Skip to main content

The day the cup was lost!

As a sports fan, I have endured countless debacles over the last few decades. I still remember the Indian Cricket Team collapsing like a pack of cards in the 96' World Cup semi-final, can recall Dhanraj Pillay's tears when India lost a medal chance by a whisker in the 2000 Olympics, still dwell upon what would have happened if Saurav Ganguly elected to bat first instead of putting Australia in on a flat track in the 2003 Final and still find it hard to digest Andy Roddick's ultra narrow loss to Roger Federer in the 2009 Wimbledon Final. Every hurt is different, some fade away with time and some live on, only to flare up every time a similar incident happens.

A devasted Mithali Raj along with Harmanpreet Kaur 

Today those hurts of the past flared up again when an inexperienced but talented Indian team lost to an English team resembling a well oiled machinery. This was not just any match it was the World Cup Final and it was a final we were winning. As someone who had the misfortune of seeing the last 45 minutes of the match, I saw India tumble from a position of strength at 191/3 to 219 All Out. Years dumb your reactions, as a kid tears would swell up in my eyes whenever my favorite teams or players would lose. But as a grown up who has seen several ups and downs, I merely stared at the monitor with a poker face wondering what was going on in the minds of those poor girls who gave it their all only to be denied at the final step.

As a kid I never understood what hurt me most about a defeat. Today I know, more than the loss what hurts the most is seeing the dreams of athletes (you care so much about) turning to dust. What we fans feel is nothing compared to what the women of the Indian Cricket team feel at this present moment. Until a month ago I didn't even know that the cricket world cup for women was around the corner, until a fortnight ago I only knew the names of three players on the Indian team and today's match was only one of a handful of women's matches I had seen in the last decade. Now contrast my hurt to that of the Indian captain for whom this is probably the last world cup. Mithali Raj, the captain of the Indian Team and one of the foremost batters in the world spent the better part of the last decade and a half educating people like me about the power of the women's game and yet she doesn't get to walk away into the sunset with the trophy she so richly deserves.

Life is not fair and many times sport is not fair. V.V.S. Laxman for all his talent never played in a world cup, Ivan Lendl as great as a tennis player he was never won the Wimbledon, Milkha Singh the fastest middle distance runner of his time doesn't have a single Olympic medal next to his name. The fact that Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami might never have a world cup to their names pains me but there is one universal truth that gives me solace. Champions are not always defined by the titles they hold, the legacy they leave behind and the way they played their game would linger longer in public memory than the titles they won.

As an Indian, I would have loved to see India win the World Cup. While that didn't happen, I would still like the contributions of these brave women to never be forgotten. Yes, this team deserves tons of kudos for the way they played all throughout this tournament.  They came from nowhere and they had a legitimate crack at the biggest prize in cricket. Victory eluded them by a whisker but they gave their heart out. That's how I would like to remember this day where the cup was lost. As for Mithali and Jhulan my heart would always feel a certain pinch knowing that they haven't ticked the World Champion column but the sting of the pinch would always subside with the knowledge that these ladies have left legendary legacies for an entire nation to emulate.

Until Next Time,

Yours Hopefully,
J.J. Chaitanya

Comments

Popular Posts

Zamarrud Theatre Hyderabad

More than two decades ago a 5 year old boy (yours truly) found himself in Abids which was certainly then the microcosm of Hyderabad. Abids in the 80s <Courtesy: OkaTeluguAbbayi > The occasion was a family outing to Zamarrud Cinema. And we are stepping out for not just any movie my friends, my parents decided that nothing less than the Raj Kapoor blockbuster Chori Chori was good enough for us. To be honest I wasn't exactly enthused about watching a black and white film of a bygone era even though the movie had all the credentials of a classic. But that was before I saw Zamarrud, the theatre where the movie was being played. Nested in the heart of Abids, Zamarrud was the perfect amalgamation of Hyderabad's old world charm and new fangled ways. Zamarrud was not just any theatre, it was one of the first air conditioned halls in Hyderabad, a premiere cinema hall which used to host the best of what the film industry had to offer and the place to go for Hyderabad...

A walk along the Ocean - Stanley Park Seawall

On a bright May afternoon I found myself on the Stanley Park Seawall in Vancouver facing the Pacific Ocean . This was the ocean hike that I was most looking forward to. Now before I go any further you might ask me. What is the Seawall? There you go, the picture below should answer your question very well šŸ‘‡ Stanley Park Seawall (Courtesy: Tourism Vancouver) How did I get there?  Simple via public transport ( TransLink ). In front of me was a 10 KM hike right next to the Pacific Ocean and I was grossly unprepared (didn't even have a bottle of water with me). But water or no water I wasn't about to back out from exploring this beautiful waterfront trail . My first pit stop allowed me to take in the sights of Vancouver downtown along with the  docks . Vancouver Downtown Vancouver docks and the Pan Pacific Hotel Pan Pacific Hotel from the top (Courtesy: BC Ferries Vacations) The next sight to behold my attention was the 100 year old Brockton P...

Mahabharata by C.Rajagopalachari

There are books which you read and then there are books which make you read them and change your life. Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari's (Rajaji's) Mahabharata belongs to the latter category. Mahabharata introduced me to the joy of reading books as a kid and today I couldn't have picked a better topic for my 25th post. I cannot describe what a pleasure and honor it is to extol the virtues of this classic book during this holy festive season of  Makar Sankranti . Mahabharata by C.Rajagopalachari The story of Mahabharata is as old as the mountains and has been retold several times. Mahabharata by Rajaji however stands out in my mind because here is a story which is spiritual yet not religious, is thought provoking yet not preachy, is compelling yet not tedious. The story left an indelible impression upon me for several reasons which are: Rajaji uses extremely simple language to convey some of the finer aspects of the saga. I was 10 years old when I read Mahabharata ...

Salar Jung Museum

Some roads you choose and some roads choose you. On a rainy Saturday afternoon the road led me to Salar Jung museum , the crown jewel of Hyderabad's vintage glory. The monument (Credits: Wikipedia) I had visited Salar Jung musuem before but I couldn't pass up on the chance to revel in history and marvel at the collection of one Mir Yousuf Ali Khan, Salar Jung III . The Man As soon as I entered the main block (the museum has 3 separate blocks) a sense of familiarity guided me through the maze of rooms and I was immediately lost in the lap of history. The only thing missing was a Salar Jung museum app(most museums in the west already have apps) which I could have easily downloaded from the Play Store . The app in turn would have laid out the map of the museum before me, guided me through various rooms and would have also given me an audio commentary for some important exhibits. The technology constraint notwithstanding I spent more than half a day at the museum an...

The Magic of Silence! Quote

Stay Motivated, J.J. Chaitanya