When the No. 1 ranked team in the world got thrashed by the English at home, it was disappointing for billions in India. But we never wrote them off. It was just considered an off-season. A nightmare which lasted for two months. We tried defending them with the little positives that were left from the tour. Blamed the IPL once more. We called them over to the land they had colonized once and chased them off yet again. We even tried erasing the past with the hopes of that elusive century and that brutal double-century. Things were back to normal. At least on paper and in our hopes.
Then the mind games for the trip Down under began. Touted as the easiest Australian team ever, articles started getting published on how we will be beating them. Whether we would win 3 or 4 test matches? Whether Dravid would score a century first and then he and Sachin score centuries together in the next to bring up the half-century and century of centuries. I am using the word 'centuries' as much as possible now just as a reminder to the Indian team about it's existence.
Losing the first three test matches to THIS Australian team? Seriously? This is not the India I know. I have kept on supporting India in its growing phases, in all their defeats in the 90s and hoped that one day all these struggles will end. We would build on the failures to become a strong team. When Dravid, Laxman and Harbhajan turned the Kolkata match on it's head and won it, I thought yes these men have it in them to go and beat the world. When Sachin Tendulkar kept on making all our dreams come true by producing centuries after centuries, I knew it was only a matter of time before we performed as a team and dominated this sport. With able leadership from Ganguly and Kumble we strode on to successes never even expected of. Beating England, Australia, South Africa and the West Indies in their home turf we climbed onto the podium. But instead of standing there, we just tumbled down. All the hard work of the past 15 years just washed down the drain with the past 7 away tests.
3 of the men who are responsible for bringing India this close are still there. One has never been criticized. One went through the toughest 2 years of his career to give us a few good moments of the England tour and the other, the relatively low-profile one has his head on the guillotine now, the blade about to fall. But come to think of it. We are back playing the same old blame game. Yes, we call them Gods and Legends, but these humans have done more than their part. In the past 15 years India has achieved whatever that could have been achieved since cricket started and THAT is because of these three and a few more who have ended their careers.
At Kolkata in 2001, Dravid and Laxman were just 5 years old in cricket. And in test cricket that is still childhood. Harbhajan was barely out of his teens when he got the hat-trick. Such was determination of the young India that Ganguly could build together an ambitious team. Today, Sehwag is almost as experienced as the big 3. Gambhir, Yuvraj, Dhoni and Ishant are 4-5 years into test cricket. Kohli has shown that he is more matured than his age. And the Indian team itself is in a much better state than we were back in 2001. Yet we couldn't compete with a less-stronger Australian team let alone defeating them. What we used to expect of Sachin in the 90s is being done of him, Dravid and Laxman these days. The team is dependent on these three and on Zaheer to a lesser extent.
This is exactly the stage for Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj, Kohli, Sharma, Dhoni and Ishant to put up their hands up and say 'Yes I can carry this team forward'. I would love to see one of the youngsters ask the seniors if they could bat in their positions, just like Sachin asking Azharuddin if he could open. May be a Pujara asking Dravid if he could walk in at one-down or a Kohli asking Sachin if he can bat at No. 4.
Instead the responsibility is still on the Big three and the criticism too! If the youngsters are waiting for them to retire, it will bring us back to square one. Their careers a waste for Indian cricket. Their achievements only personal. I don't want to see a Kolkata once more. Instead repeat Multan, Jo'burg, Headingley or Adelaide! Or make new grounds as famous as these!
I used to say Sehwag and Gambhir are the most dangerous opening pair in the world not because of their batting but that their dismissal brought to the crease the best batsmen in the world. Now it's time they become dangerous on their own. And the middle order learns to stay on their feet.
So much said, there is one more chance for salvaging some pride in the Adelaide test. Youngsters play or not, Sachin, Dravid and Laxman just this once more. Before you separate, make me nostalgic. Please!
