The recent debacles faced by the Indian cricket team in South Africa shouldn't ideally come as a surprise to people. I mean, a team that's more active on the ramp than on the field wouldn't display any better results, would it? Sure, a player is entitled to earn his bucks while he is still at the top, but isn't performance a parameter for earnings, or have we become so starstruck that we are content with vintage performances, rather than focusing on current achievements?
Maybe the team isn't to blame entirely. I mean, cricket in India is such an hectic activity, wherein barely has one tournament ended, that another one starts off. And we aren't talking about machines here; we are talking about sentient humans, people who are bound to feel fatigue, stress, and the travails of incessant playing. Where's the time for them to bond with their families, to let their hair down and relax? Of course, one would retort that they ought to cut down on their endorsements; that way, they would have plenty of time to relax and rejuvenate their body and soul. But let's be practical here. I mean, when there's no guarantee that you will remain in the team for the next match, which player will take the risk of not earning a potful of gold while he can? Besides, no one cares for a former player, besides sports channels. And mind you, the way the Indian team's playing now, I doubt that sports channels will want to host cricket shows, as they are sure not to get really interesting advertising revenues out of them.
So where does the rot lie? In the Board, perchance. Maybe the rot is endemic to the entire cricket establishment in India. When one reads of articles of how the inclusion or exclusion of a certain player becomes a matter worthy of discussion in the highest echelons of legislative and executive power, one comes to comprehend just how far politics has pervaded what was once merely a sport, a game that gave joy and delight.
Perhaps, these debacles are a good thing, as now people will want more professionalism, more performance-oriented incentives, and more sport-friendly initiatives from the powers that be. The killer instincts that we see in other teams is not so much because they are better than us; rather it is because they have no need to focus on things other than sports. Here, players must consort with politicians, bureaucrats, and other officials to ensure that they stay on in the team. Sure, this must occur elsewhere as well, but maybe, I believe, it happens to a greater extent here.
Domestic cricket in India isn't exactly seen as glamorous, and we tend to be pessimistic about the future, snatching from promising players the opportunity that they truly deserve, while aging players continue to fight on against much younger opponents, and expectedly, deliver defeat most of the time. Regionalism, while an appreciable sentiment at times, tends to get in the way of ensuring that the team that represents the nation gets the best possible talent, as and where it comes from.
Perhaps cricket in India needs to lose the moolah that has come to be associated with it in recent times. I mean, contracts worth Rs. 300 million are great, but are we seeing performances equivalent to all that expectation? This team, the current one, comprises of people who are regarded as the best sportsmen in their individual capacities, but why is it that this team of superheroes fails to work in unity? Where's and why is there a lack of strategy?
Just blaming one individual or a singular group of individuals will not work. The approach has to change for the behavior to change. We need to demand that we get what we deserve, as a right, as a privilege. And those who fail to serve, must be axed, period. Then whether they be Davids or Goliaths should not concern anyone.
7 comments:
I very much agree with you Vivek. There is only one big problem with Indian Cricket that is "ATTITUDE" and it should change.
Am glad you agree. The point is that we must tell those who matter this so that they also comprehend this fact, and hopefully then we can see some better performances.
There is no need to tell anybody about this,every body knows it and they also know it very well but again what hampers them from changing is again "ATTITUDE" thats what i can say again because they feel that no one knows better than them about playing cricket.
Isn't it delicious to point out all that is wrong with Indian cricket after every debacle of our team..
The fact remains that over the years, with the infusion of so much money and technology, our team, at least at the national level has become more professionally managed than ever before. While this may not necessarily be the case of domestic cricket, we have reasons to believe that the change is percolating down..
Admittedly we are quite far from reaching a state where our domestic structure works like a well oiled machine churning winners and more winners but anyone who is watching closely enough will recognize that there sure is change.
With all the money flowing in, the stakes have become higher. Each move by the BCCI and its sub-bodies are scrutinized in depth by the media. You would recollect how the BCCI had once unceremoniously sacked 7-8 of its top players including Dravid and Kumble. Can you even imagine something as stupid happening now?
Again, if you are trying to imply that all the guys or even a majority of them are in the team because of their off-the-field influence, you seem to be living in fool's paradise(rather hell).
Besides, the charge of regionalism has become obsolete esp. for the national team. If there ever was an institution that was to be recommended as a model for its representative nature, our team would surely be my choice.
I too, like most Indians am pained to see my team do badly. I will surely not defend many of the decisions they have taken - and this is not in hindsight. Their unabated string of failures has set tongues wagging. The criticism is getting harsher by the day.
Yet, we must never fail to remember - The darkest hour is just before the dawn..
nice post mate..
The best thing that we can do for indian cricketers is ignore them. That would do them a world of gud and put some iodex to their overswelling pockets...
the money from popularity would then dry up.. performance would be the only way forward....
I totally agree with you Reddy as in you have to be in the good books of the selectors to be able to sustain in team.It is high time the players start getting paid on the basis of their performance. It wouldnt surprise me if a car is given away to the best player then u will get to see all of them vying for it surely..........No wonder that none of the indians feature in the ratings (batting and bowling ) and it has slipped to the 6th position already........
Neeraj: Technology is not the end of anything. If that were the case, then we should have been able to see better players than the likes of those the past has had the honour of seeing. If the domestic structure is churning winners, well, there's nothing new in that, considering that all the great players of the past broke their baby teeth on domestic cricket. And that it isn't doing so now demonstrates a clear problem, a problem that needs urgent attention.
I never so much as implied nor suggested that influence is the sole factor ensuring that a player stays on the team. But I feel it shouldn't figure at all. Let performance be the sole and only factor.
As regards fool's paradise or hell, I am content to be in purgatory. That way, I get the taste of both. Mind you, by performance, I do not wish to imply past glory. Let us focus on current form; if a person is simply not in the form that the nation asks from its team, let him be dropped, even if he be the greatest champion that India may have ever produced.
I hope that what you have said about the darkest hour be proved true in this case, else this night shall prove to be one which may have no morn.
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