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There was a telling and poignant moment at the Oval as the Indian innings wound
down.  A wounded Rahul Dravid had pulled his third of four straight boundaries
and, to a man, the security forces began their gradual encircling of the
grounds.

To any seasoned observer, and that includes the security forces, the
skip had declared the game over and was going down with guns blazing. Such a tactic against such an attack meant the guns would not blaze for much longer.

 

 

In real life, as opposed to fiction, it is usually difficult to know where a specific event stands in the overall scheme of things. India’s elimination in the first stage of this world cup also invites those kinds of speculations. Does it mark the end of an era where four of India’s greatest batsmen played with much distinction? Is it the beginning of a new era where cricket stops being the hype-fuelled, mass-market, spectator sport it has been reduced to in India? Or is it a mere blip in the middle of yet another cricket year, which will be forgotten in a few weeks when the Indian team starts thrashing somebody in its own backyard?

 

I have tried doing it, but it's not possible. Irrespective of how wretched, embarassing, miserable their performances may be, I simply cannot say 'To hell with it, I am done with supporting these losers ". When you end up falling in love with a game, a cause, a team, you are just stuck to it irrespective of results, defeats, wins, losses, dissapointments.

 

 

(When Herschelle Gibbs smacked Dutchman Van Bunge for six sixes in an over during the 2007 World Cup, there was something to be discussed that was more amusing than the feat itself  - innovative, almost extraordinary field ways to prevent something like that from happening.)

 

What Herschelle Gibbs accomplished in one over against Holland last week, hitting all six balls for six, is very impressive. But there might be interesting field placements that could have helped prevent that.

 

For the man who has forever associated the cricket coach with the laptop, it is poignant to see the last shot of Bob Woolmer in the dressing room on the day of the Ireland-Pakistan debacle, packing his laptop in a somewhat hurried manner. Especially given what would follow in a few hours.

 

I've read reports of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's house under construction in Ranchi being vandalised and posters of Indian cricketer's being burnt after Bangladesh's superb victory over India. My guess is that those same people are busy toasting the return of Viru and one more in the long list of achievements that pseudo-nationalists (yes pseudo because these people really do not have the best for our country in mind) pride India on.