The cricket obsession

Cricket. Wonder why people in the country are so crazy about it. So crazy that the cricket players are treated like demi-gods. It takes so much attention that pretty much every other sport fades into oblivion.

And it's not like the cricket team has done wonders in the last 27 years, since they won the World Cup that is, for us to treat them that way. Minor wins here and there, mostly matches that have only saved their faces, are literally remembered by people better than the subjects they studied back in school or college. And it's the entire country that does that. Almost every single indian boy wants to be a cricketer and all like Sachin. And i bet not many even know that other sports exist. It's not like i'm an avid sports follower. I don't follow sports with vigor, but i do enjoy watching them. Some times.

The only time i remember being fascinated by cricket is in the first T20 world cup, especially the finals between India and Pakistan. That day every single person in the country would have left early for home. But what wonders have they accomplished to even get 1/10th of the adulation they are given? Their attitude towards the sport is downright nonsensical sometimes. They bat and bowl well only if they're in a good mood or if it happens to be an especially lucky day. And there have been those rare occasions, very rare occasions, where they actually fight till the end but still end up losing, and we say "at least they tried". 

Many sportsmen and women have accrued laurels worthy of a nation's admiration, but are received with such less enthusiasm that it's a surprise that they have not stopped playing. Hockey, chess, billiards, football, shooting... the list is endless. But at the end of it all, what does everyone remember? CRICKET.

So what if Vishwanathan Anand won the World Chess Championship after a 40 hour car journey to Sofia due to flight inavailabily on account of volcanic ashes? We don't care. All we're worried about is the Indian cricket team bad performance in the World T20 championship. Who cares if any other team or sports person of any other games wins or loses? We're still worried about the poor cricketers, who are so fatigued from making shit-loads of moolah off the highly corrupt IPL system that they can't play against other countries in a world championship.

Even news websites have a 2 sports sections. One for cricket. And the other for all other sports. I think that goes to explain how biased we are towards a bunch of pot bellied nonathletic 'sportsmen' who smack 4s and 6s only if they have had a good party or a good meal of butter chicken or something like that.

God help you cricket fanatics. Please go find another sport to follow. Coz the Indian cricket team really wont do well unless a miracle takes place and you will also find that people in other sports actually do win games and tournaments! Go figure! :)