I love watching cricket and football. Huge fan. Plans are made, or changed depending on game timings, mood changes from ecstatic mania to a kind of been-kicked-in-the-stomach-200-times depression depending on wins and losses.
I feel worse when my team loses in football. Its because of the slow and insidious nature of onset of loss in cricket. I mean, people may say what they want about "you never know till the last ball of the innings" but on the whole one gets an idea of what to expect. Thereafter, one may choose to abandon watching the match or may continue to do so if one's team has a fair chance of winning (Or, if one had masochistic inclinations, if one's team is taking a beating).
Whereas in football, things change in a flash. Without any prior warning, in less than a second your spirits may fall or fly, slump or soar. In just a flash you can be on your knees holding your head screaming "Noooo!!!". And wishing desperately for the ability to turn the clock back by just 3 seconds. Or for a corner or a free kick or a penalty. Anything! Its definitely more cardiac arrest inducing than cricket.
But last night, in the T20- a pause here to mention that T20 is quite a joke in my opinion. I mean, what next? According to my mother "there will come a time when they will have a 'toss toss'". Captains will stroll out, chest all puffed up like a proud pigeon, to cheer and applause. They walk onto the pitch, the umpire spits on the coin and rubs it against his shirt to make it all shiny and a thousand hearts do triple backward somersaults as it is tossed into the air, and makes its way back down, spinning rapidly. One captain calls heads or tails. The coin falls to the ground. There is a hint of a smile on the face of the winning captain, but he doesn't celebrate yet. The decision is referred to the third umpire. He mulls over it as the bat and ball rotate tantalisingly on the large screen. And then, the verdict is flashed on the screen. Fans roar. One captain congratulates the other in a gentlemanly fashion befitting a world class cricket player. Game over.
Anyway, back to reality. I don't understand those dancers they have at the T20. Two guys and two girls. If it is for entertainment, then it dents the purpose of T20- which was to be more entertaining than test or one day cricket. And it doesn't cater to very many people. They ought to have at least placed dancers in five different places around the field, so fun and ogling could be enjoyed by all. I am glad the non existent short shorts (or long underwear, depending on how you look at it) have been replaced by pants though!
But there come moments in cricket which are as nail biting as football is. Take for instance, the game between India and Pakistan last night. Very edge of the seat stuff. For me, it was doubly nice, as I was unaware of the existence a counterpart of the penalty shootout in cricket!! Called the "bowl out"! I was perplexed when I saw another toss, and thankfully a cricket-wise young lad was around to answer my "huh...why? what? how?"s. The three minutes of the bowl out were, needless to say, as tense and exciting as a penalty shootout is. Heart was beating rather quick and I am quite sure I died a few times.
One thing though. I feel the bowl out is easier than the penalty shoot out. I mean, in the latter, at least there is a goalkeeper there who can save the goal. In the former, however, the bowler just has to aim right and hit the unprotected stumps. I have never bowled (I have had a stint with batting as a 10 year old) but I don't think it should be too tough for someone who bowls for a living...no?
It looks fairly easy. Easy enough for me to say, "even I can do that!". Of course, with my bowling action being highly questionable.
And of course, I only say that with the confidence that I do, because I know I will never actually have to do it :)
