For the love of Cricket- Where it all began for us

THE SUPER 90?s

There are moments in every cricket fan’s life that defines the game for him. It can be as irksome as Hershelle Gibbs shelling Steve Waugh’s catch in 1999 WC or as big as India’s neutering of Aussies in their famous 2001 tour to India. My personal pick remains- “In the air,Sreesanth..takes it!!” (the 2007 T20 cup final,if you didn’t get that already). Speaking for the recently-out-of-teens, I have chalked out a list of events that marks the game for us. For us, the action started making sense circa 1997-98. Here is the list of moments which are nothing less than a part of us now:-

1. Indo – Pak rivalry

1997-98 were the times when India used to play a lot of matches versus Pakistan, especially in relatively hostile crowd situations in Sharjah. These were the times when anti-neighbour sentiments used to run high in both the nations. These matches, highly dramatic, were played under lights and to see the action unfold in the hazy transmission of STAR Sports would probably never be matched with anything in the near future.

9 Mar 1996: Venkatesh Prasad of India celebrates with Nayan Mongia after taking the wicket of Aamir Sohail

2. Independence Cup Final (1998)

Chasing a mammoth 314 under lights, with Tendulkar back in the hut, most of the T.V sets in the nation were switched off. But a young man named Hrishikesh Kanitkar had hit a boundary off the second last ball to help India reach a virtually impossible target. With Indians beating a much stronger Pakistan unit, waves of ecstasy and joy gripped the nation.

3. The Tendulkar frenzy

I distinctly remember the times when India without Tendulkar,then just 24, was a nothing team. Tendulkar had brought with him a new breed of aggressive batting, coupled with consistency. A nation like India of that time needed something like that. We started liking, worshipping Tendulkar and he still remains one of the best India has produced. Well, our romance isn’t yet over with the little master with he still serving the nation, at 39.

4. 1999 Semis Aus vs SA

With 9 required of 4 , and with 1 wicket in SA’s hands, the match was pretty much in the Australian kitty. This was just a moment before Klusener decided to rewrite the script and slap the next two of Damien Fleming’s deliveries to the boundary. Everyone knows what happened next. This was supposedly the only non-Indian match that I remember, gave me the chills that time. The Aussies went on to win the World Cup and dominate the next decade.

I personally was amazed by a bowler who used to bowl with his cap on. It used to stand out from the rest, who obviously wore nothing on their heads while bowling. This player was Chris Harris of NZ. Also, players like Ijaz Ahmed and Salim Malik always used to plunder the Indian attack as if they were playing against school boys. I was also amazed by the fact that every other player had his BEST (best performance in a match) against the Indians! Also, If one cares to recall, he’d remember a small inset within the broadcasting frame which showed the batsman running, whenever the ball was hit in the outfield! I wonder why that idea was done away with. One cannot help but remember the eerie Paul Adams bowling action, which continues to be way outside the coaching manual.

Well, most of the things we used to care about bordered obtuseness. But isn’t that what sports is all about? From the outside, it may sometimes look like a mundane game with some games going as long as 5 days, without possibly yielding a result. But to a cricket lover, that’s just a part and parcel of the riveting action he gets to get a doze of, and the sheer excitement is precisely what invokes his passion and love for the game. And Passion, indeed, has a funny little way of its own of trumping logic. Honestly, one cannot, not love cricket!