By the time I'm writing this, many people will be sharpenin' their knives with glinting eyes and intent. Some may recall the past fondly while some may shrug it off and look forward to the future.
But to be sure, there is something indescribably sad and forbidding when a great Sporting empire falls. Make no mistake about that.
Peter Roebuck (the celebrated Cricket Journo whom I admire immensely) wrote " The Australians might lose, but they never lie down." I have never ever doubted that statement until today.
Australia is a fiercely proud Cricketing nation. From ever since I can remember,they played the game hard but fair (at least most of the time). They sledged, bullied and snarled but they had great skills, large hearts and were driven by a collectively unconquerable will to be the best damn Team in the world.
I started following Cricket seriously from '94 and I have seen Australia lose. But, they never went down without one hell of a scrap except a couple of times where they were just overwhelmed by a combination of circumstances. But, they always bounced back and how ?!
The mantle had well and truly passed in '95 when Reiffel,Julian, Waugh et all managed to dethrone the Caribbean Kings from their perch and though SL flickered briefly after the '96 W Cup; Australia were always hovering at the top in both forms of the game and after that epic Semifinal in '99; they pulled away from the rest of the pack.
From '99 to 2007, watching Australia play was an experience in itself. And I'm no Aussie fan either. A couple of blips notwithstanding; Australia played Cricket from the front. They batted with naked aggression and took the game forward and were blessed with two of the greatest bowlers ever to draw breath. Yes, they won a lot but they did it with a lot of flair and panache which made for great viewing.
Its worth one's time to look back at some of the players that made up the team. Langer and Hayden. One a gutsy customer who worked out his game and the other, a big,intimidating guy who hit the ball with an almighty thump. One drop was Punter; the greatest Aussie batsman of his era who pulled,drove and cut with a flamboyance tempered with ruthlessness. The next batsman was the silken Damien Martyn, who was my personal favourite of all the Aussie batters. He was instrumental in Australia winning in SL and India. Stephen Waugh, Gilchrist and the bowlers need no introduction. They were a fearsome, formidable unit.
Those days are gone, the players have left. Only Punter remains, gamely and grimly carrying on the legacy and trying to push the next generation forward with all his might. He neither has the tactical nous of Taylor and the ruthless efficiency and aggression of Waugh but he is still the most successful Captain in history although the halo has already faded away with alarming rapidity of late.
They have lost a game to SL today but they lost it after the opponents were 107 for 8, chasing 240 to win in a ODI game. They lost the Mohali Test but atleast they had Laxman to contend with. Here, they were up against Angelo Mathews (Admittedly, a hugely talented player) and Malinga. So, what's wrong?!
Plenty but that's for another day. I have grown up watching Australia look a close game in the eye and take it by the scruff of its neck. Today, I saw a hesitant Australia groping in the dark and look blindfolded for lost treasure.
It wasn't pretty. The bubble has burst. It is inexplicable but such things are best felt than explained. And it left me strangely subdued and infinitely saddened.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment