India Beats Someone

At last, India beat someone convincingly, with a somewhat large margin. But what a comedown from 1983, when we were absolutely majestic in all matches. including the one with the West Indies-the final. Our current team seems to have an overdose of stars, and that may be its problem. Everyone is a major star, and yet the team falls short of performance when it counts.

A major contrast so far has been Pakistan, with almost unknown names, barring one or two ageing heroes. Just out of a match-fixing scandal involving half their team, and yet, on the field, working as a team. Throwing up surprises, beating the champions reasonably convincingly.

I have no idea why, but I get the feeling that these guys don't prepare well. That they assume they know everything. Like the famous dialogue in The Party, where Peter Sellers, playing an Indian who creates mayhem as an uninvited guest at a Hollywood party, answering a lady who asks him "What do you THINK you are doing?", replies with scorn, "We Indians don't think what we are doing. We KNOW what we are doing.". Well, let's hope these guys know what they are doing. Or find out fast.