India did exactly what was being feared. They surrendered in the fifth and final One-day International at the Eden Park, Auckland, almost in the same fashion as their predecessors used to do when least expected to be at the receiving end.
New Zealand, besides other less fancied oppositions, have been the beneficiaries whenever the Indians have opted to be in this mode and they benefited once more when Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men decided to emulate their predecessors.
India’s shocking display, after having dominated the earlier four ODIs, must have broken the hearts of the large number of their supporters who had gathered at the Eden Park in anticipation of another cracking performance from them.
The Eden Park in Auckland was presenting the look of Little India as there were more Indian supporters at the ground than the local ones. They had braved the weather for quite sometime and they were delighted when the match finally got underway.
The Indians have had the habit of obliging the non-entities and this time Jesse Ryder of all people was allowed to become the bowling hero for New Zealand. It must have stunned the followers of the game generally but there was hardly any element of surprise for those who have been familiar with the Indian cricket.
There was nothing in the pitch to cause an alarm for the champion Indian batsmen. The ball was doing a bit but that is quite usual on the New Zealand pitches. The form in which the Indian batsmen were in, all they needed was to get their eyes in and resume business.
It has been a common sight in Indian cricket over the years. They have passed the impression of throwing away matches against weaker oppositions. They have done it once more.
Even Dhoni’s men who are being compared with the great West Indian team of the 1980s for possessing enormous depth in every department of the game have failed to immunize themselves from this disease. They have been doing it less frequently than what one had seen in the past but they need to do away with this practice if they have to accomplish the goal of becoming the number one team in the world.
The movers and shakers of the Indian cricket, it seems, don’t feel hurt or concerned by the shocking results. By the look of things they don’t mind their team losing a few games once in a while.
What they fail to take into the account is the fact that the Indian cricket team has the biggest fan following in the world who feel down and shaken by the heartbreaking performance of their stars.
