6th April 2014. T20 World Cup Final. India Vs SriLanka. India batted first. After the wicket of Rohit, Yuvraj came in to the crease. People thought of the wonders he had done for his country. They expect that he would repeat the same that day. Even the opposition respect him. On this fateful day, he came to the crease at 11th over. He got his first run in his first ball faced. He has scored 6 runs in 11 balls. Everone thought that he was taking time to go for the big hits. After the end of 17th over, he was at 9 with 16 balls faced. People started frustrating about him for wasting too many balls in the short format. But many believed that he would very soon start hitting big shots.After the end of 18th over, still no big hits from him. He was at 11 from 20 balls. The problem with his batting was not that he could not hit big shots but with his inability to take a single and give strike to Kohli who was in a blistering form at the other end.
Still two overs remaining. He was facing the 1st ball of the 19th over. He was gone. After making 11 runs from 21 balls, he was gone. The fate of him has been decided. He would become the scapegoat of the Indian fans if India lose the match. Exactly, the same thing has happened. India has lost.
I too felt sad for the loss. I red from the newspapers next morning that Yuvraj's house has been stone pelted for his poor performance in the match. That made me to write this blog. A basic question. How should we take the loss or win in a sport? For the people of India, cricket is not just a game. It is a religion. People will make you a demi god if you are constantly bringing glory to India. The moment when you lose, the same people will see you as a mad street dog.People doesn't just want to see India lose. In other words, they don't have the tolerance seeing India lose. They want to show their frustration in one way or the other. They don't endure when their religion(Cricket) is losing and their so called demi-gods are on the losing side. They don't understand that losing is just a part and parcel of the game. The result of a sport should not be taken personally. A sport is like any other job but it has a wide range of viewership where the work is encouraged and cheered. But, it should not go beyond a particular limit like harming and abusing the sportsperson personally.
Look at the case of Yuvraj singh. he is the only player in India who has won the U19 world cup, T20 world cup and 50 over world cup. He was the Player of the Tournament in the U19 world cup and the 50 over world cup when India wins. He was the major contributor to the T20 world cup win. His six sixes in a over is unprecedented in International cricket. He brought many laurels to the country. His batting style and his timing is well known. His fielding is impeccable. He gave 200 percent to his game. He came back to the Indian cricket team after successfully won the Cancer which, for me, tells his greatest mental strength and will power. His love for the game and his love for the country is unquestionable. Yet he was the victim of so called fanatic following of sport when he was abused and his house was stone pelted. When will all these shallow things going to change? When this fanaticism will end? See, Sport as a Sport!
