Times have changed since the first World Cup was played in England but there are some basic things which haven’t changed in cricket. Whether it was, the West Indies of 70’s, 1983 World Cup winning Indian team, the invincible Aussies, World Cup winning squad of Pakistan in 1992,Ranatunga's world beaters of 1996 or the latest crowned Champion India, all these teams have one thing in common-It is the team effort rather than the individual performances that helped them write history. When India won its first World Cup title, nobody expected them to beat the mighty West Indies. Simply for the reason that when compared with the then West Indies side, India was no match. As Pakistani legend Imran Khan said in an interview recently, “Each West Indian bowler was a match winner in his own rights, and to topple that side was a huge achievement in itself for India, in 1983 world cup.” Come 2011 the cricket has undergone a sea change and so has Indian cricket. Krishnamachari Shrikanth’s aggression has been taken over by Virender Sehwag, for whom if the ball is there to be hit, nobody on earth can stop him from having a go. Sunil Gavaskar’s theory of waiting for the loose ball till the end of one’s life paved way for Sachin’s mastery of making even the good balls seem ordinary. However, it is not your aggressive and classy batting prowess that only wins you the pressure cooker games in the knock out stages of the tournament. Had it been so India would have won its second World Cup before 2011, as it has been the leading batting side in the world cricket for quite some time now. Ask experts and they would say only batting is not enough and it hasn’t been really the batting that has won the host country its world cup. The success story has other characters and their roles which make for a good hit at the office. This game is about hunting in pairs whether it is batting, bowling or the most important area that can steal the victory out of the jaws of defeat-the fielding in pairs. And the most noteworthy improvement, in this Indian side is its fielding, that proved to be the decisive factor in deciding the outcome of the semi final and the final of the ICC 2011 world Cup. If you are a good fielding unit your bowlers and team on the whole have a feel good factor going for them. The little efforts here and there in the field keep the side pumped up, and take the pressure off, from the team itself. On the other hand Pakistan is a classic example of what poor fielding could do to your side. Six drop catches in the semi final meant Pakistan dropping the World Cup for its arch rivals. Unfortunately, for Pakistan they don’t have such great bowlers anymore in their ranks, who would take wickets with their lethal in-swinging Yorkers. The fast bowling pair of deadly Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis would demolish the sides despite their poor fielding but the reason was that the majority of their dismissals would have no contribution from fielders; they would either be leg before the wicket or clean bowled, with their stumps rattled over. But how long could Pakistan afford to keep the 9 players out of business. Many people were too harsh in criticizing Afridi for his defensive fielding setting, in semi final against India. But to be fair to Afridi even if you have 10 fielders around your bat, they should be able to take one catch or catch the flight back to home. On the other hand Indian players took all their catches in big games and proved to be the deserving winners. What is fascinating about this current Indian team is the way each player contributes for the success of the entire outfit. Gone are the days when you would have Sachin’s master class saving the day for India and his early exit from the crease would mean curtains for Indian team. Although Yuvraj was Man of the tournament but how much did he contribute with the bat in the high voltage semi final against Pakistan? Or for that matter, being consistent throughout the tournament the great Sachin Tendulkar missed out in the all important final. But Mahendra Singh Doni to whom largely goes the credit of making birds of the same feather flock together came to the party in the finals and played perhaps the innings of his life. When Sehwag and Sachin got out, some fans panicked lest the departure of gods of cricket to the dressing room could mean doomsday for the Indian team. But Gautam Gambhir’s steely resolve was on display on the world stage as he partnered first Virat Kohli and then M.S.Dhoni to keep the Indian team in the hunt. M.S.Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh came together for the fifth wicket partnership to deprive Sri Lanka of its second World Cup title. Bowling has always been the concern of Indian cricket but the likes of Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh coming to party in the crunch games made Mahi’s job much easier. Indian batting has over the years, found many admirers. Bowling has been a poor match to it, but the fielding has been a revelation at least in this world cup. India’s victory is an example for all those teams which dream of winning the World Cup that, in order to make your dream come true you have to address all three areas of game and most importantly your fielding. Championship calls for combining together as a unit and hunting in pairs. In a nutshell it is a team game and it is the team that than wins, cricket gods can win you one or two matches not the World Cup, which needs 11 human beings sweating it out together, on the day. If you could do that the world is yours.
(Feedback at altaftake1@gmail.com)

Lastupdate on : Mon, 4 Apr 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 4 Apr 2011 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 5 Apr 2011 00:00:00 IST