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Wake up India!

R

RhyZa

School Boy/Girl Cricketer
honestbharani said:
Excellent article as usual from SJS. He is a real star of CW, obviously. :)

I guess one or two more points could have been added. The media is never tired of hyping the average Indians' so called "cricket knowledge". I can tell you without blinking an eyelid that it is absolute codswallop. Windies fans and English fans top the list of knowledgable cricket fans, for me. Next in line would be Aussies and Kiwis and Proteas and I suppose the best crowds in India can rank alongside them. That's about it. An average Indian fan is very good in knowing what color Sachin's favorite boots are and so on, but if you ask him, will probably find it very difficult trying to tell the difference between a leading edge and a top edge.

Also, the fact is that the Indian media is just USING cricket to sell themselves to the viewers. They hype the players and the fans go along as well, and then they put them down and the fans go along again. I am not exactly sure who started it, it is a bit of a chicken and egg situation there, but the fact is that Indian media is the BIGGEST enemy of Indian cricket, not the BCCI, not the players and certainly not the fans. They fan the fanatical worship and they fan the hatred too. Its "heads I win, tails you lose" for them and they are enjoying every bit of it.
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Well, the sheer numbers would give this impression of as you said, the 'average indian fan'. In India, EVERYONE is a 'cricket fan'. While in other countries, it is more likely that if they are a fan, they are more likely to be of the knowledgeable variety. Percentage wise of the total fan base, I'm sure that it holds up a bit truer than you think.

Agreed to your second point, but believe me this is virtually uncontrollable and is prevalent in any big market where they have not won in a long time (see Boston Red Sox, Toronto Maple Leafs etc). The only way to overcome this is winning despite these obvious distractions and cycles of over-exposure/negativity, which is of course easier said than done, but it really is the only way.
 
adharcric

adharcric

International Coach
honestbharani said:
Also, the fact is that the Indian media is just USING cricket to sell themselves to the viewers. They hype the players and the fans go along as well, and then they put them down and the fans go along again. I am not exactly sure who started it, it is a bit of a chicken and egg situation there, but the fact is that Indian media is the BIGGEST enemy of Indian cricket, not the BCCI, not the players and certainly not the fans. They fan the fanatical worship and they fan the hatred too. Its "heads I win, tails you lose" for them and they are enjoying every bit of it.
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Spot on. It's about time someone besides me bitches about the Indian media. :)
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
honestbharani said:
I guess one or two more points could have been added. The media is never tired of hyping the average Indians' so called "cricket knowledge". I can tell you without blinking an eyelid that it is absolute codswallop. Windies fans and English fans top the list of knowledgable cricket fans, for me. Next in line would be Aussies and Kiwis and Proteas and I suppose the best crowds in India can rank alongside them. That's about it. An average Indian fan is very good in knowing what color Sachin's favorite boots are and so on, but if you ask him, will probably find it very difficult trying to tell the difference between a leading edge and a top edge.
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That's very interesting.
 
SJS

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
Thanks a lot for all the generous response.

In response to the mild (well meant I know:) ) criticism about being 'a tad preachy'. Well try as i might I cant change a word of it. As Richard said its a 'heartfelt response' to a 'massive' issue. I firmly believe that whats happening to the fan is a bigger problem for Indian cricket than the performance on the field. Not least because it is allowing all those who are in it only for the money - BCCI, Media, Sponsors and Marketeers who buy the broadcasting rights to run away with the game. And the only people who are in a position to exert pressure (since they are the ones finally shelling out the money for all of them) are too gullible and cricket-iliiterate to do so.
 
adharcric

adharcric

International Coach
SJS said:
Thanks a lot for all the generous response.

In response to the mild (well meant I know:) ) criticism about being 'a tad preachy'. Well try as i might I cant change a word of it. As Richard said its a 'heartfelt response' to a 'massive' issue. I firmly believe that whats happening to the fan is a bigger problem for Indian cricket than the performance on the field. Not least because it is allowing all those who are in it only for the money - BCCI, Media, Sponsors and Marketeers who buy the broadcasting rights to run away with the game. And the only people who are in a position to exert pressure (since they are the ones finally shelling out the money for all of them) are too gullible and cricket-iliiterate to do so.
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Spot on. Yet again. :cool:
 
SJS

SJS

Hall of Fame Member
I think its only fair that I share the negative responses that I recieve off the forum. Here is one from an Indian fan.

Dear Mr Singh,

Let us not forget that this man (Chappell) was taking all the credits, not scoring a single hundred … etc, when the Indian team was wining. But that time I did not see any journalist like you preaching around, that, see this man is just a coach. You (plural) have made this egoist idiot - GURU greg. Before waking up India, first you wake up and see that this guy, not scoring a single duck … etc., has actually messed up with the confidence and spirit of the Indian cricket team. It does not look like a TEAM any more, rather a crowd of talented but utterly confused men.

Thanks and regards
 
PY

PY

International Coach
Thanks SJS, I didn't understand a word of it...:wacko:

How's Chappell supposed to score runs? :p
 
Richard

Richard

Cricket Web Staff Member
SJS said:
I think its only fair that I share the negative responses that I recieve off the forum. Here is one from an Indian fan.

Dear Mr Singh,

Let us not forget that this man (Chappell) was taking all the credits, not scoring a single hundred … etc, when the Indian team was wining. But that time I did not see any journalist like you preaching around, that, see this man is just a coach. You (plural) have made this egoist idiot - GURU greg. Before waking up India, first you wake up and see that this guy, not scoring a single duck … etc., has actually messed up with the confidence and spirit of the Indian cricket team. It does not look like a TEAM any more, rather a crowd of talented but utterly confused men.

Thanks and regards
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As Pete said - :wacko:

But having read it about 3 times I decipher the broad meaning, and, well... my only reaction is :laugh:
 
Sanz

Sanz

Hall of Fame Member
Good Article..But..

"One may not agree with Chappell on some issues, but he is not responsible for Indian cricketers performing poorly"

Very objective assessment as usual about Greg Chappell's performance, from SJS. 8-) 8-) What next Dravid isn't responsible either.
 
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