Ram Guha’s ‘A Corner of a Foreign Field’ and, more recently, Rajdeep Sardesai’s ‘Democracy’s XI’ have used cricket as a barometer of India’s democratic aspirations and its deep-rooted malaises. This isn’t unique to South Asia either. Smith, Warner and Bancroft had to face public humiliation and were subject to higher ethical benchmarks than any politician would ever have to. Sport, despite its trivial pursuits such as putting a ball into a net or hitting it out of a stadium, is often expected to showcase the best, the noblest qualities of human society. When India as a nation grappled with the issue of socially approved untouchability practices, it found its reflection in its cricket teams, with the tragically heroic stories of the Palwankar brothers during the days of the Bombay Pentangular. When India was a society that treated royalty with importance, its cricket teams were often led by a Maharajah/Nawab, regardless of his cricketing abilities. Cut to the 90s, and we have the of...
Pod of Control for Cricket in India