We Lost Bcoz We Did Not Play Cricket.

I usually don’t write post scripts about cricket .Its a futile thing to do because the game is so unpredictable .Only someone who has played it for close to 30 years and followed it with the mind of a addict can appreciate that .For a majority of us –it’s a entertainment .For a addict and a student of the game –it’s a science ,(about why and how much the ball will swing and spin,about how much it will bounce ,about how quickly it will come off the wicket ,about where it will go if it is hit with a bat which you swing at a angle starting from lifting it from the position of third man or above your shoulder ),and so on .Its a game about strategy and cunning –about how you give the ball more flight in the air so as to generate that little extra bounce off the wicket leading to a mishit (ah Bedi and Prassana were prime masters at that ) and so on .Its not just a “lathi charge” –hitting leather with wood .More than anything –the game is  about patience and planning .We lost the match yesterday because we failed  to play cricket like cricket .There was no science .Rohit lost his wicket because he left a huge gap as he brought down his bat .He did not bring it down straight .Kohli lost the plot because he became impatient .He was just not in a position to hook  but the Australians (and perhaps someone in the stands )drove him to desperation .There were a billion hopes that sunk with his shot .Shikhar made a fool of himself .He was going nicely ,was getting runs and there was no need to hit everyball and to hit it straight to the only fielder in the outfield on the off side  .The strategy should have been to keep picking the singles ,get fours and sixes occasionally ,and push the score till 125 and then go bang bang !! But he just lost the plot .Dhoni was the greatest disappointment .17 overs and still no Ashwin ? We were all waiting for him to come on .And who do we see coming to bowl –Kohli .God ,can anyone explain that ?We had Australia in a tight spot after getting the prized wicket of Warner   let them off .Spin should have been introduced much earlier .And can anyone explain why Dhoni waited for so long to have a go at the bowling ?It was a impossible ask by then .The run rate was too much for the asking and we were not playing Afghnasithan .

It was a sad end to a world cup campaign.And it was sad not because we lost .It was sad because we lost in the way we did .No planning ,no fight and no remorse .Were we good enough to reach the semis ? I think we were lucky to be there in the first place .We were never tested till the run up to the quarter finals .We were lucky against South Africa –yes we were lucky – and we did not have a chance against any of the 3 teams that made the semis .No matter how much you say –“well played India”-the fact of the matter is that we played badly .And we did not play cricket .And we were not upto it .I don’t care too much for pessimists .I dislike optimists .I love realists who call a spade a spade.Call me anti national .Call me a pessimist .Call me anything –but for heavens sake –call a spade a spade .