DOES CRICKET OVERSHADOW OTHER SPORTS IN INDIA
VIEW
Being a professional cricketer myself, I really do think cricket always over-shadows other sports in our nation that is widely spread with cricket lovers. It has clearly become a money-oriented sport over the years, and without any doubt, gets all the scope. To support my stand, the success earned by the Indian cricket team off late clearly encourages more and more Indians to have a stake in the game. Yes, this does make it harder for cricketers like myself, because of the increasing competition but all said and done, I would love to see more of this competition and scope in other sports as well. Sadly, that doesn't seem to be the case now or even in the near future.
One of the prime reasons cricket does over shadow other sports in our nation is because of the financial support it gets compared to the other games. The BCCI is the richest cricket board in India and that in itself speaks volumes about how the sport is backed up by cash. Ultimately at some point of time, everybody does look at a profession which pays well, especially with modern Indian families and hence, if at all a child is lead into pursuing a career in sport, more often than not, in India, it's cricket. Literally in almost every corner of the country these days, you'd see young boys holding a kitbag going back home after a tiring practice session, myself included. I agree that it is a matter of intense passion, dedication and commitment but of course, a lot of it has been built upon watching our favourite players reap the rewards on the field and thus strive to achieve the same someday. To add to this, in the modern day, youngsters like myself get heavily influenced by the lifestyle of our idols and almost adopt the exact same practices in our lives be it diets, hairstyles, clothing, equipment, brands and so on. We watch popular cricketers in advertisements and copy them in whichever way possible. Leading sports brands like Adidas, Nike, etc are well aware of the fame held by cricketers and hence do not usually offer roles to other sportsmen thus leading to the lack of popularity among the youth.
I have only highlighted a handful of the points why cricket clearly over-shadows other sports in India. Any layman would be able to understand my perspective because all said and done, this is reality whether we like it or not. We are a cricket-crazy nation and by the looks of it, we're going to be that way for a long time to come.
One of the prime reasons cricket does over shadow other sports in our nation is because of the financial support it gets compared to the other games. The BCCI is the richest cricket board in India and that in itself speaks volumes about how the sport is backed up by cash. Ultimately at some point of time, everybody does look at a profession which pays well, especially with modern Indian families and hence, if at all a child is lead into pursuing a career in sport, more often than not, in India, it's cricket. Literally in almost every corner of the country these days, you'd see young boys holding a kitbag going back home after a tiring practice session, myself included. I agree that it is a matter of intense passion, dedication and commitment but of course, a lot of it has been built upon watching our favourite players reap the rewards on the field and thus strive to achieve the same someday. To add to this, in the modern day, youngsters like myself get heavily influenced by the lifestyle of our idols and almost adopt the exact same practices in our lives be it diets, hairstyles, clothing, equipment, brands and so on. We watch popular cricketers in advertisements and copy them in whichever way possible. Leading sports brands like Adidas, Nike, etc are well aware of the fame held by cricketers and hence do not usually offer roles to other sportsmen thus leading to the lack of popularity among the youth.
I have only highlighted a handful of the points why cricket clearly over-shadows other sports in India. Any layman would be able to understand my perspective because all said and done, this is reality whether we like it or not. We are a cricket-crazy nation and by the looks of it, we're going to be that way for a long time to come.
-Vikshay Ronald
2 BBA ‘A’
COUNTERVIEW
I Aditya Garg, strongly oppose this notion. Be it Brazil and football, USA and American football or even Malaysia and badminton, every country usually has a sport they favour. This partiality or favouring towards a sport comes from the success a country has achieved in the given field and the same goes for India with cricket it is no lean feat to win 3 world cups and numerous other significant trophies, thus making it our country's most successful and renowned sport. As of the strong financial back up this sport has, isn’t it a basic objective that we should invest most in that aspect of our business which yields maximum returns?
In a less financial sense, people often believe that all parents want their children to be cricketers which is quite normal seeing the success of the sport.
Cricket is often blamed as a reason why other sports do not thrive in our country because too high an amount of the resources are allocated towards it. But facts clearly show that the BCCI, the apex for cricket in India is not funded by the government and most of its profits are earned through its own hard work and victories.
Why is it that sports persons who play other sports believe they are inferior to cricket? Maybe because of something known as a placebo effect where you are convinced of a false situation and you just ride the tide in those situations.
These sports persons often use cricket as an excuse for their failures which is both unsportsmanlike as well as just disappointing.
Maybe my view is shrouded by my love for the game but you will never catch a cricketer blaming other sports or even other people for their failures.
People often wonder why cricketers get all the advertisements, all the little children want to dress up like their favourite cricketers, it's quite simple if you think, why would anyone want to impersonate someone unsuccessful when they can just as easily impersonate someone successful.
In a less financial sense, people often believe that all parents want their children to be cricketers which is quite normal seeing the success of the sport.
Cricket is often blamed as a reason why other sports do not thrive in our country because too high an amount of the resources are allocated towards it. But facts clearly show that the BCCI, the apex for cricket in India is not funded by the government and most of its profits are earned through its own hard work and victories.
Why is it that sports persons who play other sports believe they are inferior to cricket? Maybe because of something known as a placebo effect where you are convinced of a false situation and you just ride the tide in those situations.
These sports persons often use cricket as an excuse for their failures which is both unsportsmanlike as well as just disappointing.
Maybe my view is shrouded by my love for the game but you will never catch a cricketer blaming other sports or even other people for their failures.
People often wonder why cricketers get all the advertisements, all the little children want to dress up like their favourite cricketers, it's quite simple if you think, why would anyone want to impersonate someone unsuccessful when they can just as easily impersonate someone successful.
Cricket may be the most successful ongoing sport as of now in our country, but only time will tell its future success or failure.
Aditya Garg
2 BBA ‘A’
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