Cricket and The Others(Sport)

These days you come across any Indian media be it on air, online or print the one news you probably will not miss is Cricket. Thanks to Indian Cricket success at the world cup this may well have reached all time heights surpassing even the CWG drama. With all the flashy, latest news, latest interviews and expert opinions the public is constantly bombarded with gigabytes of information making it difficult to decipher even by its standards. My twitter time line is flooded with #WC2011 tag, my FB page is decorated with ‘Bleed Blue’ badges. Contrary I haven’t seen any in-depth articles on the ongoing Miami Masters, where Indian Express Lee-Hesh won the finals. Team India has become synonymous with Indian cricket team where it could have as well mean Indian Hockey team or Soccer team. Take the blame media.

Cricket is a religion in India and there are many priests than it can accommodate. It doesn’t need any resources for the game to flourish. The BCCI already announced cash prizes for the players. There was no real need for the respective states to announce cash prizes from the tax payer’s money. Delhi govt just blown 6 crores, 2 for capt and 4 Cr for their state players. Some people getting land from the state governments and this is just the tip of the iceberg and more is yet to come. The same mistake is done over and over again; concentrating the entire money in Cricket and giving the other games peanuts or in some cases worse than that. Celebrity endorsements make the matter worse. Its really hurts when you see a CWG medal winner getting a clerical job with the Railways where as a cricket player linked to match fixing and selling the country ends up winning an MP seat.

This country cannot produce finest athletes if the current situation prevails. It can never give a Roger Federer (at least Hewitt) or Pele or Phelps. It cannot rest on the past laurels (read Sachin). Today if I ask a kid to explain cricket to a person of non-cricket playing nation he can easily be a substitute for ‘cricket for dummies’ book. Yet if I ask him the number of players in hockey or soccer he may put an apologetic face.

I wonder where were Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi at the time of recent National Games or last years Hockey world cup. Didn’t they have the moral obligation to attend the match? It’s just 1hour game after all unlike cricket. To make things easier it was held in Delhi and they could have easily squeezed it in their busy schedule. They could have made a difference with their presence. While the PM was too busy to attend the National games he not only visited cricket world cup but also invited his Pak counterpart. Bias I say. In fact India Sports Ministry is a farce. The ministry should make it compulsory that at least 10% of the sponsorship money cricket gets should be diverted to the other sports. Traditional media should be made to limit cricket coverage and increase other sports coverage. The onus is on the government to make other sports popular. Conducting a CWG event once in 2 decades doesn’t help other games to flourish.

With all due respect to cricket and Indian cricket team, I would prefer an Olympic gold to Cricket world cup. I understand that I would be chastised for making this statement and I am speaking only for a minority of people but as a person who believes in the overall health of the country’s sports future I am left with nothing but to make this statement. Nothing wrong in aspiring to win cricket world cup or excelling in that sport. Things would have been much better if Cricket success and other sports success are not mutually exclusive.

P. S: I am proud that India won the world cup. But if this is at the cost of other sports then I may have to feel less proud.