I know many people will hate me for writing this. I can't help. For them cricket may be religion, for me its not. On my way across Azad and Cross Maidan, today, I see an abundance of white; white every where, as M F Hussain famously put it. However, the white was from the uniforms of thousands of young cricketers practicing the game of patience and uncertainties. Made me wonder why I hate cricket. I just can't stand it anymore, in spite of being a left-hand bowler who scored a few good wickets and a left-hand batsman who has scored a bit of runs.
It happened thusly: I was captain of the Green House in school and was leading the team in a crucial game. It started off well. I took an amazing diving catch in the slips when I latched on to a ball with one hand, in an act I never thought I was capable of. I then took over the bowling and took some good wickets. Then the sun hit me hard. I became tired. A friend and batsman from the opposite Yellow House team, Abdul (who later became notorious as the gangster Abdul Kunju) began punishing my bowling all over the field.
Now imagine this. A good start, mind you, I am in excellent control of the game when the game starts to slip out of my hand. Abdul hits my bowls all over the fence. Still I persist. Then I change bowling and he does that to the other bowlers too. The heat gets terrible. I am dehydrated. By the time they wrap up, they have a huge total. Then we bat. My top line of batsmen is decimated by some good bowling by Abdul and company. My side is in disarray and batsmen gift catches and walk back. When I go to bat, I have a queasy feeling the game has flown out of my hands altogether. I get out cheaply. That did it. We lost.
Abdul's team, lead by the talented Gangadharan Menon (captain of the Yellow House and their wicket-keeper), won. I started hating cricket. Why did the game slip out of my hands when I was in such good control? Then I decide that all my time, my interest, my analysis of scores and averages aren't worth it for a game of such immense uncertainties (Only Englishmen and Aussies with their outdoorsy physiques can be good at it). The whole nation goes on a state of stasis when there's a match on television. Abdul remained committed to cricket, he played, and he even got killed when watching a cricket match. Abdul Kunju, my childhood friend (he became a gangster much later), rest in peace.
6 comments:
Hi John, Your saga of hating cricket is really interesting. Again the Muslim Villain like every hindi flm has and killed at the end.
The childhood story of every person are almost same or little lesser or a bit more. In my case, when I started thinking everything in terms of productivity gain or loss, I became very calculative and understood the disaster by a game called Cricket. A country can afford watching this game where the GDP percentage is much better, of course, than of India. We are 110 Cr. but while reading your experience, I read "whole nation goes on a state of stasis". Heaven forbid that this should not happen. I am very calculative with cricket..if we start making P & L Accounts of Cricket matches taking place in India (bother for our GDP) it's certain that 4 hr match x 10 Cr indians audience=40 Cr man hrs = 20Cr man hrs of productivity (a shift of 8 hrs)=22831 man years of productivity lost in 4 Hrs..if we take production of sugar only, the price would have not gone that much higher as it is kissing the sky.. plus as bonus billions of dollars would have been earned by export of sugar rather import. There should be a game but not on the cost of prgress of the nation, not on the cost of high price of the basic needs to the common man. For entertainment, we have a strong and extremely creative film industry, if sponsors of these matches give us money, we can certainly make many Avataar and bagfull dollars with every films aftr international release. The length of time of films has also reduced without compomising the quality of story or film..This is the reason that I hate Cricket. Money goes in games of losses ot in creativity and productivity..
Hi Sumit,
I am glad you agree with my view point.
J
Are you talking about Abdul Kunju the guy who started mumbai gang wars? I mean the whole bada rajan murder and all...
john, i am suresh pai ,abduls friend from shell colony bldg 11, may abduls soul rest in peace!!!!
HI John,
NIce 2 c someone had written good about Abdul Kunju.I use to live in the same building.Abdul was good at all sports .May his soul rest in peace.
Not a problem. He was a friend.
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