Why it mattered

Let the record state that I don't profusely apologize for the spam on people's FB statuses, homepages, Twitter, BBM, and offline conversations. Let the record state that I have been euphoric about a million other things in my life. From a new notebook to a new pair of earrings. But the last few days have been different. A certain Askar thinks this is only about patriotism. For one, what's wrong with it? And two, it's not. It is about those men of character who mechanically and clinically worked towards getting this. It is about Sachin and that hint of smile after every century. It is about Dhoni. The man who has the ability to do his own thing and believe in it. Who knows it is not about finding someone to blame. It is only about getting it done. It is about "leadership not being a popularity contest". It is about Yuvraj who from deciding to give up goes on to become the man of the world cup tournament that we won. It is about the young jing bang who have their priorities right. It is about the coaches and the support staff who danced harder than Dhoni. Did you see those two men in the pavilion dancing right behind Gary Kirsten? It is about all those men. Who win it. Mechanically. With effort. It is not about Sachin winning it for India. No sir, victory is about every man's strength coming together. They did not stumble upon it. And to see them in action is an honour. To see them not go berserk over small happinesses, but focus on the bigger picture, is a lesson for life. Believe it or not, it was these men who won the cup for us.

This victory is about the madness on the roads. Cricket is about the country coming together. In living rooms, in stadiums, in baazaars, on the streets, in offices. It is about looking forward to not an appraisal, a marksheet, a marriage, or a child. It is about looking forward to a euphoria that you can really, in the true sense of the word, share. Skeptics (why don't they just die?) will say it is only cricket, and maybe it is time we learned some "real sports". I only feel bad for them. Because if you were not a part of the euphoria that our last couple of wins and the final victory brought to every other single person around you, if it did not hit you better than the stiffest drink ever, if you did not squeal, get heart attacks, and live those moments, you missed a lot. Especially if you were a silent spectator that could only think of something to complain about while the country celebrated. Almost a billion Indians who backed the team by living every ball, every boundary, every wicket from wherever they could. Don't insult our men and us by bringing up Pooja Pandey or even Rajnikanth right now. Not even if you have been told that you have a great sense of humour.

I do not have time for skeptics. We don't. Because we won. And we deserved it. We. Are. The. Champions. It may be patriotism, or boredom, or worklessness, or real love for the game - to each his own. The only thing that matters is that we are a happy country right now, and more than willing to share it with you. Give it a try, you will not regret it.

I may not have answered the first question - why it mattered - because the only thing that matters is that it did. And how!

Image courtesy: ndtv.com