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Journalism of Courage
At first they were reluctant but now BCCI have warmly welcome cricket8217;s newest form8212;Twenty20. One-day cricket8217;s 8216;sexed up8217; version, that proved to be a life saving drug for English cricket three years ago, now promises to do the same to India8217;s much-neglected domestic circuit. As a top BCCI marketing man said with more than a hint of sarcasm: 8220;It is like we are being asked to add an item number to a blockbuster movie that anyway was breaking all box office records.8221;
This glamorous new addition with its 5-to-8 evening match-hours, pop numbers on the PA System, the EPL-like format with domestic teams roping in foreign players, fielders with ears plugged to the commentary box will certainly draw whistles. But caution is also required so that this dash of colour doesn8217;t overshadow the big picture.
The danger, though, is that the glamour of Twenty20 will blind us 8212; fans, media, administrators, and the cricketers themselves 8212; to the problems that exist in Indian cricket.
To understand the problems, a small digression. Gundappa Viswanath, the most stylishly original batsman India has ever produced, who presently keeps a close eye on the batting technique of future international stars at the National Cricket Academy. On one such visit to Mumbai at the zonal cricket academy some months ago, one asked Viswanath about the footwork of the youngsters. He took a while and said, 8220;forward and backward they do shuffle but that vital movement towards the off-stump is long dead.8221; The man who patented the famous right foot sideways stride for that legendary 8216;late cut8217;, seems to be of the opinion that the forward shuffle is okay but there is no substitute for lateral thinking.
This might seem like nit-picking but it is a pointer to a few uncomfortable questions: Why does it take India almost a decade to find a regular specialist Test opening pair? Why did Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif, India8217;s most promising youngsters, have to play 89 and 118 ODIs respectively before they could score their first Test ton? Why is Dravid today the most dependable ODI batsman despite the fact that he needed 34 one-dayers to get his first shorter-version ton?
And, finally, the most pressing contemporary problem. Why, despite being the ICC8217;s Most Promising Player in 2004, is Irfan Pathan not India8217;s pace spearhead in Tests today? It all boils down to the marginalisation of technique in the rapidly shrinking game. New trends are good as long as they don8217;t cover up the flaws in basic requirements.
So what8217;s the way out since, after BCCI has been outvoted by 10-1 at ICC, India has been forced to adopt the latest English off-spring Twenty20? In this case a step-motherly treatment could be the way out. Something that FIFA does to six-a-side indoor football, rugby does its abridged sixes form or NBA8217;s frivolous treatment to the slam-dunk season-ending events. It8217;s should be nothing more a slick promo for the real game.
Performances at Twenty20 should be taken with a pinch of salt. But that is a tall task considering the fact that the advent of the under-lights coloured clothing Challenger Trophy one-dayers has reduced the zonal one-day tournament Deodhar Trophy 8212; a decade after it started in 1973-74 India won the World Cup 8212; to a side-show. Performance in the televised four-game Challenger Trophy carries much more weight than a show in the low-key five-zone league format. Seventeen-year-old Piyush Chawla8217;s wicket of Sachin Tendulkar during the Challenger Trophy got him a Test call. But after he got the Kevin Petiersen treatment during the debut Test, it was realised that the graduation could have waited. Hype around an event at times exaggerates the performance on field. And it8217;s a line that will be tough to draw in India, taking into account a reactionary media and scissor-hand selectors.
This was claimed to be a season of hope at domestic level. The script seemed perfect with the players said to get about Rs 1 lakh per game and a promise of improved conditions at the grassroot level. That was until an 8216;item number8217; was added. Now it is a challenge for the Board to ensure that the crowds don8217;t heads for the door after the much-hyped item number is over.
