Because they can

There must be a million ways to honour men and women for success. The form and content of the honour depend more often than not on the honourer than the honouree. In all likelihood,our cricketers who just became top-notch in the ICCs test rankings will not complain. But then why does it seem theres perhaps something unspeakably flashy about the BCCIs decision to bestow a Rs 25 lakh cash award on each member of that formidable team and Rs 10 lakh to each support staff and selection committee member?

Because the BCCI could have rewarded the players and the selectors,et al,for choosing them in a million different ways. Indias cricket board of riches unparalleled in the cricketing world would not have gone about the business like the veritable town-crier if they did not find themselves overwhelmed by their own wealth and sense of self-importance. Because we can seems to be the BCCIs self-justification in this as in other cases. To not make a mistake,there is nothing wrong with monetary awards per se. But it is the dangling of that money before the cricketers that is abhorrent. Whats more,it almost deprecates Team Indias feat. After all,were the boys not merely doing their job? And were they not always,at least in the boards estimation,capable of being number one?

Rightfully,the reality check came from the captain of the team,M.S. Dhoni,himself: it was a dream come true,but the boys try to play every match well while the ratings take care of themselves. Indeed,standing on the top of the world today is the result of the effort and application of the last year and a half. Do reward the boys for their spectacular success,but dont make a spectacle of them!