Swapan Dasgupta relates Indian aggression at the Sydney cricket ground to the rise in nationalism
There were two powerful images of India that came through from Sydney Cricket Ground last week. The first was a visibly irate Harbhajan Singh in a verbal altercation with Andrew Symonds. The second was a very composed but undeniably haughty Anil Kumble throwing a variant of Bill Woodfull’s legendary remark on Bodyline back at the Australians: “There are two teams out there; only one is playing cricket.”
Cricket, once a metaphor for life, has increasingly become associated with the national character. In the heydays of socialism and the shortage economy, it is unlikely an Indian player would have reacted to Australian sledging the way Harbhajan did. It is more inconceivable that the captain would have had the temerity to call the rival team a bunch of cheats – which is what Kumble did with all the imperiousness at his disposal.
