India's Virat Kohli celebrates his century in the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday, November 15, 2023. AP
Virat Kohli completed his 50th ODI century against New Zealand in Mumbai on Wednesday. AFP
Virat Kohli hit his 50th ODI century as India posted 397-4 against New Zealand at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. AFP
India's Mohammed Shami celebrates the wicket of New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell. AP
New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell celebrates his century. AP
India's Jasprit Bumrah celebrates the wicket of New Zealand's Glenn Phillips, right. AP
India's captain Rohit Sharma celebrates with teammate Mohammed Shami after the dismissal of New Zealand's Tom Latham. AFP
New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell plays a shot. AFP
Fans cheer as Virat Kohli walks back to the pavilion. Reuters
Virat Kohli, second left, is greeted by teammates in the dressing room. AP
New Zealand's Kane Williamson congratulates Virat Kohli for his record breaking 50th ODI century. Reuters
Shreyas Iyer, centre, also scored a brilliant century in Mumbai. AFP
India's Virat Kohli celebrates after his 50th century. Reuters
Rohit Sharma of India hits out. Getty Images
Kane Williamson of New Zealand catches out Rohit Sharma of India. Getty Images
Chitrabhanu Kadalayil is deputy comment editor at The National
November 21, 2023
Life imitates art far more than art imitates life, Oscar Wilde once asserted. In India, one might hope life can imitate cricket, because the country’s cricket team showed – even in the aftermath of Sunday’s World Cup final defeat against Australia – a true determination to achieve excellence.
Despite the loss, there are important lessons that India’s supporters can draw from their cricketing heroes – and from how cricket itself is organised in the country.
India is, of course, no cricketing rookie. It has lifted the World Cup twice. It has also consistently been a title contender for the past four decades. Given its economic powerhouse status in the context of the sport, the Indian team is always expected to reach at least the semi-finals of this and other global cricket competitions.
But what’s refreshingly new about this team is its sheer dominance in the sport today. The ruthlessness with which its players operated on the field throughout the World Cup – delivering crushing victories against almost every single one of its opponents and breaking a number of records along the way – was a sight to behold for cricket lovers immaterial of loyalties.
So much so that all that its bullish fans cared to debate in the run-up to Sunday’s final was the margin of India’s victory.
There is a sense that for this team, being good is simply not good enough. One might argue that this burning ambition is symptomatic of a growing nation hungry for success on the global stage – and to some extent, this applies to the burgeoning middle class. But with India being a country of myriad contradictions, it is just as true that a “chalta hai” (or “anything goes”) mentality pervades through all sections of society, which speaks to this widespread acceptance of mediocrity as a part and parcel of life.
Cricket has shown that a fairly decently run system can achieve much if it keeps the game at the core of its mission
It is this sometimes-defeatist attitude to life that the celebrated author Chetan Bhagat deplored in a recent column for The Times of India newspaper.
Pointing to the cricket team’s excellence, which he correctly linked to the years-long planning, hard work and dedication of all those involved, he called on fellow Indians to get inspired: “The biggest change that is required is in the mindset. It has to go from ‘yes, we are good, and we win sometimes’ to ‘we are the best, and we win almost every time’.”
While it is a stretch for an entire nation, particularly one that is as large and diverse as India, to apply its cricket team’s successes to other walks of life, the counterargument is why shouldn’t it at least try?
For one, there really is no modern-day institution in India quite like professional cricket. It is, for the most part, very well run and generously monetised under the auspices of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Second – and this is critical: it is a genuine, and rare, meritocracy.
More than 15 years ago, the late cricket administrator Raj Singh Dungarpur told some of us journalists that a large proportion of the next generation of Indians cricketers will emerge “not from the high-rises of the country’s bustling metropolises but from its vast hinterland”. Those were prophetic words, but what Mr Dungarpur was essentially pointing to was professional cricket’s open and merit-based system.
It’s a system that's far from perfect, of course.
As with most things commercial, politicians and special interest groups try to find ways to cash in. Thanks to the less savoury elements associated with the game, it has periodically been dogged by match-fixing scandals and betting rackets. And despite the BCCI’s best efforts to take the game to all corners of the country, it can go even farther in its inclusivity drive in trying to break through to the subaltern sections of society.
India's Shamsher Singh scores against Belgium in Wilrijk in June last year. Hockey is India's national sport, but cricket is its national passtime. AFP
All that being said, while some high-profile industries and professions, such as filmmaking, have been unable to shake off nepotism and instances of corruption, cricket has shown that a fairly decently run system can achieve much if it keeps the game at the core of its mission.
It is in staying true to this mission that cricket continues to capture the country’s imagination.
For hundreds of millions of Indians, cricket is the national pastime. It continues to bring together people of varying identities, backgrounds and political affiliations, giving them all something to look forward to, to yearn for, to be joyous about. It serves as a welcome distraction, even if it is for a few hours, from the challenges of everyday life.
In recent years, however, cricket has become a vessel for jingoism, which was on display at the World Cup. Such was the partisan nature of the crowd in the final, for instance, that few if any fans stood up to applaud the match-winning performances of the Australian players. The stadium began emptying out even before the post-match ceremony and match officials were booed by some sections as they went up on stage to collect their medals.
Such boorish behaviour stands in stark contrast to when cricket was played during simpler times, when it had far less commercial and political value and was treated as it ideally should be – a game and nothing more.
But with cricket being more than just a game today, with so much money at stake, and with millions of Indians taking it so seriously that it adds to their sense of self and elevates their country's place in the world, could it not – should it not – set a positive example for society at large?
The answer is a resounding yes, but only if the fans are willing to keep an open mind.
Polarised public
31% in UK say BBC is biased to left-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is biased to right-wing views
19% in UK say BBC is not biased at all
Source: YouGov
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Online grocer Ocado revealed retail sales fell 5.7 per cen in its first quarter as customers switched back to pre-pandemic shopping patterns.
It was a tough comparison from a year earlier, when the UK was in lockdown, but on a two-year basis its retail division, a joint venture with Marks&Spencer, rose 31.7 per cent over the quarter.
The group added that a 15 per cent drop in customer basket size offset an 11.6. per cent rise in the number of customer transactions.
Europe’s rearming plan
Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.
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if you go
The flights Flydubai offers three daily direct flights to Sarajevo and, from June, a daily flight from Thessaloniki from Dubai. A return flight costs from Dhs1,905 including taxes. The trip
The Travel Scientists are the organisers of the Balkan Ride and several other rallies around the world. The 2018 running of this particular adventure will take place from August 3-11, once again starting in Sarajevo and ending a week later in Thessaloniki. If you’re driving your own vehicle, then entry start from €880 (Dhs 3,900) per person including all accommodation along the route. Contact the Travel Scientists if you wish to hire one of their vehicles.
7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
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4 — Alain Prost (1985, ’86, ’89, ’93)
4 — Sebastian Vettel (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE) Where: Allianz Arena, Munich Live: BeIN Sports HD Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
A German university was a good fit for the family budget
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