As I sit down to write this piece, India’s Women’s T20 World Cup campaign is over. Inconsistency and the inability to chase down totals has impacted the team hard, and the pressure, needless to say, will mount on the captain and the coach.
Interestingly, it has always come down to that one crucial game for India in key tournaments. In the 2022 Commonwealth Games final, it was the very same Australia. The script was the same in the T20 World Cup semi-final in 2023. India lost to Australia and were out.
That 2024 has been no different is what leads me to introspect. India played four matches in the World Cup and lost two. We won against Pakistan, yes, but that win hurt us more than anything. In all, it has been a very poor campaign. And yet, we hear the coach saying this is a very special group. We hear players saying we fielded well, and the coach say Australia got over the line because of experience.
This is where things start to get problematic. It takes courage to own up and say we played badly. We weren’t good enough and need to get better. We weren’t really there in this World Cup. To say anything to the contrary is a defensive reaction and doesn’t really help. And that’s where Amol Muzumdar needs to do things differently. While it is good that the head coach tries to stand up for his players, it is also important for him not to turn a blind eye to reality. India haven’t fielded well, and that’s the reality. We weren’t good enough with the bat either. To not accept that is counter-productive.
Is this an emotional rant, or is it based on rational, objective analysis? It is a fact that Smriti Mandhana has had a poor World Cup. She looked jaded and hasn’t been able to give the starts that India expected of her. We need to accept this. For only then can we feel optimistic about the future. It is because she has the experience to bounce back when chips are down. She has been in tough situations before, and has the ability to change things. And isn’t sport more about failure than success? Isn’t that what makes sport what it is? But unless we accept the bad, which is the problem with Muzumdar at the moment, can there be anything good round the corner?
Sport is that unique platform which forces a performer to fail in full public view. In every other sphere, failure is an acutely personal experience. Sport, however, is different. That India have not done well is in the public domain, and a recorded fact. But again, that’s where sport redeems itself. It is the only platform which also allows a performer to come back and win in public. With the help of your team and support unit, you can recuperate and come back and prove to the world who you are and what you are made of. In sum, redeem yourself in the full public gaze and make a difference.
That’s what I am expecting India to do going forward. For, in the end, sport is also about hope and fulfilment. It is about stories of courage and success, and triumph against adversity. When the Indian women’s team made the finals of the 2005 World Cup, few celebrated the achievement. Jhulan Goswami and Mithali Raj still had to travel in unreserved compartments sitting next to the toilets on occasion. Those days are long gone, and come the WPL, millions will be in front of their television sets to cheer the players.
The players are now stars. With stardom comes responsibility, and the need to be accountable. They need to introspect and, subsequently, deliver. Accept the failure, and get ready for a comeback. While it is not fair to look too far ahead, it can certainly be said that India need fresh thinking. The time is now. To run away from this reality would be the worst outcome possible.
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