Cricket has hit an all-time low as a sport in India, so much so that this is where a new wave of sports has taken the nation by storm and has prompted me to write an article which talks about the apparent death of cricket in India.
The death of cricket in India is surely a subjective topic to argue and contemplate on, where we do acknowledge the existence of fresh talent in the rising ranks and improvement of infrastructure but as long as problems continue to persist via politics, squad selection, ego clashes, and bias, it’s better we turn our attention to other sports like ISL, Pro Kabaddi League and more.
So here you have it, 5 prominent factors leading to the death of cricket in India:
#1. Bias Among Selectors:
Be it the over-pedestalization of the squad captain to make the selection choices or the overconfidence of the selectors in certain players with a poor stat sheet, team selection in Indian cricket has always been questionable.
From selectors being overly confident in the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravendra Jadeja regardless of their terrible form due to MS Dhoni’s influence in the past which has slightly reduced since Kohli took over, selectors have always made questionable choices.
#2. Ego Clashes:
Kohli doesn’t gel with Dhoni. Kohli doesn’t gel with Kumble. Kumble doesn’t gel with the selectors.
The list is long and full of terrors.
The idea of squad harmony being virtually inexistent has caused the death of Indian cricket sooner than expected because we have changed coaches more than any other team in recent years and to adjust to a new philosophy or regime at the expense of the egos of senior players and the captain is always an uphill task for any coach.
Groupism has plagued the dressing room and that has shown on the pitch, more often than we’d like.
#3. No Pace Attack:
When was the last time we had a tremendous pace attack? I can’t seem to remember. We’ve only had sub-par pace bowlers which has greatly contributed to a terrible record against the big guns of Australia and South Africa on their home turf.
Regardless of being largely out of form, we’ve given players like Ashish Nehra a chance and players like Ishant Sharma seem like a distant memory.
Bhuvaneshwar Kumar has been a silver lining but then again, his away form and inconsistency has cost us to be toothless in our once great pace bowling attack.
#4. Terrible Record Away From Home:
Oh, don’t get me started on this.
The stats don’t lie. A 9-0 win in India against a depleted Sri Lanka side is by no means the measure of this current Indian team’s success and our terrible track record against the likes of England, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand on their turf in limited overs or test match games has been evident since ages and reduced our status to mere “flat track bullies”.
Since July 2008, we’ve lost 19 tests and won 9 in Australia and the record against other teams is equally, if not more embarrassing. Sure, one could say that it’s pressure but are senior world-class cricketers not so world class on foreign grounds?
Since Ravi Shastri has recently commented that it’d only matter to him once Indian team wins in alien conditions, it’s safe to say that it’s gonna be a long scary wait.
#5. The Dominance Of IPL And Match Fixing Allegations:
Inexplicably bad performances in clutch championship games, unrealistic wins at the death, over-reliance on IPL performers and negligence of players who perform well in Ranji or Devdhar trophy has led us to the apparent death of cricket.
The selection bias has become entrenched that glamour is valued over talent and money over national pride.
Most might call me a cynic but a true fan knows that it’s all too good to be true when we congratulate India on a great effort against Pakistan, knowing well that a Champions Trophy loss will avoid a lawsuit by the PCB and more such circumstances which often go unnoticed.
And then comes IPL and the stupidity it brings to the table that all of a sudden, we neglect the talent which is needed for test cricket domination and focus on players who are only good for 20 overs or 50 if they’re lucky.
It’s a sticky situation. We’ve had people like N. Srinivasan, Sharad Pawar and Lalit Modi who have monopolized cricket for their own pockets and the death of cricket in India can be largely attributed to this “Big 3” but what about us as viewers who continue to support tournaments like IPL and hope we’ll find the next big superstar based on a month’s performance?
Cricket in India isn’t dying. It is dead with rare chances of a revival.
But well, we have hope. And that’s the only thing that has still kept the die hard fans rooting for the men in blue and if they’re listening to the prayers of the fans, it’s time for a wake-up call.
Cheers.
Image Credits: Google Images
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