Asian Games: What winning a cricket gold medal in Japan means to Shreyas and Co

NAGOYA: The players bit the medal on the podium. “That’s what all medalists do, don’t they?,” asked Shreay Iyer. They were living the entire experience – just like Olympic sports athletes. The make-shift cricket ground was bathing in strong sunshine without any trace of rain that badgered this region.

The game in the middle was interesting but the names displayed on the TV screen sounded more curious. Who would you think TTV Namboori is? Or for that matter S Viswanadh? WS Mani Sundar? SR Dube and SS Iyer names can be guessed but some of them are not the normal ones you see. In Japan, they are as famous as their names displayed on the TV screens.

Here, cricket is just another sport that is somewhat similar to baseball without the base and the pit. But then, this is the Asian Games. For India and the rest of the cricket playing nations, they are warming up to the Olympics – two years later in LA. Even the uniform India wore was of the same make as other members of the Indian contingent. The packed stands came to watch their favourite cricketers play in a country that is alien to the sport.

India team has learnt a few things from this Asian Games. The Games Village or the lack of it led them to book a new hotel. The village rooms were not big enough for their kit bags. The concept medal ceremony was another obligation.

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On any ordinary day, India would have easily crossed the 200-mark with Abhishek Sharma sending the ball to all corners of the park; sometimes, taking the aerial route. The pitch was not flat. Weary after two weeks of cricket, it did not make for an ideal T20 pitch. There were times batters were struggling to find their rhythm on the sun-soaked Korogi Sports park here on Saturday. Viabhav Sooryavanshi did not sparkle but was happy with the participation.

With randomness in play, India had to bat Pakistan out of the equation. Any low-scoring game could be tricky. Once India crossed the 200-mark there was no looking back. Abhishek and a late onslaught by TTV, read Tilak Varma, was enough for the team to secure a match-winning total. Abhishek scored 28-ball 61 and TTV went berserk in the end with an unbeaten 51 off 22 balls. Pakistan’s fielding was as Pakistan could be with dropped catches and misfields.

Pakistan innings was peppered with top, fine and all kinds of edges in the beginning. But after the three wickets there was a short interlude. The Pakistan team managed to stretch the game for the 3000 odd people who came to watch their cricketing heroes. In the end, India prevailed to add another gold.

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For Iyer and his team, everything has been part of experience. It is not always that someone in the team can win a gold medal. “That itself is a driving force,” he said. “The feeling is fantastic,” he said. “I personally feel that we are a professional bunch of players, and all we want to do is come and play as long as possible. It doesn't matter what the conditions are, what facilities we get, because the eventual goal is to win. And today, we won that game, and I'm elated by each and every individual performance, stepping up to this occasion where we knew that it was raining constantly and the practice sessions were very limited.”

S Viswanadh, aka Sanju Samson, walked towards and spoke to a select journalists in Malayalam. “Two matches were played normally, but the conditions were quite different. The final was very tight; they played really well. So it doesn't feel like gold that was handed to us easily — it feels like something we really had to fight for. That makes the happiness even greater.”

World Cup or Asian Games medal, Sanju was in his usual self and not hiding behind semantics. “I am just happy right now and don't have any big greed or cravings. I'm happy with what we've achieved and looking forward to going home with a happy heart.”

“It's my first time in Japan. It's a wonderful country, great people, and a good system. I enjoyed it as much as possible. I feel cricket has good potential here; once facilities and infrastructure improve, it will definitely get even better.”
Like Samson, Iyer also spoke about the feeling. “It's very different because you come to a country where cricket is not worshipped that much, and even though the country is very beautiful — we loved it when we arrived—because the discipline and the amount of culture this country has, it is something to learn from. And I also feel that even though the facilities were limited, we were absolutely aware of what's going to happen.”

This is just a stepping stone for the Olympics. The India team would be preparing with this gold. Cricket can safely be considered as the biggest colonial legacy the country has inherited and is something impossible to shake off. When it comes to India and Pakistan the sport divides more than what sports are supposed to do. It was visible even on Saturday when the two captains tossed (they did it close to the sight screen away from the prying eyes), when the two teams lined up and in the end when the game ended.