MEN IN BLUE WALKS BACK

'You're not Singh-ing anymore,' chanted some English fans, and India certainly weren't as they were dumped out of the competition that they won two years ago, with one Super-Eight game still to be played. It is not that India lost to England that bugs me though I am not exactly over the moon about being kicked out of the tournament. What is going up my nose is the attitude that the Dhoni led tigers(??????) brought to the field. They were sulky, indifferent, casual and you could visibly notice their steadfast cockiness as they tumbled in an untidy heap from the pedestal on which we, the fans, the media and the officials place them so easily and with such total dedication. Arrogance in our cricketers is fed and nourished on a rich diet of money, money and more money not to lightly forget the drip of adulation that goes with the enormous wealth. It is such a heady mix they even forget to smile.

Did anyone see a more pathetic lot than this bunch on Sunday? Talk about putting a foot wrong, Master Yuvaraj symbolized the whole approach when he was stumped with his foot delicately poised five inches above the ground. Go man, go. The only man who fought till the end is Yusuf. What can he do as a single person? Dhoni, a hitter (can say just for namesake) was not even able to hit a six till the end. His experimentation with Ravindra is absolutely idiotic.

You and I both know it is not the three runs. They were never going to be covered. It could have been thirty runs, the score was academic. Two years ago, Indian fans taunted Misbah-ul-Haq with chants of "Miss-ba five runs". On Sunday, it was their team that fell three short. No Singh-ing, no glory. Just time to go home, after playing the next game - against South Africa - for formalities' sake.