Superstitions and the Indian Cricket Fan

Indian Cricket is full of famous superstitions; there is Jimmy Amarnath who always used to carry a red handkerchief with him while fielding, Sachin Tendulkar who always wears his left pad first and in the famous game in which Kumble took 10 wickets – Sachin took Kumble’s sweater and cap and handed it to the umpire before the start of every over. But all these eccentricities pale in comparison to the Indian Cricket fan.

The Indian cricket fan has perfected the art of watching a match. He/she knows exactly where to sit during the match so that India wins, how to sit to get the batsman to hit a six, how to sit to get someone out etc. Vaastu experts would probably be mystified by most of us. The strange part here is that if you approached these fans in normal everyday life and asked them “Are you superstitious?” the answer would probably be a resounding “No”. But then again, cricket is a religion here, and like every religion it has its own set of rules made up by the devotees. From conducting prayers and poojas to ensure Indian victory to putting hexes on opposition bowlers, Indian fans have done it all.

In my group of friends, we have our own beliefs regarding matches. One person claims that every match in which he misses watching the first delivery is lost by India. Another believes that if a wicket falls with the score at 49, 99, 149, 199 etc. that team will lose the match. There is one guy in our group who is not allowed to watch the match if it is getting close because we consider him a bad omen for the Indian team, and so on. This got really ridiculous when we forced a person to watch the last hour of the first ODI against Sri Lanka (the one in which they almost chased down 415) standing up. This was because he got up to have a drink of water, and at that exact time Dilshan got out thus triggering an Indian revival.

I am sure every group of Indian fans has their own set of idiosyncrasies developed for watching cricket. Why do we do this? Do we honestly believe that our actions from hundreds, or even thousands, of miles away will impact the outcome of the game? I would have answered, but the days play in the India-Bangladesh test match is about to begin, and I need to reclaim my seat if India are to win.