Indian cricket: Stagnant and seeking answers for the most delusional questions

Another emphatic win to celebrate, new heroes to go gaga about and the old warhorses seemingly getting blurred in the rear-view mirror – but that’s how it remains until the next game. And mind you, that’s not ruthlessness or hypocrisy up for an exhibition, but an indifferent journey of transition which affects every one adhered to Indian cricket these days. Scaling new benchmarks on one day and getting outplayed on the other, the unofficial national game of the country is now a few footsteps into that tedious travail that lets you contemplate and find your own character. However, for now, all we have is an anchored ship that’s withstanding pressure and is reflecting anything but promise.

With fabled stalwarts leaving the building on a high (most of them!), the prodigious artists have huge boots to fill. What’s more baffling is that the trendsetters of the Indian bandwagon – the likes of Sehwag, Gambhir and Zaheer Khan have all chosen the most unfortunate time to showcase their mortality.

Consecutive away series losses were sensed as worrying issues, but not alarming enough. Come December and we fell flat on our bums on our home turf – unusual, isn’t it? What next? Blame every possible facet of the Indian game. Oh wait! That’s not working. Then lambaste the captain for being defensive with his tactics; so what if he was unorthodox and ‘effective’ when we won! Who cares now? Wait! It’s still not enough. Why not call for some immediate changes now that we have nothing more to lose – and the circus goes on! Surprisingly, this one has no stopping though; just a few commercials and the occasional breaking news interruptions. And if that’s not enough, then be a pretentious spammer on the social media channels and make things go borderline bizarre so that the BCCI would come up with some knee-jerk reactions (read inexplicable squad shuffle) to silence the over-the-top clattering.

However, in the midst of all that, clichés like ‘the game is the real loser’ regain their righteous place as fans of this cricket crazy nation, which is predominantly stuffed with a league of part-time irrational critics, forget what they cherish the most – supporting their beloved national side!

Yet, I’m not saying that all of the issues are made up to boost the TRPs. Problems persists in the Indian side, but there are solutions for them that would take some time to make an impact. When the form of any side is crumbling, one has to point a finger to the leader of the pack to provide reasonable clarifications and MSD has never been undeterred by any of the questions raised. He, to be fair, has been doing what he does best – leading his side by example – yet, a side which is now raised from the foundation level, expects more from him.

Leadership in the modern era of sports has been largely restricted to a facet of motivating by example while the classic prototype of an ideal director is documented by a rather diverse set of attributes. When we compare the likes of Dhoni or Cook to a Lloyd, Chappell, Pataudi or even Cronje for that matter, then the current league of captains fall way short of the primary requirements of being a formidable captain. Great units from the past were defined by their on-field decision makers, who demanded more from the team and assumed a larger share of responsibility for the team’s performance levels. The evaluation pointers for the captain on the field may have not changed much in the past few decades, yet the impression of an individual’s ideas on the collective objective is a thing of past.

Dhoni, by the look of the tasks ahead, is still the best option we have to manage the needed decorum in the side, but he has to realize that spinners are no longer cunning like Kumble to devise a well-knit plan for the game, nor he has the best batting order (at least on paper!) to boast about any more. He will need to talk his way through to ensure that key sub-plots in winning a game are all in place. He remains as the punching bag, a lone warrior for the side but he will also have to become a caring guardian for the youngsters and more of an effervescent motivator for the seasoned campaigners in the unit.

Moreover, the side will now need to focus on the near objectives, as shaping a side would only give us the much needed impetus when we look towards the next World Cup. India needs a constant pool of 20-odd players to deliver for them regularly in the upcoming couple of seasons, if we’re hoping for a steady revival in the way we play. Considering we have another 15 Tests to play until the end of 2014, I’d rather bestow Dhoni with an opportunity to build a team from the scratch – not because he deserves the amount of time but because nobody else has the demeanour to take all the criticism and still reflect unwavering perseverance, day in day out.

The fact that transitions will never have anything to do with redirection as it solely thrives on the motives of collective rejuvenation, is still something every quadrant of the game needs to understand. With the prima donnas and demigods all moving back to their hut after years of sacrifices in delivering the right goods for the country, it’s time we move on from the phase of self-doubt and scepticism to back the laboured efforts of a team that for a change, will only have mortals in it.