The recent hullaballoo on the announcement by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in casually dolling out taxpayers hard earned money to the already well-paid (some may say overpaid) Indian cricketers nudged me into some serious thinking. Personally, I believe that the CM had no business to dish out such largesse for multiple reasons. Firstly, the government is in debt and we have more pressing needs where funds are required; these include among others, the farming sector, the infrastructure sector and adequately financing our unsung heroes – the armed forces, the doctors, the police force, and the municipal workers who worked overnight to clean up to eleven tonnes of garbage left behind by the euphoric crowd frenzy cheering Rajiv Shukla and our World Cup winners along the Marine Drive. Secondly, the cricketers earn substantially not just from prize money, but also from their annual contract with the BCCI, State Associations, from their match fees and more importantly by endorsing thousands of brands. As a society it is time we move beyond mindless hero worship and a biased obsession towards cricket and the cricketers.
Drawing an analogy, cricket rather cricketers are perhaps equivalent to countries such as Namibia, Suriname and Zambia who are the worst performers along the Gini Co-efficient Index; the global index that highlights income and wealth inequality within a nation. I say cricketers and not cricket because as a sport cricket is influenced by market dynamics. Cricketers not so. Their income is influenced by the whims and fancies of hero worshippers and politicians who sadly with the objective of winning elections coupled with their lack of education get confused as fans succumbing to poor decision making.
Chirag Shetty was brutally honest and correct when he vented out his frustration with the cricket mania that we are saddled with. Sadly, to add to Chirag’s plea, the sports minister of Maharashtra may not even be aware of the significance of the Thomas cup. It is surely not as big as the cricket World Cup; but this enormity is only in the eyes of all the cricket crazy fans. You put yourself in the shoes of a badminton fan, and he or she may beg to differ.
With India aspiring to host the 2036 Summer Olympics, it is time that we empathize with the other sports and sportsmen and celebrate their efforts with equal magnanimity. We have so many heroes and heroines to celebrate and cherish, those who have quietly and steadily contributed to the popularity, growth, and development of other sports. We also have millions of non- sporting superstars. (Filmstars excluded here) We unfortunately take them for granted. Look at our armed forces, our medical fraternity, the philanthropists; the list is endless. Look at so many grass roots coaches who have given their blood and sweat to nurture and create a Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, and others. It was good to see Ashok Iswalkar, Surya’s childhood coach celebrated by Cadbury’s along with K L Rahul’s coach. It was good to see some of these silent, behind the scene contributors on prime-time television basking in the glory of India’s triumph and feeling a sense of pride and delight in the success of their wards. These men and women need to be celebrated. These people have contributed to the game only because of their love for the game. They do not get any pension, nor any medical insurance to look after their needs as they move into the twilight of their lives.
I am sure some of the players look after their childhood coaches. I have heard stories of Paras Mhambrey supporting his coach Hemu Dalvi when he was bedridden and struggling financially. Such gestures are far and few in between, and one needs to put a system in place. The BCCI has a fantastic system of supporting old cricketers but is it enough when one compares to what the current generation is earning? Or are we missing the larger picture? The recent suicide of ex India cricketer, David Johnson is a case in point.
I am talking about two areas of inequality here – one between cricket and the other sports and the other between the current generation of cricketers and the older ones. More importantly, we do have the resources to correct this imbalance or inequality especially between cricket and the other sports. The government and the private sector need to make that concerted effort and we as fans of sports must play a pivotal role in supporting our athletes. Not just by paying attention to every other sport apart from cricket only once in four years as is likely to happen when the Paris Games start later this month. With BCCI, a private entity that is cash rich, the government could direct them to allocate a part of their funds to the development of other sports, especially those that need funding and are cash strapped. Not because of poor management by the federation concerned but because of the economics of the sport.
Both Rahul Dravid and now I hear Rohit Sharma have played their part in addressing this inequality by refusing to accept beyond a certain amount of money. Hope many more follow. Also, hopefully India will win many medals during the upcoming Olympics and receive accolades and monetary rewards from both the government and private sector. Perhaps equivalent to our cricketers.
