls the toss of a coin. If he wins the toss, he may choose to bat or bowl first, depending on the team's strategy.

Setting the field

The captain sets the field in consultation with the bowler and sometimes other senior players. He decides whether to use attacking or defensive fielding positions. The factors which influence his decision include the type of bowling, the state of the match, and the batsman's batting style.

Shuffling the bowlers

The captain decides when each bowler will bowl, and how many overs he bowls in each spell. If a batsman is 'hammering' the bowler for runs, the captain may bring on a replacement bowler. If the bowler is bowling restrictively, he may keep him till his 10 overs are up in an ODI match. He can try and employ non regular bowlers to unsettle a batsman. He also juggles his bowlers around so that a batsman cannot get used to one bowler. The skipper has to make certain when each bowler has to bowl and keep some overs of his experienced bowlers to the end of a ODI innings, (as maximum runs are scored then).

Batting order

When his team bats the captain decides the batting order. Generally, the order is kept the same over the course of a series, as batsmen tend to specialise in batting at certain positions. However, in certain circumstances, the order can be shuffled. If quick runs are needed, a batsman with the capability to 'hit over the top' (6's and 4's) is promoted up the order. A player who is 'in form' may be promoted to a higher batting position. If a wicket falls near the end of a day's play, especially if the light is failing, the captain may choose to send in an inferior batsman in the hope that he can see out the session, rather than a specialist batsman. This will minimise the cost of losing a wicket due to the poor conditions, as the strong batsman can play later. Such an inferior batsman is referred to as a night watchman.

Miscellaneous

The captain also uses his discretion to allow the use of a runner to an injured batsman. In Test and first class, the captain also has the power to declare his team's innings, to decide whether to take a new ball when one becomes available and to decide whether to impose the follow on.

English and Australian approaches to captaincy

English cricket has traditionally seen the captain as a specialist role, in the same way as one would have a specialist batsman or bowler. This is based upon the idea that the captain has special leadership qualities that are invaluable to the team's overall success, even if the captain's own batting or bowling skill is below par. In English cricket today, the captain is often selected first, with the rest of the team selected with his direct input. The advantage of this leadership model is that it encourages captains to act as leaders and motivators, as well as act as a bridge between players and administrators (since the captain is essentially both). The disadvantage with this model is that the Captain's own batting or bowling talent may, in fact, be lacking and any advantage the team may gain by having a fine leader is more than offset by the Captain's own limitations as a player.

In the past some players were appointed to the England captaincy who were generally recognised as being well short of deserving inclusion in the team on their playing merits, for example Mike Brearley who had one of the best winning records in Test cricket. However, no England captain who was not generally considered to be worth his place as a player has been appointed since the late 1980s, although Nasser Hussain's place in the team was arguably preserved by his successful captaincy at times when his batting form was poor.

Australian cricket has traditionally selected the captain only when the eleven best players are chosen to play the match. In this case, no captaincy skills or experience is even entered into - only each player's raw talent and ability to bat or bowl (or, in the case of the wicket-keeper, field). There is no recognition of captaincy as a specialist role. Once the eleven best players are chosen, one is then appointed captain. The advantage of this leadership model is that only the best players fill each position. Theoretically, therefore, the team is the strongest it could possibly be. The disadvantage with this model is that talented players may not have the necessary leadership abilities to build effective teamwork, nor does it recognise the importance that tactics have upon the game being played. Again, there have arguably been exceptions made; Mark Taylor suffered a very long streak of poor batting form, but his captaincy was regarded as excellent and the team was so successful that the Australian selectors persisted with him until his batting finally improved.