With The Fungus Gone.

Cricket today is on an all time high showing no signs of the depression that is strangling the rest of the world.India,the economic powerhouse of the game is also now finally the super side of the game.But there is an inherent charm the game has lost.Cricket was never the beautiful one, that tag enviably belongs to that sport that drives half the world crazy and causes a nine percent increase in chances of a heart failure while watching it,football.But cricket was always the gentler one,the one without the fuss.Batsmen walked when out,on the pitch brawls were seldom witnessed and umpires were never argued with .these are of course trivial facts.But what rattles me is that the game has changed to one of money,mindless hitting and more money.
I was an avid fan of cricket once. Its perhaps technically,physically and mentally the most demanding of sports.In this game there is seldom a reprieve ,its not a team sport; essentially,its a game played by a team of 11 individuals.What i am trying to drive at is the fact that individual performances stand out clearly.You are out for a duck you are gone,there is no another point to come back like in tennis or another attempt at goal.If you drop a catch its almost always over for your side.Its a pressure cooker situation.
But whats spoiling cricket is the fact that the game is being changed into one that caters to a mass audience as a competitor to football.And therein it loses its charm.The game’s beauty lies in he fact that it can be played for five days without a result,the gentle flick of the wrists,the majestic square drives,the dominant strides of a bowler they all make the game click.its like one big jigsaw puzzle and the picture is fascinating only when it is completed.if at all you can give it an epithet you can call cricket an intelligent game. A bowler takes an over and sometimes a spell to set up a batsmen,the batsmen on the other hand must read the difference between a yorker,a slower one or say an away going one each and every time.Its a complex mind game.
But sadly today the game has been reduced to a uni dimensional affair, one of a batsman’s paradise.It was once breathtaking to see Wasim Akram come thundering down the pitch against Lara,Warney mesmerize you against Gatting,Ganguly pick Muralitharan off for a straight six or Tendulkar match wits against that lethal Aussie,McGrath.The era of Alan Donald,Waqar Younis,Anil Kumble and targets of 200 are over.Once upon a time a target of 230-240 was considered good,infact it was not very long ago.Today is the age of heavy bats and Dhonis,Yuvrajs,Sehwag and Pontings. Its great hitting ,awesome display of power,athleticism talent and even skill but you miss the fact that you look around the game and you do not see one fearsome bowler,no seaming tracks and definitely no awe inspiring contests.Cricket is now a batsman’s game.
Public wants to see huge sixes being hit, grand totals and faster games. Commercial swings have ensured that the bowler is left out cold.Perhaps India is to blame for that.Flat tracks and huge totals was a virus we exported and enforced with the help pf sponsors and a powerful board.Today the game no longer accomodates the wizardry of Laxman in its short version or the resilience of Dravid.But i am perhaps one of the very few lamenting such a cause. Most people want fast and furious T-20 s and find test cricket insipid.Today the game has lost its soul to such an extent that the IPL cant wait for general elections and cricketers are willing to risk life and pride for playing in the IPL.Globalization and commercialization is unavoidable the reason why ESPN will telecast EPL over the much more aesthetic La Liga.But who’s complaining?as far the sixes keep coming…