Nurungukal: NURUNGUKAL…. There is many a slip be...

Nurungukal:  NURUNGUKAL….             There is many a slip be...:   NURUNGUKAL….             There is many a slip between the cup and the lip…     It was very many years ago that I had watched a cricket...

 

NURUNGUKAL….

            There is many a slip between the cup and the lip…

    It was very many years ago that I had watched a cricket world cup. But this time I had an urge to feel the thrill, because of the unchallenged series of victory by the Indian players. More over I was enchanted by the sight of the mammoth stadium complex, spread over a vast area of more than 60 acres. The welcome roar, reverberated the precincts of the stadium, which resembled the call of 100 lion prides, in the African jungle. It was enough to glue me on to the little screen in our drawing room.

        Aussies won the toss and pushed the opponents to bat, which many misinterpreted as a wrong move, although proved otherwise later. In the first ten over we saw a galore of fluttering flags, claps and cheers, as the pair in the middle entertained the crowd with long shots and lifting. But alas an aggressive shot by Rohit, lifting the ball to soar high up in the sky, and when the crescendo touched the top, it dissented safely into the outstretched hands of a resolute Travis Head, which according to me sealed the fate of the game in favour of the Aussies. There after we witnessed a pack,who never ventured to open their shoulders, nor felt the sand was slipping under their feet, and remained contended to hold on to the crease to satisfy some bench marks in their carrier. It was so dismal to see the wickets fall one after another in regular intervals. We had to wait more than twenty over to see our flag flutter in the stands when a stray ball touched the fence. A gloom was slowly dissenting amidst the crowd as if it felt the impending defeat. I was more or less restless to see such a passive reaction, because the need of the hour was an unshaken backing from the audience to impart a revival and vibrancy on the score board. Instead I witnessed slow moments of despair when they opted for leaving the arena. Desperately I was scanning the gallery to have a glimpse of my nephew’s reaction, who had air dashed to India from USA, to witness this historical fight, but in vain.

           As if to console myself, visualized some random scenes from my memory when we fought tooth and nail, refusing to succumb, hitting sixes in the last over etc and ultimately lifting the trophy, like an immortal Phoenix bird. Only experts can verdict why or how we missed the goal.

Was it that critical catch ?, or was it the dew and chill in the stadium ?, was it the lack of ground support at the crucial moments ? or was it a slip…a slip….a slip……???

Let us wait till 2027  friends……