It’s only Virender Sehwag, and it’s only from Delhi.
For a moment, let’s assume Sachin Tendulkar decides to move from Mumbai to another team.
Sounds improbable, but let’s stay with the assumption: What do you think will happen?
Mumbai will stop. Best buses will stop, so will the trains, so will the sea. There will be one focus: Sachin must stay.
Sachin cannot, and will not move from Mumbai. Bombay can move to Mumbai, but Sachin cannot move from Mumbai.
And here we are in chalta hai Dilli. Sure, the media is backing Sehwag, but why do we Delhiwallahs generally go with the flow – one of the common reactions - badiya, at least he stays with the Delhi Daredevils. And anyway, how much does he play for Delhi state – 1-2 games a year?
Sehwag may not have Sachin’s stature as a sportsperson, but he is the cricketing face of Delhi, that is if Delhi believes it has a cricketing face.
He is the Jatman. He is Oye Lucky! He is the Sunny! He is the Bubloo. He is the kid from the obscure neighbourhood who made it. Better still, he is the kid from the outskirts. He is the big dream of a little kid from a small town in a big city. In him, is the eternal Bollywood dream, make it big from nowhere. He did, from Najafgarh.
He has almost always deserved more than he got, more runs, more respect, more backing.
If you find him too simple, too straight, then maybe it’s because you are too crooked, too conniving.
Embrace the man, embrace the Jatman. He’s the best we got. He is our cricket. He is Dilli.
Try and play back the most dazzling Indian innings in the last decade – chances are, most of them starred Viru. He was, and has been India’s Tendulkar for a long time.
We knew it, yet we refused to believe it.
Truth is, Sachin moved from Mumbai a long time back. He moved to Delhi.
Look back: the evidence was always there, the uppercuts, the small frame, the flicks. We were in the 2000s with Viru, and it was like we were in the 90s with Tendu. And for a brief while, they batted together.
It could have been just half a dozen overs on March 1st, 2003 – but it was against Pakistan in the World Cup – which is where the powers of the Indian cricketing universe were so totally aligned they brought the South African heavens down.
Remember, where were you? How high did you go with the upper cuts?
So, till the next Sachin or Sehwag arrives, there is no reason for either of them to go anywhere.
Stay Jatman. Fight them. Beat them. You are better than them.
Do not retire hurt this time.
Picture from Bored Cricket Crazy Indians, where you go for a lethal dose of Jatman
7 comments:
if this revolt cleans up the DDCA then nothing like it.
If Tendulkar threatens to leave Mumbai after alleging corruption in the MCA, I expect Mumbaikars (Shiv Sainiks in the lead) would lynch the office bearers.
To bad no Delhiwala is bothered to even burn an effigy of Sunil Dev.
delhi long seized to be dilwalon ki for me...we all are too busy to even think about ourselves... all the dilli humor is gone to road rage...
at this times viru has taken upon himself to bring some sanity to ddca but going by the statements of some of officials they all already behaving as if viru has gone to haryana...thinking good riddance...and are already busy in doing what they do best...
Sam, clean it up for good.
Adverbin, that's there. But we can light a spark on the blogs - you could write to BCC! with yr POV
SP, grant them this much, no double speak there. They'll be happy with everybody gone, left to play with their joint family.
Excellent post NC. Sehwag is today definitely more lethal than Sachin and reminds one of the Sachin of old.
As for Delhi's attitude towards Sehwag's departure from the city, I think that too is in the true spirit of Delhi to not be bothered about anyone. Every city has its own culture and this indifference towards its sporting hero is an intrinsic part of Delhi's character, a city which does not belong to anyone or is never claimed by any community. We the Haryanvi Jats can come closest to claiming it since it is surrounded on three sides by Haryana. But we wouldn't be bothered.
But the fact that it is not claimed by anyone, is in fact good in many ways. At least we don't have those regional chauvinists who vandalize public property every time they feel injustice has been done to them - the sons of the soil. This is truly a modern city.
We have more important things to do than burning Sunil Dev's effigy. I'm sure Sehwag and the other players will themselves sort out this problem. The public does not need to get involved in this.
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