Caution amid India's cricket euphoria

Writing on cricket in the early 1990s could be a depressingly easy business. All you did, so went the joke, was alter the scores, change a few names and amend the dateline. The storyline mostly stayed the same - India was average.

And there is nothing worse in sport than average. It is tedious, it is uninspiring, and part of our affection for Sachin Tendulkar then was because he, almost single-handedly, fought against this average-ness, a hero amidst the humdrum.

This staggering ability to be unexceptional was not a cricketing malaise but some wider lack of nerve. There were exceptions in Indian sport, but the rule was meekness.

Leander Paes' gravitational pull at this time was not because he was overburdened with tennis gifts, but because in the Davis Cup he was simply prepared to contest every match till its last point. When he howled in desire, something locked up in us was released.

The current Indian cricket team has howled too, occasionally rudely, but in a cricketing sense it has thrilled, its spirit has become contagious, because it has the powerful scent of self-belief.

These fellows wear the insolent bravery of youth and a cloak of effrontery, though at times they needed to clutch at the experienced hand of Tendulkar. Australian cricket is somewhat a faded photocopy of itself, but beating them at home required from the Indians substantial commitment to the cause and each other and they found it. Opportunity knocked and was tackled to the ground by the Indians.

Indian cricket teams have owned this belief before, but never held onto it, because their commitment to excellence, and each other, was fickle.

Greatness is an ability to repeat, but they have not shown the discipline for it yet. This, then, is Dhoni's test.

He has conquered Australia, but like Australia, he must eventually own the world - in every form. In the past decade, Australia has twice won 16 Tests in a row, and also once won seven in a row, another time six in a row.

India's best in that period has been three Test wins in a row. However, the first time that was achieved it included a win against Zimbabwe, the second included two against Bangladesh. This is how far India has to go.

The captain, who has a cowboy's insouciance about him that is agreeable (though Praveen Kumar's immovable face after a wicket in an overreacting series brought the biggest smile), has many jobs ahead, for eventually he will become Test captain.

He must ensure Ishant Sharma, who is in need of muscle, is not overplayed. He must remind his energetic army that history doesn't remember bank balances, only wins. He must keep faith in his own interesting instinct.

And he must be careful with his words. While his statements (he could have run a single faster than Rohit Sharma even with cramp; Munaf Patel was better than Sreesanth in a particular situation because he didn't think) appear absent of malice, when his team loses they may not be as understanding.

Rohit Brijnath
BBC