Ruthlessness found a new address during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. It has resided with the Indian team as they stormed into the final, winning all nine league games and avoiding a banana-peel semifinal against New Zealand with skill, dexterity and authority. The clinical manner in which they won games while retaining known flair has engaged fans and confounded rival teams.
The dictionary may suggest that ruthlessness is a negative trait. But that is not necessarily true in sport. In fact, it is a great quality to have for elite sportspersons. It is their single-minded focus in working relentlessly towards success in each match. They are able to streamline their actions to focus on their real purpose.
Some of the men in the Indian team carry battle scars – a testimony to long shelf lives and their ability to stay fit and relevant – but they have done well not to dwell in the past, and have even drawn strength from those contests. They have chosen to live in the moment and put their best foot forward with their talent and skill.
Rohit Sharma’s leadership, both with the bat and in creating a culture that has allowed the team to express itself and has combined with the definitive roles that Virat Kohli and Mohammed Shami have played as the spearheads of the campaign, especially in stopping the opposition from making much headway.
Every other player, not least Shreyas Iyer and Jasprit Bumrah, has played his part in shaping the aura that the team have acquired in the World Cup. The intensity and passion that each of them has brought to the park every single time has been refreshing and revealing at the same time.
Rahul Dravid, the coach, would have helped the players to embrace ruthlessness. His persona is such that it would be tough to associate the word with any side that he has been with. Come to think of it, he was a remarkable cricketer, gentle and graceful – everyone thought of him as the ideal boy next door – but always a fierce competitor, not conceding an inch.
And that is what this team has done so far. Not concede ground. Some teams have crumbled in the face of the relentless pressure that India imposed on them; others have challenged India along the way, but the home side have remained mentally tough through it all, conveying the impression that they enjoy each moment of this journey, aligning everything they have to winning each game.
India have won an unprecedented 10 matches in a row for the first time in ODI history, and set themselves up to emerge world champion for only the third time. And yes, this team can be expected to keep their feet grounded ahead of the title clash and, no matter who the opposition is, be relentless one more time on Sunday.
It is not as if this they have found comfort only in chasing targets. They have won as many as matches setting targets for their rivals. They have embraced pressure and drawn from it rather than fought it. They have stared all situations squarely in their face and found workable solutions that have led to success.
There have been great Indian teams before. But the class of 2023 will be the sole contender for the title of the most ruthless Indian cricket side, ahead of the 1983 squad, the 1985 team which won the World Championships of Cricket in Australia by bowling out the opposition in all but one game, and the 2011 side which became the first to win a World Cup at home.
Delving into Indian sport’s chequered history, it may be surmised that the hockey teams of yore may have been ruthless too in winning six successive Olympic Games gold medals either side of World War II. Last year’s Thomas Cup men’s badminton conquest would find honourable mention for work done in an intense week. This cricket team have not dropped guard in five weeks.
There is always a hint of vulnerability that great teams hide magically, but this Indian team has worn the cloak of invincibility effortlessly. And that comes with the ruthlessness that we are talking about. It has its roots in each player’s individual and collective courage to realise his own strengths and those of the team, own the team’s story and play his part in writing the ending.
Some months ago, when it was suggested to Rohit Sharma that the Indian team had become complacent after winning two Tests against Australia – they ended up losing the third – he not only scoffed at the thought but also used the word ruthless to describe the team. It was a hint of what lay in store.
“Ruthless is the word that comes to my mind and every (Indian) cricketer’s mind, and not to give an inch to the opposition when it is touring,” Rohit had said. “The opposition will never let you come into the game or series, and that’s the mindset we have as well. We want to do our best in all the games. If it seems over-confidence or anything like that for outsiders, it doesn’t matter to us.”
And yet, it has not forgotten that being ruthless does not necessarily include being mean. Be it Virat Kohli sharing insights with younger cricketers from other teams or even Ishan Kishan stepping up to assist Glenn Phillips with cramps on a humid night at the Wankhede Stadium, the team have not left grace in the changing room.
This team is so gracefully persistent that they have redefined ruthlessness in a charming manner. It is possible that this team is, in some ways, a reflection of the new India – Aware. Brave. Confident. Direct. Relentless, and even ruthless. Come Sunday, the fans will be hoping that all this will lead to victory.