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Tough men do cry!

The betting scandal and especially the Chandrachud report has made a laughing stock of Indian cricket. But there is one person who is not laughing. In fact he cried like a child.

If there is one cricketer that I am proud of, it is Kapil. If there is one cricketer who truly represented his country, it is Kapil. If I have to single out one cricketer who transformed India into world champions, it is Kapil. Kapil, by far, was India's greatest player ever.

Tendulkar has proved that there can be another Gavaskar. Can there be another Kapil ?. I hope not. For, why would you subject another man to the same indignity that Kapil is facing today?

Once proclaimed as the 'The Emperor of Pace In A Kingdom Of Spin', he played with such a big heart, that it prompted Sir Vivian Richards to say "Kapil is the only 'man' in the Indian team". And even today it is Sir Vivian Richards who has jumped to his support. Though most media reports failed to see it that way. Most of them accused Sir Richards of adding fuel to the fire.

It's going to take a lot more than dramatic tears for Kapil to prove his innocence. Is he innocent ? I have no doubt that he is. If proven otherwise, I can be certain that every cricketer who ever played for India in recent times is guilty. What must be hurting Kapil the most, is the virtual absence of support from his teammates past and present. Why are these guys silent? Either they have proof that he is guilty or they don't. There is no third scenario. You either know of instances where he threw games or you don't. If they do have proof why are they keeping quiet about it? And if they don't have proof, why not support the man?

Another good thing Richards did was to clear any doubts that were cast over India's World Cup win in 1983. India's World Cup win was indeed authentic. And what a magical moment that was. 17 years ago a 24-year-old brought home the World Cup. Something the entire nation had not even dreamt of. India's greatest achievement in sports outside of hockey. And today when the same man, now 41, is reduced to tears, he has no support. Today players have come close to scoring a double century in one-day cricket. But there is a certain charm and a fairytale touch to Kapil's storied knock of 175 n.o in the World Cup which will be hard to match. I hope this crisis too has a fairytale ending for him.

Kapil's breakdown may seem out of character. People say the man is too strong to cry. Men do cry. When they feel helpless. With authenticity taken away from his performances for his country, he must be feeling just that .... Helpless.