World Cup – Opening Ceremony

So the Red Carpet is rolled and the stage is all set for the One-day game’s and perhaps cricket’s biggest tournament to commence. On rifling through the history of the tournament, apparently the game has been a melting pot of emotions ranging from joy, guffaw to anxiety, shock, heartbreak, and even tears. The moods never seemed like it belonged. They have always been alternating! And that is why cricket has been a perennial ‘Reality Show’ for the game doesn’t deprive its fans of any emotions. Neither does it compel its fans to conceal them.

A few teams have arrived with the favorites tag and a few are looking to prove to the world that they are. And therefore the players and fans have in them the adrenalin flowing in them – ‘a moment of madness and you become the hero’ and it could be the other way too! The teams that could hold their nerves and breath a bit longer and that could raise their game when the moment comes have been the greatest beneficiaries of the tournament.

South Africa and Australia, two ruthless kings of world cricket, have presented two contrasting examples. While the former has never ended a World Cup campaign with a smile, the latter has managed it four times (in 1987, 1999, 2003 and 2007 and therefore three times in row.) They have always dished out probing questions against quality opposition and have mustered their ‘Resolve’ during moments of dire.

Often the nagging companion to our thoughts about South Africa have been “Luck is the commodity South Africa has always found wanting!” Hindsight would tell you miscalculation of the score, thoughtless running and moments of insanity have also embraced them tightly. Rain has never been a good friend of the team but those are things beyond one’s control.

India has been a donee of inconsistent performance, for they don’t carry a ‘chokers tag’ like the Proteas do. Only a few times have they been interrogated with difficult questions. In the 1983 World Cup final they won it from nowhere! In the 1987 World Cup semifinal they lost to England and thereby throwing the prospects of an India-Pakistan final into the trash. In the 1996 World Cup semifinal, amidst the expectations an emotional Kolkata crowd, they flunked.  In the 2003 World Cup semifinal it was against Kenya and apparently it was a cakewalk.  Australia thumped India in what was a one-sided final and cruised to a whooping 125-run victory.

The scenario has changed ever since the charitable performance in the 2007 World Cup. India has managed to turn the tide by promptly infusing young blood amidst the experienced. The team is currently rated No.1 and No.2 in the ICC table.

India, deservedly tagged as favorites, look forward to this as an opportunity beckoned. Hype has been built over winning it for Sachin Tendulkar. This (probably) being the ‘16-year old’s’ last World Cup, one can’t help sensing the possibility of a Mumbai-final amidst the hubbub of his home crowd. Of course when the great man is playing it would be difficult to spot ‘where his home ground is!’ His birth certificate reads that he is from Bombay and he is 37 (both equally difficult to believe!).

For India to prevail, it must thrive in pressure. As it has done in the recent times, India has to don a cloak of ‘winners’ and carry the momentum forth. Dhoni adds a feather to India’s cap with his unswerving captaincy. He has been probed with pleasant confusions of selection of the playing 11.

A great tournament for cricket lovers is in the offing. Hopefully the tournament identifies the strongest team in the planet and hopefully it allows more time for those who write about the game!

Tags: Cricket, ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, India, MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Team India, World Cup