Just being human, after all

Finally, a sub-continental cheer. That too from the team which has been in near oblivion in international cricket with no home games, further struck down by the worst betting scandal ever, and mired in its own internal controversies. Yet, when it mattered, it all came together and they delivered at the highest level, humiliating the current Test champions, England. That is cricket, after all and a big hurrah to hungry Pakistan. Their regular supply of match-winning bowlers has always helped, and this time, the hero came in the form of Saeed Ajmal, a prodigious turner, who is now laying claims to a special ball, the theesra (the third one), a progression from the doosra (the second one).

Indian Captain MS Dhoni loses his wicket to Australian fast bowler Peter Siddle. -AFP

For the Sri Lankans though, it has been a different story, and their ODI series loss to South Africa is not helping matters. Sweepings changes seem to be the order of the day, and if executed with thought and merit, may well be the way forward.

However, the other cricketing force of the sub-continent, India does not see things quite that way. Many a month after receiving the worst end of English hospitality, and the one-sided drubbing continuing in Australia, we are being told that there cannot be a knee-jerk reaction to these performances – only that the knee should have jerked in the Summer of 2011, and is already a season and more behind. Yet, the powers that be are also a part of the system. Indeed the structure of cricket in India has become such. The positions of the senior cricketers is cast in stone, having come through exceptional performances over a prolonged period of time. This makes it hard to ruffle feathers.

The big boys of cricket are big indeed. Perhaps even bigger than the system that drives it or the administrators who control it. In truth, the administrators cannot drive crowds crazy or TV ratings sky high. It is the cricketers who do, and they remain the real stars of the game. It is said the bigger you are, the harder you fall. In Indian cricket, ironically enough, it seems the bigger you are, the farther away from fall you are.

Thus, though Laxman has seemed to be more on a fishing trip than a cricketing one, or even the mighty wall, Dravid has developed one too many holes to safeguard his stumps, it has been hard to bite the bullet, and will continue to be so. All it takes is another day, another century and the country is in raptures again. A few failures, even a few too many are quickly forgotten.

The flip side is that Indian cricket does need these heroes – a Dravid, a Dhoni, a Sachin and a Sehwag. Truly gifted in their own ways, and a boon to the game. Yet, these cricketers need to be at the top of their game when they play. Certainly, the game deserves that, the fans deserve it too. Individual performances may vary with form and time, but collective failures, such as recently, clearly indicate a deeper problem.

Take the IPL and the Champions League, which, while only played over 4 hours, attracts a lot of media pressures added to the continuous travel. Key players were part of this in 2011, which, combined, took up more than 2 months of the cricketing calendar. Even greats like Sachin, who played the IPL immediately after the World Cup victory, could not make the West Indies tour which followed, and opted out.

If India is serious about test cricket, priorities need to be decided. The 10 to 15 core players for Tests need to be protected, their schedules managed closely. While the one-day format and T20 may suit the aggressive playing styles of most of these cricketers, it will produce a magical test innings once in a while, but cannot be a sustainable proposition. Add to that, the wear and tear of body and mindcaused by the shorter formats of the game, cricket today does not allow for representation in all formats and in all games. Dhoni is a classic case in point. He has brought great merit to himself and to the country. He has delivered India the World Cup in T20 and ODI’s, and even taken the team to the Number 1 spot in tests. Yet, both the English and Australian summers have found him wanting, both as a player and as a captain. That Captain Cool, Dhoni has suddenly become uncool is not because of a loss of skill, just the result of an over-worked body and over-burdened mind.

The Indian fan has watched from the sidelines, confused and angry, but mostly incredulous that his demi-gods were anything but that. It is time now he realised that indeed, that is the truth, and, perhaps the cricketers are just being human, after all.