JOIN US'Dhoni is the right choice for captain'
The tall stature of former Indian cricketer, Venkatesh Prasad might be intimidating but his warm personality immediately dispels any hesitation to interact with him. The cricketer recently attended a programme where he pledged his support to the cause of the environment.
“I am glad that I have been approached to support the cause and spread the word in Bangalore,” he says, about the programme. “It is imperative that we think about the environment and make a habit of switching off lights when not in use. If people start doing this for a while everyday, we can conserve a lot of power as a society. I feel that corporate companies play a big role in this and they can lead by example,” he adds.
A resident of Bangalore, the garbage issue that the City is facing distresses him. “The garbage crisis that we faced recently was really startling. Of course, it is very important to have good governance — having a good leader always helps. Bangalore has expanded and is growing everyday; it is India’s silicon valley and the government should offer the best of amenities to people here,” he says.
However, he adds that citizens should be equally responsible for keeping the City clean. “Many feel that once the garbage is out on the street, it is not their responsibility. People keep their premises clean but one should go beyond that — they should realise that it is their City and they have to look after its cleanliness,” he adds.
The fast bowler is full of praises for the current Indian team. “They are a very talented bunch. They are aggressive, expressive and don’t let anything intimidate or bow them down. Whether it is joy, anger or disappointment, they express everything on the field; they don’t hold anything back,” he notes.
Venkatesh asserts that he has always felt that the current captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, should lead the team. “I have always said that Dhoni is the right choice for captain in the current scenario. He is a very capable captain and the team is doing well under his captaincy — he should continue at least for the coming six months,” says Venkatesh.
He goes on to add that his favourite captain was Mohammad Azharuddin. “He is my favourite — he trusted his bowlers and let them experiment and use their capabilities. My best performance came under him. He communicated a lot with his team and it made things easier for us. Similarly, I love it when Sachin Tendulkar goes on the field. When he goes out to bat, the whole team — from the support staff to the bowlers — watches him play. I would have loved to play under the captaincy of Rahul Dravid but by the time he became a captain, I had already started coaching the squad,” he sums up.