11 players 1100000000 fans !!

It is already stale news that India have lost their stake in the Cricket World Cup.

I actually went to a friends place and watched from noon to 1:15. Boy, was I disappointed. I saw 5 wickets fall within that space.

What infuriated me most was the transcript of the interview of the Indian Coach, Greg Chappell which I happened to read on Cricinfo.

In light of the fact that the coach of the Pakistan team has been murdered right after that team exited the world cup, is it even appropriate for the press to ask pointed questions to try and assign blame right after the match, knowing that there is a mob out there that is just waiting to lap up everything the press is going to dish out tomorrow ? Has the press no moral fibre?

It is this same press that takes these ordinary humans who are trying to play a game and escalates them to demi-god status. The same press is fed by advertising revenue from the very same sponsors who artificially inflate the worth of the players by giving them exhorbitant endorsement deals, publicity that would put movie actors to shame and way too much postive or negative focus to make or break their confidence and careers.

If the press were to put these players where they ought to be put, just players playing a game and if there is a law banning players from endorsing products or appearing in commercials, maybe things would improve. The press should actually point the fingers at themselves. They asked the Indian team coach if it is "time for a reality check?". It is time the press did a reality check on their role in this loss. They also asked the team captain "arent you answerable to your fans ?". HELL NO!! Movie actors play for their audience. Their end goal is box office success. Sportsmen play for the game. Their end goal is a victory against the other team! Not commercial success. Their game should not be linked to ratings or revenue!!

On a personal note,
1. I have made a promise to not watch or track cricket for the next 365 days!
2. There will be no requests to order the matches on Dish Network
3. No checking Cricinfo
4. No participation in water cooler gossip about things including and excluding Sehwag et. al. with the English, West Indians, Pakistanis and Sri Lankans I know.
5. There will be no joint reminiscing with my co-brother or my wife's cousins from down under either!

This is Sundar's sabatham(wow)! Yeah, I am the next Mangamma...

ps. The wife is happy that she does not have to cough up the $199 or $ 129 or $... for ordering the remaining matches! Did you see the way the price for the Super 8 package drop as the Indian Wickets fell ?!

pps. As a person who has watched cricket for this long, inspite of all the scandals, match fixing, the crappy performance of the team, etc., I also share some responsibility for fueling this out of control fire. As an Indian Cricket fan, I take responsibility for my part!! Hence this decision.

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Just another Cricket post ...

Have been reading all the furor over the recent India-Bangladesh match where India lost to Bangladesh (India are strong favorites and Bangladesh were typically being reffered to as Minnows in the media !). There is similar if not worse reaction to Pakistan losing to Ireland and exiting the Cricket world cup!

Mostly the blog world is polarized about the mob mentality of the Indian Cricket fan and how the ardent fan is justifiably pissed at the performance of his / her Cricket hero ! Most of it is in reaction to how a mob stormed into one of the cricketers home and destroyed property, etc.,

A sample is here.. here..and now that the Pakistan cricket coach's death has been declared "suspicious", we are going to see a lot more posts on losing and winning games when you have a huge fan base in the billions!

A message to my cricket loving brethren :

CHILL OUT !!!

It is a sport. Someone wins, someone loses, sometimes someone makes some money, sometimes someone loses money, they all become part of the statistic and pretty soon it is all forgotten and one goes about buying ones favorite brand of shaving razor or tea bag or insurance policy. Yeah, that same favorite which is common between you and your Cricketer idol!

Just think of how you would have watched the game were it advertised a little differently as a SUN TV movie.. (now pardon the Tamlish! and imagine the below words with a strong Tamizh accent)

Indhiya tholaikatchigalil mudhal murayaaga
thiraikku vandhu sila mani nerangale aana
Satchin, sEvAg, DhOni, Mandira matrum palar nadiththa
Indiava Bangladesha pOtti

Kaana thavaraadheergal !

I am sure it would be a laugh fest at that point..

I am still waiting for the Indian team to make it to the final 8 for a personal reason. I get to watch the matches only if they make it to the final 8 or else I forfeit the right to order the games on Dish Network (My bet with my home bookie a.k.a. wife!).

Considering the 250 Crore rupees loss mentioned in a few blogs ($ 50 Million) in advertising revenue, ticket sales etc. being projected, they must be playing like they have a fire under their youknowwhats, but I hope the match does not get fixed for ticket sales. I would rather see those cricket heroes do their absolute best and win it with their talent and teamwork!

Good luck to team India!

On a personal note to my dad : You are probably right. Most matches are rigged and I am still stupid enough to succumb to cricket fever! I always feel like that dude who watches the action replay and says "I hope he hits the ball at least this time"!!

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