When obsession knows no bounds

Heartbroken as a distraught Rohit Sharma walked out of the field after conceding a six-wicket defeat at the hands of a robust Australian side at Ahmedabad's Motera, a 32-year-old cricket loyalist breathed his last due to cardiac arrest.

Jyothi Kumar Yadav, a software engineer by profession, collapsed watching India's failed attempt to win a third World Cup title on Sunday. Yadav, a resident of Durgasamudram in Tirupati, was ecstatic when the Men in Blue resurrected their inning and scalped the wickets of David Warner and Mitchell Marsh early, but was driven by despair as Australia tightened their grip on the encounter. Despite the best efforts of the medical team at SVIMS Hospital, Yadav was declared dead on arrival.

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Another fan, hailing from West Bengal's Bankura district, reportedly died by suicide after being unable to cope with the loss.

Resentment has its genesis in hope, and violence in betrayal. A wise man once said, if you let the game into your heart, it will show you highs and lows you never thought possible. Perhaps, more lows than highs.

However, in all conscience, Indian fans have enough reasons to be cut up with the sport's apparent indifference to justice. Sharma's comrades were undoubtedly one of the favourites to lift the crown. Not to mention, statistics suggested host countries have emerged as winners in the past three editions, naturally, India had a competitive advantage.

Moreover, no team has been as successful in the league phase as India, who have won all nine matches to finish atop the points table with a striking Net Run Rate (NRR) of 2.570. But the consistency meant little as the side put up a regrettable batting display on Sunday afternoon amid the deafening clamour and confusion at the Narendra Modi Stadium.

Desperate to make up for years of big-match heartbreaks, and equipped with one of the strongest line-ups in their history, India were surprisingly no match for the high-powered Aussies. Stunned and numbed, many refused to leave their seats, while others used the national flag they had wrapped around themselves to wipe away their tears.

"Cricket is a matter of life and death for some. My boys had requested a day's holiday to recover from the World Cup defeat. For some of them, who have come from the rural belts of Maharashtra, life starts and ends at cricket. And the Indian players they see on screen are idolised as gods, so it is easy to lose motivation at times. As their coach, it is my responsibility to keep their emotions in check," Narendra Kumar Pitale told Mid-Day, while overseeing a net practice at Oval Maidan.

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India, touted as the favourite, could do little to restrain Australia's plan of action on Sunday, unable to win over the cruel lash of fate in the end. More often than not, the side has ended up bearing a mark of that lash (India have not won an ICC title since the 2013 Champions Trophy), a wound so deep that the cry of pain echoes in the annals of the sport's greatest catastrophes.

Cricket has been often hailed as a glorious game of uncertainty, and it is the same uncertainty that charms minds into watching it over and over again. This uncertainty, the lack of awareness about what could happen in the next minute, is one of the routes through which emotions come flooding in before one knows.

It is then, perhaps, no secret that fans (like to) place their favourite cricketers on a pedestal, attributing to them a godly status. As they idolise to an extreme, they submit themselves completely and reason takes a back seat.

"Is it fandom? No, this is madness. I agree that it could be tough for some to recover from the disappointment of something they had dreamt of, but ending your own life means you are just going way beyond the limit. I always tell my son that never let cricket be your life, it should be seen as a part of one's life, that's it," explained Dr. Ruchita Jain, a Mumbai-based surgeon.

"I think it is fun if you are a genuine cricket lover. Cricket is a nice distraction from your everyday life. But mind you, if the same thing becomes a cause of destroying your peace of mind and starts affecting you personally, what's the point?" added Jain.

However, despite the countless turmoil fans have faced in times of crises, Indian cricket and its fans have come full circle on a roller-coaster ride overflowing with emotions, sometimes ecstasy in victories or turbulence in heartbreaks. Come what may, the perpetual journey remains unaffected.