John Buchanan at a city hotel on Friday. Picture by Santosh Ghosh

Calcutta: John Buchanan, the much-in-the-news cricket manager of the Kolkata Knight Riders, spoke to The Telegraph for around 45 minutes on Friday evening.

The following are excerpts:

Q You’ve been given additional security…

A The police have added one officer… I don’t really know about the other (security-related) changes.

Were you worried when demonstrations were held and your effigy was burnt, on Thursday?

Not worried or anxious, but I haven’t experienced this previously. I’m here as a guest of Calcutta and I hope people will realise that my aim is to make KKR the most successful franchise in the IPL.

Didn’t the family (wife Judith and five children) get concerned?

I spoke to my wife and one of my sons this morning... Judith is a lot calmer now... Under control... Of course, my eldest son (Michael) is here with me.

Were you prepared for this kind of a response?

I suppose it’s the fallout of what happened during the (Greg) Chappell-Sourav (Ganguly) episode… A little bit surprised, yes.

Disappointed that your move for multiple captains got turned into a John Buchanan versus Sourav Ganguly showdown?

Yes, in that it needn’t have occupied people’s time, energy and so much space. I’m sure there are a million things more important in this world than John Buchanan having more than one captain.

Looking back, do you regret stating at Sunday’s press conference that the Knight Riders’ leadership issue hadn’t been decided? Would it have been better if you’d spoken to Sourav before that?

I’d sent him a text message… Probably the reason why I didn’t actually speak to him (before Sunday, on his latest trip) was because I’d spoken to him about it earlier. Obviously, this sort of a thing can be talked about more, but I’d been pretty clear about it in my mind… I know what I’m trying to achieve. Whether Sourav agrees or not is another matter… You can’t please everybody all the time.

That comment, though, could’ve been avoided…

I guess the answer is yes…. But I’d been pretty about it and didn’t see an urgent need to address it further.

South Africa’s coach, Mickey Arthur, hasn’t been bowled over…

A couple of things… Look, I’m not doing it for the sake of grabbing headlines… I’m doing it for reasons that will benefit the game and I’m not seeking anybody’s approval or disagreement… People need to sit back and review how cricket is actually going to live as a sport… I say that because this T20 format can challenge the traditional game… Having one captain to run the show in the traditional form is okay. In T20, though, I don’t believe we need a single captain to be responsible for all the decisions.

Do you see yourself as a pioneer? Is this going to be your legacy?

(Grins) There are two types of pioneers… The ones who get to the summit and come back… I’d like to be an Edmund Hillary, who reached the top of Everest and came back, not be like one of those who get to the summit and never come back! I believe it’s important to be exploring… It’s important to challenge the way things are done… However, in this case, not at the expense of the franchise and the players… To repeat what I first told you on Sunday, this is no slight on Sourav and certainly no indictment of him… It just so happens that Sourav had been the captain in the IPL’s inaugural edition… I want to do something which is different, something which isn’t tied to individuals… At the moment, it’s a concept and hasn’t landed, so to say… In the next few weeks, we’ve got to ensure that this concept becomes a working reality.

What exactly do you mean by multiple captains? How many could there be on the field on any given day?

There will always be a nominated captain, who goes for the toss… He could look after the bowling, make the changes… Take care of the strategy aspect… Be aware of the over-rates… We could also have a fielding captain, who sets the field keeping in mind the planning done for that particular match… The fielding captain complements the nominated/bowling captain… One looks at the strategy, the other focuses on the detail required at that point in time… Both will be supported by the coach (Matthew Mott), who’ll be the captain off the field… When the team’s batting, the coach will be the captain… You need one person… I’ve explained one scenario…

So, a maximum of two on-field captains?

Probably, yes.

But which captain will be docked for falling behind on the over-rate?

(Laughs) Everybody… The entire team… The fine will have to be shared.

Will the coach too pay up?

Probably!

The multiple captains bit is part of your game plan to develop leaders. But is it necessary for each one of them to be a captain?

Probably not, but I want to encourage my players to be decision-makers… At the moment, I don’t think we’ve got enough decision-makers… I was quite impressed with what Shane Warne did for the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL’s inaugural edition… He was the captain and coach and the way he went about things contributed to the Royals becoming the champions. He was player, captain and coach… You had three roles residing in one individual.

Isn’t there the likelihood of multiple captains leading to more confusion?

There’s no doubt there could be and that was discussed when I had a conversation with Sourav (on Tuesday)… That’s something we’ve got to work on… Get the concept going… Obviously, we’ll need to have very clear communication… Very clear roles… I realise that my players have grown up being used to one captain.

Frankly, how confident are you of the whole thing working?

If one gains the support of the senior group and if we go through the trial process well, then I’ll be very confident.

When did the idea come to you?

Eight-nine years ago, after discussions with Ric Charlesworth… He’s run the hockey team very differently… He’d nominate a captain for the day, but all his players would be leaders. I found it fascinating… The idea had been germinating since then.

But why didn’t you try it during your years as the Australia coach?

I think I was the coach for just two-three T20 Internationals and T20 wasn’t at all taken seriously then. As I’ve said, my concept is for the T20 form of cricket, not Tests and ODIs.

Have you been inspired by any sport?

All the short duration ones… Football, basketball, netball… The ones where players respond according to the game plan… Those games are run by people off the field or off the court… Direct leadership, on the field, is needed in the longer games… Tests and ODIs in cricket… That’s where there’s more freedom (for the players), that’s where the boundaries expand…

Are you suggesting there could be an exclusively programmed approach to T20 cricket?

There could be.

Is it tough to bring about change?

Everybody resists change… Everybody is comfortable with a certain life… (Adds after a pause) Organisations resist change… My own belief is that change is vital for everybody and taking the easy way doesn’t help.

Have you, in dealings with corporates, suggested something similar?

Not having multiple captains, but I’ve suggested that there be a scoreboard to regularly judge individuals… It could be done on a daily basis, but I don’t know whether it can actually be done… Half-yearly and yearly assessments come after a long period and how can everybody remember everything?

The final one: Are Sourav and you planning to have a one-on-one over dinner?

(Grins) If there’s a problem then we probably should. I don’t see one, though.