the truth will remain the truth]I just watched Sania's second round match at the US open (that she won 6-3, 7-5), and my whole family was rejoicing- literally shouting, and prancing around- all the exhaustion of the day forgotten. Now, just about twenty minutes later, everybody is trying to find an excuse to get to bed early- and tempers are flying all over the place. The reason? Just a flick of the remote control away. The Indian Cricket team in England. Enough said.
Tomorrow, the papers are probably going to carry a whole page of articles on what the Indian team could have done better-- and Sania will find all of one article for herself later on in the sports section. Why? Why isn't a milestone win by an upcoming player not enough to overshadow a loss by a team (that's been doing pretty poorly anyway!) from the same country? Would the responses have been the same, had it been the other way round? Probably not. Why? One word. Cricket. Or our near-obsession with the game, and all involved in it. In fact, I admit I am one of the crowd too...
But today changed a 
few things... Or probably the last few months did. Sania's continued rise in International tennis has been drawing quite a bit of attention as of late, and it makes me wonder, of she deserves more attention than she is getting. Most would argue otherwise. I mean, afterall, we do know what each of her t-shirts say (Including the headline-grabbing "well-behaved women seldom make history"), and her faster-than-my-forehand cheeky replies have been perfect fodder for the gossip-seekers (On being asked recently what she thought of her opponents having a game plan to attack her weak backhand, her quick reply was "Well, they must be repenting bitterly!")
few things... Or probably the last few months did. Sania's continued rise in International tennis has been drawing quite a bit of attention as of late, and it makes me wonder, of she deserves more attention than she is getting. Most would argue otherwise. I mean, afterall, we do know what each of her t-shirts say (Including the headline-grabbing "well-behaved women seldom make history"), and her faster-than-my-forehand cheeky replies have been perfect fodder for the gossip-seekers (On being asked recently what she thought of her opponents having a game plan to attack her weak backhand, her quick reply was "Well, they must be repenting bitterly!")But here are a few reasons Sania is clearly more deserving than the Indian Cricket team:
1. She is young. And she has a whole career ahead of her. Unlike the Cricket team, where most of the players that actually seem to be performing today are almost certainly not even going to be around for the next World Cup!
2. She has fought her way to the top. She has seen the worst. She has creeped up the ranking- top three hundred, top hundred, top seventy, top fifty, and now- the top thirty. A Cricket player, on the other hand, finds him name being chanted by the entire nation just for making it to the team. Instant popularity!
3. She is fit. She works hard on the court. Runs around with grit, and determination. Fighting for every point with her all. While her counterparts treat the cricket ball like a hot potato on the field- and desperately need a dictonary that actually has words like 'fitness', and 'team spirit', and 'hard work'.
4. She improves with every game- and certainly every season. The difference in her game from the time she last peaked in 2005, and right now, is remarkable- to say the least. She seems to go from strength-to-strength, converting even her weaknesses into her strengths. The Indian Cricket story is, on the other hand, a sad saga of not learning from ones mistakes, and relying wholly on one's strengths...
5. She is aggressive. Both on- and off-court. On court, her strength lies in attacking her opponent- pushing them in a corner. And even when she's not at the top of her game, she manages to intimidate the person on the other side of the net. Her counterparts, seem to take
the adage 'Cricket is a gentleman's game way' too seriously though- whether it be in our passive strike rates, or our generosity with runs on the field, or even the kindness with which we return favours- dropping catches that are gift-wrapped and sent into our hands... Oh no! We are too gentlemanly to become all aggressive!
the adage 'Cricket is a gentleman's game way' too seriously though- whether it be in our passive strike rates, or our generosity with runs on the field, or even the kindness with which we return favours- dropping catches that are gift-wrapped and sent into our hands... Oh no! We are too gentlemanly to become all aggressive!Basically, Sania represents India. And its aspirations. The youngest country in the world-on the threshold of great success. Aggressive, smart, determined. Wanting to take on new challenges everyday with renewed vigor. Not relying on past greatness to see it through...
Maybe the Indian Cricket Team needs a well-deserved break from the limelight-- and maybe, if that happens, I'll be writing a blogpost a few years down the line asking people to notice the new cricket team... (wow! That'll be some day!)
But until then... Chak De! Sania!!
1 comment:
well written!
But I wouldnt ahve agreed with you till a few days ago. I always thought Sania got a lot more attention than she deserved. But now she has proved me wrong by climbing up to rank 26.
But though her attitude stinks she's better than the entire cricket team put together!
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