India, Cricket and Sports
India is not a sports crazy nation. India is cricket crazy. The popularity of cricket has soared ever since India won the world cup in 1982. Only a few decades earlier India prided itself over its successful hockey team. As we stopped winning medals after the 1980 Olympic Games, hockey's popularity waned. We shifted our fawning loyalties to cricket. Increase of TV sets and the advent of Satellite Television with canny promotion strategies whipped up cricket fever to a frenzy.
The decline of quality in hockey and cricket has to be analyzed. This will probably reveal the malady affecting Indian sport as a whole. Hockey and cricket have enjoyed enormous support and recognition in India. India had a habit of winning gold medals regularly in hockey. After 1980, the medals have dried up. Our performance has been dismal. We never look like the world beating side that we once were. The same goes for cricket.
All other sports bodies assert that cricket receives too much patronage in India and less money is pumped into other sports. This is true. They also cite this reason for below average performance in their respective sport. This may only be partly true. Now let's take Indian Cricket as a case study. It has enjoyed vast support, funding and adulation from the public. It has the best infrastructure and mechanism for talent spotting. A vast number of people actually play the game. In spite of all the money being poured into cricket, we are yet to win a World Cup after 1982. Why have we failed to produce results directly proportionate to the inputs? How did Karnam Malleshwari win a medal in the Olympics when Weight Lifting enjoys considerably less patronage than cricket?
Something ails Indian sport. We as a nation are not athletic. The only time we run is to catch a bus. Children are not encouraged to make a career in sports. Sports administration is not professional. Talent spotting is below par. Our diet in general is not conducive for building muscles so necessary for strength and impact sports. When small countries like Pakistan, having much less resources than India produce the fastest bowlers in the world, why can't we? Fast bowling requires high amount of white muscle fibre. The white muscle fibres can expand and contract rapidly thereby contributing to explosive power of the muscle that is very important for fast bowling, sprinting, throwing etc. Genes determine the percentage of white muscle fibre in our body. Perhaps there is something our genes that men (I say men because women like PT Usha, Anju Bobby George and Karnam Malleshwari have been world class athletes) in India cannot be the fastest or the strongest in the world.
It is not power or strength alone that determine success in team sports. Skills, strategy, teamwork and a quick mind are vital. The attitude of sportsmen- determination to be the best, hunger to win, pride and desire to improve along with the application of latest scientific developments in sports training form a part of winning combination. The attitude of a nation as a whole to sport is also a major factor. Australia is a sports crazy nation. They take pride in their nation's success in all sports. They have excelled in Rugby, Cricket, Hockey, Athletics and Water Sports. Let's analyse what makes their Cricket Team the best in the world. The average Australian is a great lover of the outdoors. He is an avid sportsman. He is a strong swimmer. He takes pride in not only in his country's sporting achievements in the world arena but also in his local rugby team or even his child's school team. For him his local rugby star is as important as the national rugby star. He actively encourages his family to take part in physical activities. All this contributes to a great sporting culture resulting in winning performances. The Australian Cricketer is the product of this magnificent sporting culture. He is an all round athlete. He feels privileged to wear the Aussie colors and always strives to give his best. At heart he is a scrapper with a burning desire to win. Around two years ago, Damien Martyn and Andrew Symonds had gone fishing. Their boat capsized around 15 miles into the sea. They calmly swam back and played in a local match the next day. During last years Sydney fire, Steve Waugh's house was in danger of burning down. His wife was in the house along with his children. Since Steve Waugh was abroad, the nearest person to call for help was Glenn McGrath. When told about the fire, he rushed to their house. On reaching the outskirts, he found that the road was blocked due to heavy traffic jam. In desperation, he put on his jogging shoes and jogged around 12 miles to help Steve Waugh's wife fight the fire. This is the mettle that these cricketers are made up of. How many Indian cricketers can match such extraordinary physical feats? Last World Cup when our team was in South Africa, TV footage showed our cricketers playing in water at a beach. They looked most clumsy and uncomfortable in the sea. There was a woman of about 60 years of age who was more graceful than our cricketers. The reporters learned later that the woman did cross country running for a hobby. She was probably more fit than our pampered cricketers.
The average Indian wouldn't know who his state Ranji Trophy captain is. He follows only the National team and deifies the cricketers. The regional sportsmen are given scant respect. They are given respect only if they perform internationally. Even when they perform, they are not given the same kind of endorsements like the cricketers. Our chess prodigies earn a fraction of what the cricketers get. P. Gopi Chand who won the All-England Badminton Championships, scarcely got any endorsement after he declined to do an ad for a cola company. Our cricketers are a pampered lot. They get so many endorsements that they worry about what cola they are seen drinking rather than their game. The main reason I think that they are not performing is because they are under constant scrutiny. They only worry about keeping their places in the team and not about winning. It's not their fault. Our sporting culture is to blame. The nation as a whole should change their attitude. All sportspersons must be respected and encouraged. Children should be given adequate ground facilities to play on. School sports should be actively encouraged. Local sports meets must gain more importance. Children spend more time watching TV than playing outdoor sports. This should be discouraged. Parents must show the way through personal example.
Let’s hope our country produces at least one gold medal in the next Olympics. Cricketers do not deserve the money they are paid unless they bring us the cup. They must realize that they owe the country at least that much as a part of their social responsibility.
MC Gokul
Language Trainer
KASC
3rd March 2008, 6:40 am
