Cricket is famously revered in India. Sometimes referred to as a ‘religion’ because of its huge popularity, for many years when the national team played, people in villages across the country would crowd around televisions to watch. If a TV was not available, people would carry transistor radios to listen to the commentary. During test matches, the performance of certain players would dominate conversation in the streets. Cricket brought people together.
In the past few years however, the way people interact with cricket has changed. Fans tend to own smartphones which allows them to watch cricket matches anywhere. It is less of a communal activity now. It is only during world cups or for India versus Pakistan matches that people tend to come together to watch cricket.
And nowadays there is so much cricket. Tests, one-dayers, T20 … the calendar is full of games. English player Ben Stokes blamed his early retirement from one-day matches in July 2022 on there being too much cricket. Former West Indies fast bowler-turned-commentator Michael Holding stepped away from the game after more than 50 years and said he would not miss it. “This game is not the game that I started playing and the game that I knew. It’s different,” he said.
