India exit cricket World Cup

In an anti-climatic end, the Indian team has crashed out out of the Cricket World Cup. A team that until a year ago was being touted as the only one capable of overcoming Australia, lost easily to its two smaller neighours SriLanka and Bangladesh. As a young kid, I watched Arjuna Ranatunga adopt defensive tactics in game after game as he knew his team was no match for India's might. A decade later the same team now erupts with glee everytime they force a collapse and usurp their bigger neighbours in a crunch game. As an Indian fan, the lingering memory will not be the loss to Bangladesh as will be the sight of my heroes from a decade ago struggle against inexperienced bowlers who weren't even playing cricket when India were in the finals of the last World Cup. To see bowlers like Mortaza, Asif and Malinga regularly castle Sachin Tendulkar's middle stump is deflating to the morale. Starting late 2005, this team had broken new ground and given hope of a stronger mental mindset if not a second World Cup trophy. A 17-match voctory streak while chasing, the discovery of a genuine all-rounder in Irfan Pathan, the appointment of legendary Greg Chappell as coach all gave rise to visions of a new meaner Indian team winning more than in the past. Alas it seems, that ever present Indian fraility to crumble in crunch situations proved to be the weak link. Perhaps we should be picking players who measure up on this parameter rather than on pure runs volume in our meaningless domestic tournament.