I have one thing in common with Sachin Tendulkar,our cricketing baptisms(A small difference being his was international but I choose to blissfully oversee this pesky little detail).While he was having the "by fire" version in front of overtly hostile crowds in Pakistan as a 16 year old facing snorters from Wasim,Waqar and co,I had my initiation into the millions strong drawing room cricket enthusiasts at the age of maybe 8,thanks to an already cricket crazy elder cousin who I had for company.It took me a while (some years),though to fully understand the game i.e to tell midoff from long off and figure out the slips and the silly points yet in the meanwhile I never missed a India-Pakistan match which in those days only took place in Sharjhah(the old and seedy graveyard of every Indian cricket lover's aspirations,remember the Fridays there) and the only part of news bulletins in Doordarshan I was interested in was just before the weather segment when they had something to say about the travails of our cricket team.
Those were the days when disappointment and dismay reigned supreme.Falling like nine pins,collapse, lack of killer instinct,snatching defeat from the jaws of victory were the terms associated with Indian sides touring abroad and for very good reason.Be it the cold environs of England and Newzealand,the bouncy tracks of Australia and SouthAfrica or the comparatively sedate climes of the Carribeans,wherever our sides went we never looked like winning.Our opening combination changed faces more often than Britney Spears changes her boyfriends these days.Pressing for a win was never considered our forte and coming out with a draw was considered a more than credible effort.Such lack lustre were our tours that an ODI win here and there was celebrated as if we have redeemed ourselves.Of course,we still maintained our "unbeatable at home" tag preparing dustbowl pitches where our spinners lead by the wily Anil Kumble made a meal of the best of the oppositions.Hence the term Tigers at home Pussycats abroad.
Something truly incredible that happened in Kolkata in the year 2001 changed all that.That was as close to a miracle as anyone can get on a cricket field.Led by the unforgettable heroics of VVS,Dravid and Bhajji in the company of a combative captain in Sourav we were able to turn the tables on the history books.Everything that happened after that monumental test match was in a way the fruits of the seeds sown at Eden Gardens.
Now when I see our team play and win like champions not only demoralizing the opponents but sometimes also clawing their way out of impossible situations with their heads held high,I realize that life has indeed come a full circle.We have won more matches abroad than any other team(and that includes the Australians) in the last 2-3 years,adding one coveted silverware after another to the cabinets.We have been at the forefront of the succesful effort of establishing a new order in world cricket(and I am not talking about the money angle) by being the leading and probably the only consistent bete noire of the Aussies.The same pacy and bouncy tracks that proved to be nightmarish for our batsmen,now yield satisfactory and memorable victories for us.So the new tagline should be Royal Bengals at home,Siberians abroad.
As a fan I am having the time of my life,happy and content that I made it through the sad nineties with my love for the game still pretty much intact only to savour one historic victory after another.Romance is still very much on infact this may be termed as the honeymoon period.Hope it lasts forever,but I know it won't but still that doesn't stop me from thanking the heavens for the fact that my team now can do it alone.I mean I don't have to pray at the top of my spirituality(believe me as a teenager I did it,a lot of times) or I don't have to not budge myself for the whole day in the fear of the match taking an anti-Indian turn(in tough times you tend to be superstitious,well I do).True love,as they say lasts a lifetime and so it seems.
