(This is a picture of my TV screen which I took while watching the winning celebration live that day. Its a cherished memory. So despite of it being blurred I am posting it here.)
It’s Cricket World Cup time again and India will start its mission in a few days. Slowly, as the tournament will gain momentum, we will be in for another thrilling experience of intense cricket. When a new Cricket World Cup begins, our minds unknowingly start travelling the roads of Cricket history. India won the cup first in 1983. It’s an important historical milestone for me as an Indian Cricket fan. But I was too young to be a part of the thrill then. So, I don’t find a personal connection with the 1983 World Cup win. The World Cup win of my memory is that of 2011. All my cricketing heroes, Sehwag, Sachin, Zaheer, Harbhajan, and Yuvraj were towards the fag end of their careers but were playing in form, and the new stars like Dhoni and Virat were getting established. Especially for Sachin Tendulkar, it was perhaps the last chance to be a part of a World Cup winning team: one last time in his career! Eventually, it turned out to be a dream run for the team. We beat Pakistan in the semi-final and lifted the trophy by winning against the Sri Lankan team, engraving some beautiful memories in the minds of cricket fans like me during the Indian summer of 2011. And it was a summer which was changing my life too!
I completed my post-graduation towards the end of 2010. It was finally the end of formal education for me. I joined as a senior resident in my alma mater. Within months, my role in the system had changed. No seniors were scolding me, and my opinion had gotten weightage. I was feeling good as well, but I was a bit anxious too, as this new role meant some serious responsibility. Another thing that had changed were my earnings. The first time I started getting a ‘salary’ more than double that of my ‘stipend’. For that phase in my life it was a big jump.
So, in this new mood, when I realised the World Cup was approaching, I decided to buy my first TV! So I went to a nearby electronics showroom with my wife and soon realised that the doubled stipend salary was not enough to get me a decent TV. Still, I wanted one for the World Cup, so I asked the salesman to show me the cheapest TV available. He showed us a tiny flat screen, which I could afford, and I took it. I witnessed the thrill of India’s win on that little screen in the coming months. I still have that TV. It’s not much used, but it brings me a smile whenever I pass by it.
The news that I had bought a new TV spread like wildfire on the campus. All my friends declared they would enjoy the World Cup at my place. My living room had just two plastic chairs, a plastic teapoy and my tiny TV in the corner while I was expecting at least 5-6 friends at every match. We had extra mattresses with us. So we removed the two plastic chairs and spread the mattresses on the floor. And thus, these ‘reclined seats’ were ready for the matches.
Finally, the tournament began. And my friends started coming home to watch matches. It’s an unbeatable experience when you watch a game with friends. There is simultaneous analysis, prediction, shouting, hooting, abusing and whatnot. The company makes it a complete experience. During the match, we chose Domino’s Pizza to calm our hunger pangs. During a single game, we used to place as many as 8-10 orders and Domino’s guys used to have a hell of a confusion understanding which ones they delivered and which were pending. In those days, my daily garbage bin consisted of only one thing- Domino’s Pizza boxes!
The semi-final against Pakistan and the final win against Sri Lanka; I will never forget these two nights in my life. The entire city was out on the streets celebrating. The atmosphere was just electric. There were slogans of “Bharat Mata Ki Jay” all around. Indian flags were waving in numbers. People were smiling at strangers and sometimes hugging too. All the eateries were open past midnight. We first saw the team lifting the World Cup and then lifted the ‘God’, Sachin Tendulkar, on their shoulders and paraded him around the ground. Those pictures are stuck in my mind forever. After this grand show, we also joined the crowd on the streets. We roamed the entire city on motorcycle experiencing the ecstasy. Finally, just after midnight, we all had a Tender Coconut ice cream at a Natural’s outlet, which was buzzing with huge crowds even at that late hour.
I was lucky that I could witness all this at that time. I was entering a new phase in my life. The stress of student life was over, and the further pressure of an independent medical practice had not begun. It was a perfect stage for such an event. It’s 2023 now, and we are in for another World Cup. I wish the best team wins! (And I want this best team to be the Indian Team). I will watch the matches on a big TV in my air-conditioned living room, all we friends will discuss every detail on our WhatsApp group, and there will be grand parties on every Indian win. But I am unsure if all this will ever match that thrill I experienced in 2011 on that tiny TV, sitting or lying on those floor mattresses, eating small-sized Domino’s pizzas!
