Indian Cricket, now and then

As India wrapped up West Indies second innings in the recently concluded Eden Garden Test in less than one day and earned an innings victory within three days of what was supposed to be a five day match, my mind goes back to 1958 when I, then a schoolboy in a junior class started listening to radio cricket commentary. That was the time when West Indies was touring India devastating the Indian team with both bat and ball so much so that when India after loosing four tests in a row managed to draw the fifth and final test of the series, it was held as great achievement by India. That was the series when Sobers and Kanhai were attacking Indian bowling like merciless butchers and Hall and Gillchrist were playing havoc with the Indian batsmen. 

We can visualise in our mind the joy and jubilation of India’s cricket lovers  after India managed to draw the fifth test match in 1958 against West Indies. If we compare the same with the thrills and suspense on the third day of the recently concluded test match against West Indies where the spectators and cricket fans were hoping against hope that West Indies would survive the day and India get a chance to bat in the second innings thereby giving the spectators a chance to see Sachin bat once again, then only we will realise what a transformation has taken place in Indian Cricket over the years. What a fall of the West Indies from what it was in the past and what a meteoric rise of the Indian team! A team that used to gladden the hearts of its fans once upon a time by just avoiding defeat and ensuring  what our sports commentators of that time used to call a honourable draw is now one of the strongest in the world and is not happy without a comprehensive victory.

While it is for the analysts and the serious students of the game to figure out the factors responsible for this positive transformation, I only wonder why such positive  things are not happening  in other areas. India’s performance in hockey these days is dismal. India seven times Olympic champion is a non-entity in today’s hockey. India’s show in other sports has been far from encouraging. Milkha Singh and P.T. Usha are till date the best ever athletes India has produced. The most ardent supporters of Indian Cricket in 1958 would not have imagined in their wildest dreams that a day would come when Indian fans confident of India’s victory will be actually praying that the opponent avoids innings defeat so that they get a chance to see their hero batting again. If such changes can happen in cricket why can it not happen in other sports or for that matter in other areas of activities? Let us fervently hope that performance in cricket will be replicated in other areas also and India will emerge as one of the leading nations of the world in all spheres of human activity in not too distant future.