Men in blue mustn’t take early wins for granted
While it is all but certain that the Indian cricket team will reach the quarter-final stage in the ongoing cricket World Cup tournament after its thumping victories over Pakistan and South Africa, supporters of the men in blue must not take for granted, as they have begun to do, that the team will coast into the semi-finals, let alone the finals and eventually win the title.
Of course, hope is what drives passion and enthusiasm, but MS Dhoni and his men know the difficult road ahead. The two back-to-back wins have certainly enhanced the team’s morale and instilled added confidence that they have it in them to prevail upon the toughest opponents. But they need to convert that into action as they meet opponents along the way.
For now, they must concentrate on each game as it comes and seek to win, whether it is against minnows UAE or the seasoned West Indies fresh from its victories against Pakistan and Zimbabwe — with Chris Gayle hammering a blazing double century against the latter in an encounter on Tuesday. The immediate aim for India is to finish at the top of its group so that it can hope to meet the second-ranked team in the quarter-finals. Complacency and over-confidence at this stage would be fatal. To be fair, neither Dhoni nor the other players have displayed that so far.
If anything, they have been extremely professional in their approach. The win against Pakistan swayed millions of Indian fans across the globe, but the Indian team remained rooted to the ground. They played to a set plan against South Africa, showing neither extravagance nor bravado. It was a clinical display which would not have been possible had the team got carried away with the win against traditional rivals, Pakistan. Euphoric though the mood is, we must not forget that on many occasions in the past the Indian team has faltered when it mattered the most.
What the two wins have done is to provide the required momentum for the Indian players at an early stage of the tournament. At least two Indian cricketing legends have cautioned the team against going over the top. Sachin Tendulkar has advised the Indians to focus on each game rather than set long-term targets for now. And, Sourav Ganguly has expressed happiness though not satisfaction over the wins.
The tempering of enthusiasm is essential. let it not be forgotten that the Indian team had failed to score adequately in the last five overs against both Pakistan and South Africa. The men in blue got away on those occasions, but the luck may not sustain.
Meanwhile, it is good that the top Indian batting order has begun to click. Barring Rohit Sharma and to an extent Dhoni, all others have scored well. The bowlers, considered the weak link, performed wonderfully against South Africa, while the fielding perked a notch or two. These are good developments and they need to be sustained.