The smile146;s back

When the country is besieged by images of terror, death and destruction; when headlines are dominated by international scams and scandals, ...

When the country is besieged by images of terror, death and destruction; when headlines are dominated by international scams and scandals, trust cricket to put the smile back on people8217;s faces. It works every time and it worked again over the past week as India8217;s cricketers demonstrated their commitment, talent and unity of purpose to overcome a side ranked five places above them. We smiled not just because they won 8212; they won two Tests in Zimbabwe, remember, and three ODIs less than two months ago 8212; nor because of the margin of victory, though that certainly helped, but because of how they won. We smiled when Dhoni showed us the simple joy of cricket, bat on ball, no mindgames, no hidden agendas. We smiled 8212; hugely 8212; when Sachin rediscovered the form that made him a phenomenon.

Yet, more than anything else, we smiled at the sight of this band of brothers playing for each other. That is the essence of sport and that8217;s the spirit Team India had forsaken over the past couple of years. Rahul Dravid got it about right on Thursday: Suresh Raina and Venugopala Rao, he said, put the team ahead of their own fledgling careers and, instead of going for glory, went for a win. Much of that stems from the sense of security the team leadership has instilled. Players will be given not one or two but maybe ten chances to prove themselves. In that scenario, each match does not boil down to a do-or-die attempt. There is also a sense of purpose in the team. The flap over 8216;flexibility8217; is for media consumption; the players evidently know what they are doing and why they are doing it.

There are, however, two important points to remember even as we celebrate some excellent cricket. One is that we have been down this road before. Less than five years ago we had a new coach and captain and a group of fine young players. There was talent, commitment and purpose. Then it all went horribly wrong, and it went wrong because those who run the game took their eye off the ball. Coach and captain are high-profile individuals performing a high pressure job; there will be friction, there will be disagreements. It is the BCCI8217;s responsibility to see that they remain within professional limits. And, second, this team has a long way to go before it fulfils its potential. There will be triumphs and disasters and it is up to us not to make much of either. Meanwhile, enjoy this team, enjoy cricket, lovely cricket.