<div class="section1"><div align="left" style="position:relative; left: -2"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" align="left" border="0" width="28.9%"> <colgroup> <col width="100.0%" /> </colgroup> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><img src="/photo/801385.cms" alt="/photo/801385.cms" border="0" /></div> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><span style="" font-size:="" font-weight:="" bold="">Sachin pumping his fists</span></div> </td> </tr> </table></div> <div class="Normal">After beating Lanka by four runs in the second round of the Super League match of the Asia Cup, India suddenly became a team worth betting on for the finals.
In the previous match against Lanka Viru finally gave us a swashbuckling performance making 81 runs followed by the skipper Sourav Ganguly''s 79.<br /><br />We now had an action-packed team all ready to destroy the Lankans in the finals, minus Balaji of course, who had a poor outing in the series. The big game was lost and I was humorously disappointed. Why amusingly disappointed? Well, that''s because the team might have been unable to bring the Cup but they managed to make me go through a series of emotions, only in a couple of hours.<br /><br />They say cricket is a mind game, well I don''t know about that but it most definitely is mind boggling game when so much happens in a span of hundred overs.<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">Here''s my story: </span><br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">Ist phase - Love them:</span> India reached the final and every Indian felt proud. I was watching television on Saturday night where every Indian face that came on TV couldn''t stop raving about their team. The moment I saw people dying with excitement, I instantly told myself that "yes", we are all set to destroy the Lankans tomorrow. Honestly, I''m not an avid cricket follower and my knowledge of the game is almost zilch. I guess as much as Mandira Bedi''s, may be a little more, but it''s for matches like these that get me all excited. <br /><br />Sunday morning had the country''s hopes pinned on the team. The first thing that I did in the morning was to give a reminder to my friends to keep the bet money aside. I booed them for supporting Lanka and asked them to watch Lanka getting destroyed. The game couldn''t have started better for India. Sanath Jayasuriya, India''s tormentor in the previous game, went within the first five overs. Indians couldn''t have loved their team more as the match was half won. <br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">2nd phase - Cheer for them:</span> The bowlers kept the pressure on: Pathan, Sachin and Sehwag restricted the Lankans to a measly 228/9. It was the bowlers'' innings: Irfan leaping in the air in excitement as he took the wickets of WS Jayantha and Upul Chandana, Sachin pumping his fists after taking the valuable wickets of Mahela Jayawardene and TM Dilhan and Sehwag holding his hands high as he celebrated the dismissal of Marvan Atapattu and Kumara Sangakarra. A dream was born: could this be the match that would break the ''finals'' jinx? Was it time to cheer the chokers? Yes it was, Irfan''s leap almost had me jumping from my seat, I imitated Sachin as he clenched his fists and the urge to pat Sehwag definitely crossed my mind.<br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section2"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">3rd phase - Pray for them:</span> After an exciting first half, a batting extravaganza was expected. The Indian innings came with a trail of frustrations as the batsmen failed to perform. Virender Sehwag headed the trail, followed by Ganguly, Dravid, Kaif and Yuvraj. One after the other the wickets fell as the world-renowned batting line-up failed to click. Sachin who struggled for a winning partnership looked visibly overburdened, as the little master carried on his shoulders the team’s pressure and the nation''s hopes. We were now nearing almost thirty overs and were still unable to score a century.<br /><br />Sachin struggled for a partner and I struggled with my prayers. Praying for the team and watching the match simultaneously wasn''t easy. I spoke to God in intervals. The moment I saw Dravid come in I told myself here comes The Wall, only to find out that the Wall crumbled under pressure. Then came the skipper who skipped a chance to save his team, then came Kaif who hasn''t performed in 500 years. The batsmen left the ground one by one mercilessly walking on our hopes.<br /><br />The only person who could save us was the God of Indian cricket, Sachin Tendulkar. We have seen matches before when the onus fell entirely on Sachin and in an overburdened state he usually was unable to perform. His dismissal meant India''s loss. What was dreaded came true. Sachin left the crease after making 74 runs and hope of India winning the Cup despaired. <br /><br />What started as a hopeful dream soon turned into a nightmare as India lost to Lanka falling short of 25 runs. We lost the Asia Cup, failing to chase an easy target. India lost the match and I lost Rs 1, 000. I suddenly became the busiest person living, as I began ignoring calls from friends. Thanks to the SMS age that I went through my share of humiliation. One after the other, my phone beeped with teasers. Every Indian must have grumbled, as the Lankans took the Cup which was almost residing in our kitty.<br /><br />Clouds of exuberant celebrations on their way to India decided to change path and take the route to Lanka instead. What was left for the Indians were the hard hitting winds of disappointment.<br /><br /><span style="" font-weight:="" bold="">Moral of the story:</span> Love your team, cheer for them, pray for them but never bet on them. </div> </div>
