Can we wait till the last ball is bowled?
“It ain’t over till its over” says one of Hollywood’s most-loved actors—-Slyvester Stallone in the evergreen Rocky movie. Well, the reactions that I witnessed as the last Indian wicket fell at Lord’s were that of a mix of anger, outrage and amusement. It did not take long for the British media (some Indian ones too!) to lambast this Indian side and garland the hosts for a victory in the first match of the four-match series. Agreed, the visitors were a shadow of themselves but to worship the No.3 side as if they won the series itself is still a far-fetched thought if you ask me.
The Poms could still win the series 4-0; steamroll the Indian side into submission, but to showcase some restraint in awarding the result before the bout is over is what the situation demands.
As a writer, I am often struggling in my day today life….searching for a meaning in life…making a sentence out of the million thoughts that keep bombarding my mindset. I have learnt to not award the result after just the first over is bowled. It may fetch the bowling side a few wickets or the batting side some runs, but to announce the result of the match irrespective of the opponents in action is something which I would refrain from.
Sans Zaheer Khan and a few more on the injured list, it is going to be a struggle for the M.S. Dhoni-led side. It surely is a struggle to maintain a top-spot and if the Indian are sit atop for a long time in Tests, then we don’t need more Zaheer or Sachins, but players who can step up the gas and get themselves counted.
The likes of Abhinav Mukund, Suresh Raina will have to shrug their limited-over players’ tag quickly and get into the Test mode. A tough game against Somerset should have been a wake-up call but guess; we are pretty poor in even reading the weather.
The second Test at Trentbridge could be a different ball-game and India might script a sensational fightback or England could continue to maintain their momentum, but till the last ball is bowled, lets just shut up and stop writing obituaries please.
As Ravi Shastri says, its not over till the last ball is bowled. Couldn’t agree more!
nice post