The
World Cup 2011 was considered as one of the open World Cups, where, every team
had the capability and resources to become the World Champion. The strongest
contenders for the cup were: the Aussies, the Lankans, the Pakistanis and last,
the Indian Team which got the crown ultimately. India, a country of 1.21
billion people, is the Global Hub for cricket and many believe that their
excellence in the sport can well become a ladder for them to climb the
Development Everest.
The
Indian Team had performed consistently well in the last two and their chances
of winning the championship were bright too. But, it is not just the Cricket
that matters. The load of expectations of the 1.21 billion is on your shoulders
(being a player), if you are a representative of their cricket, that
is a member of the Indian Cricket Team. This is what the real test is and
the team which handles it well has a better chance. I remember a veteran of the
game saying on a News Channel that the viewers or rather the Indian viewers
have a passion attached to their game. If ‘their’ player makes a hundred,
‘they’ feel they have scored it. But, if he fails then he will be criticized
seriously by ‘them’. Coming from
behind and making a mark is one thing and making a mark when you are expected
to make it, is a different thing. This is what the major difference
between the 1983 and the 2011 World Cup win is. I am not saying that the 1983
Team hadn’t had the quality, they had, but they were not under pressure to perform
and played just the cricket not the nerves. The 1983 team had a bunch of Medium
Pace swing bowlers and the England conditions assisted them. They could well
have been all over the places if they had played on Indian Pitches which are
flat.
The
2011 World Cup side is a champion side. The decisive blend of youth and
experience both in the bowling and the batting department is fantastic. The
Sachin- Sehwag opening duo is undisputedly the best in the world. The CAPTAIN
COOL, as he popularly known as, is himself a dangerous hitter currently #7 in
the ICC ODI Batsmen Rating. Even the great Tendulkar has admitted after the
World Cup win that Dhoni is the best captain he has played under.
All
in all, there is no comparison between the legends of the two different eras.
If 1983 was the start of the ‘Golden Age’ of Indian Cricket, then 2011 is an
impetus to that Golden Run.
Congratulations
Indian Cricket Team for winning the cup and the hearts of 1.21 billion
Indians plus the Cricket Lovers, all over the world!
No comments:
Post a Comment