“Going! Going! Gone!” shouted the auctioneer in a stentorian voice, ringing the gong. “It has gone down”. “Where has it gone? We are here to uphold it. We may be down under. But we are standing on firm ground. We Aussies are no ordinary people.” This was the reverberating reply of no less a person than Ricky Ponting, the Australian skipper. “Remember” continued Ponting “we have earlier won the Tests fifteen times against the world's best teams. India is the sixteenth whom we have vanquished.”

Symbol of life:
“Yes! Yes!” the ordinary Indian lover of the game says, “But it is no longer the gentleman's game. Cricket has survived for so long and has managed to raise its laurels higher and higher. Cricket is not just a game. It is more than that. It is a symbol of life — full of values to be upheld. You, fellows who are down under, how can you uphold those values when you yourselves are down under?”

Perhaps it is a little uncharitable remark but this speaks out the pain and the agony of the cricket - lover who is deeply hurt by the goings on in the Kangaroo land.

Cricket is in a way more than life. It throbs in the minds of crores of people when the game is being played. The viewers on the electronic media are better judges than the umpires. The human eye is often deceptive. Not so the electronic media. People can view every stroke from many angles. The naked eye cannot often say whether the batsman is leg before or not. So also with the catch, whether the bat touched the ball or not and whether the ball had touched the ground before reaching safely the cup of the hands of the fielder. How can the umpire say that he is right and the whole world (except the opposite team members) is wrong?

Battle of bat and ball:
The match, instead of being a thrilling battle between bat and ball, became a question whether umpiring was competent and the players' behaviour was all right. The subject of discussion was not the match itself. To that extent it robbed the game of its exciting moments.

Fair game:
Much discussion is going on in recent years of the efficacy of Test cricket. Many people feel that it is sheer waste of ink and paper to write volumes about this 'fair game'. In their view it is an unfair game. Many so-called sane people have called it the game of stupid people. George Bernard Shaw said long ago that it is a game played by thirteen stupid people and watched by thirteen thousand stupid people.

In those days there were no big stadium accommodating about a crore viewers. It is today a huge business organisation providing entertainment to millions throughout the world and providing jobs to many people. Globalisation can be visualised through the “idiot box” — you can have a peep show of the “one world”. Time zones disappear. A match played in England, Australia or West Indies is watched in the homes of people throughout the world, relaxing in their sofas. There is no question of the exploiter or the exploited!

Success & failure:
Many good writers have written volumes about the game. It is called a gentleman's game. It is gentle yet manly. There is a fight. But no malice! One has to take both success and failure with equanimity. No matter how long you stay on the wicket, you have to play the game well. Any moment you may be declared out and you have to exit with a smile on your face, when thousands thronged on the galleries thunderously applaud and give you a standing ovation. Is this not a bit of life? What else is more rewarding in real life?

But there are many disgruntled people as well as those who want more fun in a shorter duration. “One - Dayers” and “Twenty 20” are no doubt popular but they can hardly replace the Test match, proceeding laboriously over five days. Boredom and discomfort are worth taking.

But there is a great danger staring the cricketing world in the face. As said earlier it is a gentleman's game. Winning or losing is not important. What is needed is that you play the game. Victory should not go into the head and failure should not depress one. One should try always to get the 'form'. Be cheerful, play your strokes well or try to make your opponent surrender his wicket to you. But nothing is lost. Have faith in punarjanma - reincarnation. A cat is said to have nine lives. The cricketer, numberless, as long as he plays well and his admirers continue to admire him. At the end, you call it a day and hang your helmet. That is life. But did the Aussies play the game well? Their own compatriots say 'no'. What more proof do you need?

To clap, you need two hands. You can't clap with one hand. So also cricket. Aussies forgot their opponents are equally efficient and honest. They heaped abuses on the opposite team, often provoking them to reciprocate. When our “Bajji” said something in retaliation, the Aussies cried “foul”. It is racial abuse! How dare you indulge in such blasphemous language on our soil? Be gone with you! “Mr. Umpire! Pronounce your judgment? The referee promptly said, you are damned thrice! Barred from playing three Tests. Our team is thrice blessed.” Then what about the Umpires? We are too pleased to serve you, Aussies! They seemed to say.

The Umpires' word is said to be God's word. It should be so noble. They are not to be prejudiced one way or the other. But they seemed to say, through their acts, that they are not prejudiced in favour of the home team (Aussies) but we will punish these Indians?

Penalised:
Poor fellows! They did not do anything wantonly. Let us throw the dice. Mischief, take what side you like! At least eight times it went against India! But see! Aussies also are penalised four times!

Pre - planned:
But the whole thing was pre - planned, some say. Any way India did not want to play the game, while the other side did not. This injustice must be removed. “We don't play.” The BCCI became furious. ICC is forced to fall in line. The unjust Umpire goes out. Bajji's fate hangs in the balance. The play goes on! This is life!

HSK
Courtesy: Star of Mysore