Less than 24 hours before the World T20 kick-off, a top Indian player, before his net-session, cornered a reporter with a soft, whispered inquiry. “Is it just me or … the buzz is missing this time, isn’t it?” The answer to that question has been blowing in the rather tepid WorldT20 breeze around the nation. For once India isn’t talking up their team that is ironically the clear favourite to win this World T20 at home and even the players are missing the hype. And this isn’t a complaint.
Too distracted, the fans aren’t their usual self nor in Cup-mode. Mustafizur Rahman, Shah Rukh Khan, Mohsin Naqvi, Shahbaz Sharif, Jay Shah, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, BCB, PCB, BCCI have been crowding their minds for months, pushing Suryakumar Yadav, and his gang of proven match-winners, to the margins. This is a new head space for fans. Never before has this easily excitable cricket-mad nation — hosts of countless ICC extravaganzas — been this indifferent about its team. It’s a shocking plot twist. But again, this isn’t a complaint.
Since the time, India got the hosting rights of the World Cup in 1987, it has unfailingly whipped up frenzy, gone unreasonably parochial, justifiably patriotic, sickeningly sentimental and clung to every fragile thread of hope for a India win. This time that optimism has been conspicuous by its absence. With time, as the many insignificant group games with minor teams get over, the party will expectedly warm up but right now India has not gone bonkers like it did when it hosted the Reliance World Cup.
Those were heady months — October and November of 1987. India, like it is now, had a real shot at winning back-to-back World Cup wins. The images of Indians on the Lord’s balcony after the 1983 win — Kapil lifting the Cup, Mohinder Amarnath waving, Srikkanth puffing away — had not yet faded. Fans wanted to see them from the stands, so did Kapil’s Devils. And India and Pakistan cricket boards — co-hosts — couldn’t believe how they had pulled off a coup. For the first-time ever a World Cup was taking place outside England.
The hosts would reach the semi-finals. India vs England in Mumbai, Pakistan vs Australia in Lahore. India vs Pakistan, a dream final, was to be a reality. Everything was planned. Pakistan would fly to Mumbai from Lahore. They would be joined by India and the two neighbours would fly to Kolkata on the same flight. It was too good to be true. It would be Australia vs England eventually but Kolkata came in droves to watch them.
When Kambli cried
The next time the World Cup came to our neck of the woods was during the miserable 90s, the dodgy decade when cricket at times looked scripted. This time it was co-hosted by India-Pakistan-Sri Lanka. There is an arresting image from that era that captures those times. It was of a sweaty, stressed Sachin Tendulkar, after the dismissal of his partner, waiting for the next batsman during a Sharjah game. In the background is the grainy image of the entire Pakistan team. The captain said: India’s one-man army. It was an army that delivered more often than not. So for the World Cup, India prayed Tendulkar would take them through. He almost did, till he got stumped. Then Kambli cried and flames went up at Eden.
Tendulkar’s World Cup jinx would continue. 2003 he was close, 2007 he got nowhere close. And when in 2011, India got the joint-hosting rights again, Tendulkar was 38. Everyone and their neighbours wanted India to win it for Tendulkar. That would be the theme of excitement. So Sehwag hit a hundred for Tendulkar, Yuvraj played the knock of the tournament for Tendulkar, Dhoni hit the final six for Tendulkar and India dutifully won it for Tendulkar.
Heartbreak at the Wankhede
Five years later, in 2016, the ICC bandwagon was back in India — this time it was the T20 World Cup with MS Dhoni as the captain. That was the time, Virat Kohli had emerged from the 2014 slump and was riding a wave. India followed each of his sixes that sailed out of the ground, ran swift singles with him and almost breasted the tape with him. But they fell before that. In the semi-finals, a West Indian, a last-minute replacement Lendl Simmons, played the innings of his life to out-do Virat’s stunning 89. Wankhede went silent that night — till then the country had roared from the first ball of the tournament.
Something similar happened in 2023, this time fans crossed their fingers for Rohit Sharma. In the prime of his youth, Rohit had been tragically left out of the 2011 World Cup squad. It had hurt him that he had missed out on the chance to lift the Cup at his Wankhede. As the tournament progressed, Rohit seemed to be winning the Cup for Rohit. Till his mishit landed in Travis Head’s hand. While batting he again showed, he had great hands.
Surya doesn’t carry on his shoulders the weight of expectations like previous captains Kapil, Azhar, Dhoni, Virat or Rohit. He isn’t in that league yet. Despite their stunning T20 record, there have been more discussions about his team’s few short-comings and less talk about their strengths. Sanju Samson vs Ishan Kishan is a debate that has got more traction than the depth in Surya’s team. Despite his incredible white-ball record as a coach, Gautam Gambhir has way too many enemies. Some don’t like his approach, others his politics. It’s this that has kept the team from the hype-machinery. And that is not a complaint.