Well, seeing India play in the last few matches reminded me of the old days. There was a time when India could not play on fast tracks. It was the time when Indian bowlers would perform to some extent on such tracks but the Indian batsmen would go to the middle, struggle for some time and return to the pavilion. It was the time when the opposition would target just one Indian batsmen - Sachin Tendulkar. That was some time back!!! There was a brief time when the opposition was vary of the Indian "Team" not the one Indian batsmen. Today we have gone back to the old times. Its the same fast tracks and the same one man army! Its the same situation and nothing has changed in years.
India is a country where cricket is our only secular religion. But are we doing enough justice to it? There are a lot of other sports in which Indians prosper, but they dont ever come into limelight(Sania is the only exception, looks do matter I guess!!!) Right from the common man on the street to the MPs in the parliament all have an opinion on the Indian Team. All have an idea and a suggestion to improve. We ignore the other sports simply because its not cricket. And are things good at least in that. No... the cricket is not going anywhere as well.
Indian players are way too busy walking on the ramps. The cricket board is way too busy making multi million deals for the telecast rights. The Parliament is way too busy expressing their disappointment about the coach. The man on street is busy making his dream team for the world cup. Is there anybody out there who is busy with cricket? Is there anybody who is taking the responsibility and doing something about the game? The captain says that there is pressure and that the team got to perform well. The coach says that the players are out of form and they have to perform. The selection committee chairman says that we dont have enough talented players in the country. Well, who is actually doing something towards it?
I dont know why the sponsors are still paying heavy money to these people(Or may be I know!). Airtel dropped Sachin as their brand ambassador. Will others follow? Talking business they would not! Cricket still sells in this country. Still people like to see Dhoni's new hairstyle, Dravid's handsome looks... Airtel got to learn from the TV channels. The news channels host chat shows to discuss "Are we giving too much attention to cricket?". And that gets them maximum viewer ratings. What do I say now? ESPN Star telecasts the same match on both their channels and still have great viewer ratings. Cricket will continue to rule the TV till the madness for the game continues!!!
Why am I speaking all this out here? There was a time when I used to watch all the matches, now I have come to a stage where I just see the score and switch the tv off. I have stopped watching cricket and started to follow other sports. But I continue to be amazed how the whole country and countless brands still run on cricket!
India is a country where cricket is our only secular religion. But are we doing enough justice to it? There are a lot of other sports in which Indians prosper, but they dont ever come into limelight(Sania is the only exception, looks do matter I guess!!!) Right from the common man on the street to the MPs in the parliament all have an opinion on the Indian Team. All have an idea and a suggestion to improve. We ignore the other sports simply because its not cricket. And are things good at least in that. No... the cricket is not going anywhere as well.
Indian players are way too busy walking on the ramps. The cricket board is way too busy making multi million deals for the telecast rights. The Parliament is way too busy expressing their disappointment about the coach. The man on street is busy making his dream team for the world cup. Is there anybody out there who is busy with cricket? Is there anybody who is taking the responsibility and doing something about the game? The captain says that there is pressure and that the team got to perform well. The coach says that the players are out of form and they have to perform. The selection committee chairman says that we dont have enough talented players in the country. Well, who is actually doing something towards it?
I dont know why the sponsors are still paying heavy money to these people(Or may be I know!). Airtel dropped Sachin as their brand ambassador. Will others follow? Talking business they would not! Cricket still sells in this country. Still people like to see Dhoni's new hairstyle, Dravid's handsome looks... Airtel got to learn from the TV channels. The news channels host chat shows to discuss "Are we giving too much attention to cricket?". And that gets them maximum viewer ratings. What do I say now? ESPN Star telecasts the same match on both their channels and still have great viewer ratings. Cricket will continue to rule the TV till the madness for the game continues!!!
Why am I speaking all this out here? There was a time when I used to watch all the matches, now I have come to a stage where I just see the score and switch the tv off. I have stopped watching cricket and started to follow other sports. But I continue to be amazed how the whole country and countless brands still run on cricket!
1 comment:
Exactly! Even I wonder how all country comes to a halt when there is a cricket match :-)
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