Monday 15 March 2004

Waiting for my call

My lab exam (Software Components) has just concluded, and I'm sitting around waiting to be called for my viva voce. Surprisingly, I finished the programming part really early and went on to wasting time in the library. I guess I'm still on a high following the Indo-Pak match.

That was probably the scariest ever match I've seen in my lifetime. I mean, hello. 350 is a winning score pretty much anywhere in the world, and against any other opposition, Australia included. But, apparently, not in Indo-Pak matches. The levels of motivation achieved by the cricketers involved is simply phenomenal. I mean, how can you explain it? It is war. And don't let anybody tell you otherwise. All the "They are so much like us. We are naturally friends." is nothing but PR BS. And everytime Sourav/Wasim say "It's just a cricket match." implies that it is most definitely not that. Can anybody seriously say that this so-called "just a match" is capable of elevating the performance levels of the players to such towering heights? Does anybody deny that beating Pakistan gives infinitely more pleasure than beating any other country. I still know people who don't mind that the general Indian performances in the '92, '96 and '99 World Cups didn't matter, because Pak was beaten in all of them. This is certainly not just another game.

As an aside, has anyone else noticed how Indian victories are generally close matches? A crushing victory, with total Indian domination in all departments, is still missing. Not counting non-test playing nations, of course. (Even in those cases, some victories have come tougher than they should've.)

All in all, I'm a true fan of Indian cricket. When they win, I celebrate. And when they lose, unlike some other people I know, I don't swear at them for doing something they shouldn't have, and instead grieve with the team..sound corny? You decide.

No comments: