Preachers Everywhere, Doers Nowhere

Punjab skipper Vikram Rathour had a prayer on his lips when he went out for toss in a Ranji super-league match against the Railways at Karnail Singh Stadium, New Delhi, last Monday.

He wished the coin rolled in his favour. A mere look at the pitch was enough to convince him that winning the toss was not only the battle half-won, but thoroughly won.

The wicket was dry, powdery, bald and devoid of grass. It seemed that grass had never grown thereon. In short, underprepared for a contest wherein the Railways wanted an outright win and Punjab only a first-innings lead to qualify for the knock-out round. Batsmen knew that their survival was difficult; seamers also knew that they were superfluous; but spinners knew that they were the ones in demand.

 

The Railways were aware that they could qualify only by making a mockery of a sporting track. They were just unprepared to look beyond their immediate gains. In modern cricketing parlance, it is not called greed, but strategy. Had not India resorted to such spinner-friendly tracks to register victories during the Azharuddin-Wadekar era ---in the early and mid-90's?

Consequently, the Railways packed their squad with as many as four slow men, with Test left-arm spinner Murali Kartik as their key. It was sheer luck that cricketing gods were on Punjab's side that day. Punjab won the toss. And with it the match -- more or less. They batted resolutely and then their spinners exploited the conditions better than their rivals to emerge victors by an innings. A classic case of being hoist with one's own petard!

And for heaven's sake, don't blame the Railways for underpreparing the wicket, their only hope of making it to the quarter-finals. What they did was just a reflection -- sad and sickening though ---of the conduct of our domestic cricket. Any other host association, too, would have done the same in similar circumstances --- making tracks to suit them.

No wonder, quantity has blanked out quality in our domestic competitions. We get only a distorted image, wherein weakness appears strength and minnows look giants. More of Vijay Bharadwajs, Jacob Martins or Hrishikesh Kanitkars than Mohinder Amarnaths, Gundappa Vishwanaths, Bishan Bedis or Sunil Gavaskars!

It is only when India go abroad, they realise that they are as underprepared against Australia or South Africa as their pitches at home. It is only when they are battered and bruised there, they realise that something is rotten with their domestic cricket. Then alone do they wake up to the need for effecting drastic changes.

However, the humiliation hurts them only momentarily. They soon forget that they were ever disgraced. Forgetting is Indian cricket's vital characteristic. Recall how from a panwallah to a BCCI official and from an uninitiated to a cricket expert reacted when India had been having one nightmare after another on the recent Australia tour! And everybody seemed to have a solution to India's multiple problems.

The Board woke up -- it always wakes up after a calamity. 'Prepare sporting tracks', 'make domestic cricket more competitive', 'revamp the entire domestic system', gushed forth the gems of advice. Days passed, voices turned into whispers. Months passed, whispers turned into silence. The Australian nightmare will soon be forgotten, if it has not been forgotten so far.

Everybody has done his duty --uttering big words, but shunning deeds. The chasm between words and deeds has been growing day by day. It's good to have a grounds and pitches committe, of which former Test opener K Srikkanth is the chairman, but better to make it work. Or will it wait till another international nightmare ?

Sporting tracks can wait, remarked Indian coach Kapil Dev before the recent Test series against South Africa. No harm in preparing wickets to suit us. In other words, slow turners to suit our spinners.

India did the same, but were still humiliated, this time in own backyard, as South Africa won the first Test at Mumbai in three days and the second at Bangalore in four days and one hour to ruin India's record of not losing a home series in 13 years. Kapil was right when he said sporting wickets should be made for domestic tournaments first, Tests later.

Again, don't blame the Railways. They did what India have been doing for a long time. Theirs is not the only stadium which boasts of an unsporting track in the country. There are many of its ilk, requiring drastic changes in their character. Who will change them?

Who, if not the Board? If it is not firm and serious, domestic cricket will remain in doldrums. And so will Indian cricket. Not only Vikram Rathour, but others, too, will have a similar prayer on their lips when they go out for a toss.

But, rest assured, cricketing gods will never answer India captains' prayers when they go out for a toss abroad.