Cricket is one of the few games where the captain's role is of vital
importance. The duration of a cricket match is longer than most
other games and the time between balls and between overs offers ample
scope for captains to invent and re-invent strategy. A good captain needs
to be an astute tactician who can quickly assess the 'mood' at any given
moment and marshal his bowling changes and field placings accordingly.
Players bring different skills and temperaments to the game and a captain's
task is to weave them together into a cohesive and tightly knit unit. The
captain has to be skilled in the art of man management, the art of
motivating his team mates to extract the best out of them. It helps if the
captain is a good player himself, although there have been some notable
exceptions, because there is often no substitute to leading by example. The
art of captaincy is laid threadbare in these pages.
John Reid talks about his Captaincy
On New Zealand's First Test Win: John Reid describes the historic occasion of New Zealand's first ever Test match victory which came after 25 years of trying in 1956, under his captaincy. Listen also to Reid recount the most exciting Test matches he's played in.. [Interview]