The First of Many?

Marcus Trescothick’s international career as an England batsman may well be over after this latest bout of stress disorder that forced him out of the Ashes series. As a keen cricket buff, who has followed the ebb and tide of English fortunes in the cricketing field over the years, I am disappointed. England may well have turned the tide in the last year and half, topped by the famous Ashes triumph over the old foes, and perhaps much of the credit for that has gone to the young guns – Flintoff and Pietersen, but it was the solidity that Trescothick gave at the top of the order that had paved the way for many a win in recent years. The show, however, as they say must and will go on – a new star would arise over the horizon to take Trescothick’s place, sooner or later. I am optimistic on that count.

But, it is as a simple cricket lover, that I am despondent over the future of cricket. As with some other sports, cricket has now gone beyond the realm of a game – cricket is now a global business with its own set of sleaze and muck. The innocence and simple fun associated with a game is beginning to fade away. The game is run by administrators, who I am sure, are well-meaning people with innovative marketing ideas, solid administration experience etc, albeit coupled with a lot of love for the game; but most of them lack one crucial criterion – they have not played the game. Consequently, they fail to see the cricketer as a human being – they look at him as a resource to generate the moolah that has transformed cricket today. The Malcolm Speeds, Lalit Modis and Sharad Pawars have never been on extended trips to places far away from home, away from family and friends with the expectations of as much as a million people burdening you and millions analyzing your every damn movement to expose chinks in your armour. They are busy making jazzy presentations to all kinds of parties not integral to the game – sponsors, media barons, ad agencies – devising a more and more packed schedule of matches, finding out newer and newer places to play the game. Not that cricketers are above any kind of blame – the lure of money tends to overshadow all kinds of objections to its pursuit – but individually, a cricketer has little option – it is a fiercely competitive world these days and one chance slipped away may mean the end of your career.

Trescothick may well be an exception – you can always say that you have to grow up and be counted as one of the big boys. My only concern is that he may be one of the first to succumb to the greed of the modern game.