For CBSE, history also means talking cricket

This must have surely been the brainwave of a cricket fan. CBSE has recently added a chapter on the history of the game...

This must have surely been the brainwave of a cricket fan. CBSE has recently added a chapter on the history of the game to its Class IX history textbook. To every cricket aficionado’s delight, the chapter charts the journey of the game from its origins in England to its present cult status in a major part of the world. Besides the text, the chapter has pictures and numerous paintings illustrating the game in its early years.

The chapter also gives a lowdown on the evolution of rules governing the game, which became an all-weather sport from being a seasonal affair in the beginning. In colonial times, teams in India were decided on the basis of race and religion. So, the four major teams were those of the Europeans, Parsis, Hindus and Muslims. The fans too were divided on religious lines. Interestingly, Parsis were the first to cobble together a team for a Test match.

The chapter takes the reader through the “decolonisation” of the sport in the country, formation of the International Cricket Conference (ICC) and the role played by Kerry Packer, an Australian business tycoon, in popularising the game.

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Students appear quite happy with the new addition. Mukul, a student of KBDAV School, said he did not know that the first bat to be used in the game was shaped like a hockey stick. “The chapter has left me richer in terms of cricket trivia.” Echoing his views, Kavita, a student of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 18, said the chapter had got her interested in a game she had always regarded as boring. “It’s fun reading it.”

The historians, however, have not taken kindly to the addition. As Dr Indu Tiwari, a lecturer of history in the Department of Evening Studies, Panjab University, said: “There is no doubt about the craze for the game in the country but more emphasis should be on the history related to our country and not on a game which is not even our national sport.”

Sumangla Sharma, a lecturer of history at GMSS School 18, also felt that history lessons should talk more about the country, its cultural, social and political background. “It would have been better to include a separate chapter on the history of sports, giving information about all the sports.”

Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said the designation gives law enforcement “enhanced powers to combat a group that has instilled fear through violence and intimidation”.

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