With Sourav Ganguly announcing his retirement, all eyes are now on the surviving members of  India’s ‘fab five’ - Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and skipper Anil Kumble - in anticipation of a similar announcement.

Honestly, I found no reason for Ganguly to have hurried his retirement; however that’s a done deal now. The selectors’ indecisiveness and the undue media speculation on Indian cricket’s enfant terrible had finally reached a breaking point.  
 
Tendulkar, however, has no reason to even think about retirement, at least not for the next three years. And Laxman’s consistent middle-order heroics - the latest in Australia and Sri Lanka - have ensured that he, too, should be an automatic selection for the next two to three seasons at least. More so because at 33, he is the youngest of the lot.

However, Dravid, 35, looks to be most vulnerable to the selectors’ axe; his runs seem to have suddenly dried up and every innings looks like a struggle. If he can’t come up with the goods against Australia or England in November, he too must soon plan a dignified exit  like Ganguly. And that brings us to the oldest warrior of ’em all, Kumble.  
 
In 2007, Anil had a fantastic beginning to his tenure as captain with a series win over Pakistan. India then went off to Australia, where Kumble had a dream beginning with a five-wicket haul on the first day of the first Test. But since then, it has been a hard 10 months for him.

'In the last 20 innings, Kumble has conceded over 100 runs on 10 occasions and managed only 44 wickets in 14 Tests. Not good reading for India’s strike bowler'


Having watched the Australian innings fold up at Bangalore, where Zaheer  picked up five wickets, Ishant Sharma four and Harbhajan Singh had his bunny Ricky Ponting's wicket, I noticed that Kumble finished with astonishing figures of 43-6-129-0.

Now one of Kumble’s weapons has been the element of surprise in his quickish leg spin, which newcomers find difficult to adjust to initially. What was surprising was that Brad Haddin and Cameron White, both of whom have never played Kumble before, were handling him with ease.

I am certainly not basing my suggestion on observations in just one match. In the last 20 innings in which he has bowled, Kumble has conceded over 100 runs on 10 occasions and managed only 44 wickets in 14 Tests – that’s just over three wickets per match at an average of almost 40. Not good reading for India’s strike bowler.

Just a couple of months ago, in Sri Lanka, where Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan ripped through the Indian batting line up , ‘Jumbo’ finished with figures of 37-4-121-0.  Not often does Kumble go wicketless on turning tracks. What’s more....the ongoing Bangalore Test was the 56th time he had conceded more than 100 in an innings, surpassing the previous record holder, Muralitharan, who has had 55 such expensive outings.

Make no mistake, no cricketer has won more matches for India than Kumble has, not Tendulkar not Sunil Gavaskar. Sadly, he must find the strength within, to realise that his best days are behind him and to call it a day.

Unless he comes up with a miracle against Australia, it is difficult to imagine Jumbo playing in 2009.

When stats show that Kumble has claimed only 25 wickets in his last nine matches, when debutant batsmen begin picking up Kumble's googlies, when tailenders are able to survive an entire Kumble over without a decent lbw shout, let alone losing their wicket, and when the famous Kumble 'rocket' flipper doesn’t get wickets consistently any more... That, I'm afraid, is when it’s time to go.

As I get all teary-eyed reminiscing about your brilliant 6-12 against the West Indies and the unbelievable 10-74 against Pakistan,  and as much as it will shatter me to see you go, Anil Kumble, I think the clock has begun to tick.