Why do we react so violently when you lose? Why do we plunge so low when you play badly? Why do we always expect you to win?
Because, deep down, we know you can.
Our expectations are built, bit by bit, from the innumerable feats of cricketing might and magic we have had the pleasure of seeing you perform. Every sweet Tendulkar drive. Every moment of Dravid's defiance. Every Ganguly dance-down-the-wicket six. Every Yuvraj pow-gasp-wow shot. Every time the bowlers dig deep and exceed expectations.
And since you've given us so many moments of sweetness, our expectations are really high. It's that simple, really. If you were always losing, then we wouldn't actually expect you to win, would we?
Yes. We know you can.
And we're reminding you.
So bring it on. The incandescent, mighty batting. (Bermuda was a start, but we both know there will be harder tests) The disciplined, strong, spirited bowling. (remember WC 2003?) The huddles, the high-fives, the smiles and whoops of delight. Dance the happy dance. Play the joyful game.
If you do, you'll start winning. And that would be very nice.
Sure, there are a host of other talented, skilled, and well-prepared teams that have come to win the World Cup. Sure, we may lose to some of them.
But make them earn it. By playing your very best cricket.
Sachin. Sourav. Rahul. Anil. This is it. This is the moment. Make it count. A World Cup Win would be nice. But, really, we only want to see you shine your brightest. And if there's a team on earth that's good enough to beat you when that happens, then they'll be bloody deserving winners.
Go on. Play ball. We're behind you.
yeah...all that...and almost a billion fans just waiting to construct palatial houses for you...!
ReplyDelete;)
Agree with every word here. Was just about to write this post but you have snatched the words from my fingers.
ReplyDelete"But make them earn it. By playing your very best cricket." - beautiful, all the very best TEAM INDIA.
ReplyDeleteLet the game overshadow the advertisements.
Lets play to win.
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka.... what next we've got to lose to Burma and Nepal.... and then have our own SAARC Cup and try to win it!!!
ReplyDeleteIts just a game - Greg Chapell
ReplyDeleteI agree its jus another game and we lost..so no big deal...the team dint look their part this world cup...this is like an over hyped IPO losing heavily in the stock market once they are exposed...but such companies go bust and find it difficult to answer the many investors who put in their hard earned money...its not about blame game at this point but then someone has to answer me and a million other fans on why there was no plan to chase down 250 on a dry flat track...why wasnt there any commitment from atleast 3 or 4 of the top order in the run chase....memories are short they say but i still remember what hapenned to our team after miandad hit that six off the last ball in sharjah.....i would have been happy to accept defeat if we played hard and lost the match but lack of commitment hurts....lack of belief and no apetite for success is not acceptable...if its jus another game run by a set of administrators and have professionals playing for them then stop the hype....then stop the extensive coverage....my company dosent get covered in the media everyday and no one follows my organisations progress so closely....let them be and go on with their lives and play games....they wont get my attention ever.....not that it matters to them or its a big deal for anyone,...but to me it is....its almost scary that my fundamental belief and faith in these set of guys is shattered...i only care about this team cos i grew up seeing them make their debuts when i was a teen and play and be successful many times....they have suqarely let me down....good bye sachin, rahul, saurav, anil, viru, plaha...its been a brilliant ride for a long time but its over now....
So long and thanks for all the games....
I believe the whole World Cup was rigged...otherwise how can you explain 3 asian teams SL,BAN and IND in the same group?No doubt there was so much pressure on the Indian cricket team!The ICC should restart the WC from scratch with new Group classifications.The ICC should restart the WC again and again with new Groups until the damn Indians move to the next round!!!
ReplyDeleteDamn the ICC for playing such cruel tricks on the poor Indian cricketers.
Inis
ReplyDeleteRemember that you're a fan of cricket more than cricketers. Keep the faith. There shall be others who take the place of fallen heroes.
Watch the tournament. It will still be fun.
Machan i ve lost faith...i was too young to have faith in Sunny or Kapils team of the late 70's....bhais team of the 90's wasnt worth my time away from oggling at chicks when i was 15 years old......gangulys team of the late 90's caught our attention....the boys were of our age...we grew up watching them season after season....now they ve let us down....now the next gen of cricketers is what we need to look out for if at all there is any bench strength back home....but these were our boys...our friends....we ve met them...we ve been pissed about their performances and partied everytime they won..we ve spent more time debating their strenghts, weakness and approach before every game more than anyone .....close to 10 years of blind faith on our boys ..because they gave us joy during the Natwest finals, Away test win in Australia, 2001 series win at home and numerous other ocassions....they ought to have gone out in a better fashion....it feels like a badly organised farewell for some of the best cricketers we ve ever seen...but then they organised and scripted the show that way....Im more hurt than pissed or angry...ya the rest of the world cup would be interesting...but then its no fun without us going all out support for a team.....
ReplyDeletegutted that they arent allowed to play nemore huh lol
ReplyDeleteIsha
ReplyDeleteALLOWED to play? Huh?
I'm disappointed that they lost, yes. So?