A Summer to Remember

Unlike the ongoing Australia-South Africa series, India's tour of New Zealand did not feature a clash of evenly matched heavyweights. But what the games may have lacked in needle, they more than made up for by being rancour-free, and were mostly studded with fine performances which made the recently concluded season one of the more memorable ones in recent times.

At various moments during India's tour of New Zealand, I was oddly reminded of the 1990 Football World Cup semi-final between hosts Italy and defending champions Argentina, a video recording of which still lies at home. Diego Maradona, seemingly a shadow of his 1986 best, was to end the tournament scoreless and in tears; it was probably the most enduring image of that World Cup. Yet, he was still a major influence in getting his side thus far, masterminding Claudio Caniggia's improbable winner against the Brazilians. As fate would have it, the semi-final was at the San Paolo stadium in Naples - the home of Napoli, the club Maradona famously represented. When the tournament began, Maradona had appealed to the people of Naples to support Argentina, a move which was seen to be futile, judging by the angry reactions of Italian fans in the other stadia. But while watching the recording, it became clear to my pre-teen self that sections of the Italian crowd in Naples had indeed been swayed by the man himself - and it was all that was needed to spur the Argentinians on. They won on penalties, and though it may have been an over-reaction on my part, I was somehow convinced about it; this strange and powerful hold which Maradona had over his adopted-home-fans had been the decisive factor.

A friend had once likened Virender Sehwag's striding out into the arena and attacking with relish to the manner of a gladiator, and he recalled a scene from The Gladiator which particularly resonates; the one in which Russell Crowe is reminded "Win the crowd and you win your freedom". As the tour progressed, this impression really seemed to ring true, though it was probably just that - an impression. The Indian batting lineup was admittedly the most powerful one to have landed on New Zealand's shores in a long time, and everyone - the commentators, the reporters, the crowds (a fair number of whom were Indian), the opposition themselves - seemed to have been won over at the start. There was no underhandedness in the manner of a Maradona or a visiting Australian side, they let their aura and their records speak for themselves. The kiwis, just like the Italians back in 1990, could be forgiven for thinking they were playing an away game. Of course, the hype was justified, for Tendulkar and Dravid were (presumably) on their last tour, Sehwag came with a reputation to protect, and Laxman had a wretched 2002 tour to atone for. And while they did leave the NZ public satiated, with the hosts a clear second best, the games were not unmemorable in the least. They were dotted with worthy individual performances throughout.

There was Sehwag setting the tone by clonking the first three balls of the tour for six off Tim Southee; there was Tendulkar's sublime 163 at Christchurch, an abject lesson in how to move from first to fifth gear in a one-day innings; there was Jesse Ryder's fitting response to Ishant Sharma's verbals in Auckland, a precursor to his performances in the tests; there was Zaheer's resourceful five-for in windy Wellington, an experienced practitioner at the peak of his powers; there was Chris Martin's valiant return to test cricket, even improving his batting a notch as his legions of gradually-acquired fans cheered him on. And there were sets of contrasting hundreds, in Napier and Wellington, each from Gautam Gambhir and Ross Taylor; one an upstart coming into his own among a mighty top-order, the other a carefree strokemaker gradually accepting more responsibility with the passage of time.

Probably the most refreshing aspect of the tour was the spirit in which it was played. No jellybean incidents, no bitter umpiring disputes, no unnecessary gamesmanship, just two teams giving it their all on the field and mostly having a good time along the way. In the end, the gap between the number 3 and number 8 team won out. Also, good on the BCCI for slotting in that extra test at the Basin Reserve, even if it was prompted by the need to fill in a gap. Given their earlier churlishness in calling off the tour to NZ in 2006-07, it was fitting that they gave something back to the cricket-watching public there. Not one of the tests in the three match series was a redundant game of cricket, and in a country where test cricket is otherwise not at its healthiest, it provided for a summer to remember indeed.