India short on friends in Colombo crowd

Colombo: Exiting a prestigious tournament like the Twenty20 World Cup can be shattering for any team and the feeling in and around the Indian and South African dressing rooms on Tuesday night was palpable.

Both teams started off with huge expectations and it wasn’t easy to be forced to pack up and leave before the end of the tournament.

South Africa had arrived after a series of victories took them to the top of the world rankings.

With some fantastic all-rounders, they were labelled as favourites, only to find themselves knocked out even before their last Super Eight match started.

India, after defeating Pakistan, were confident of their semi-final spot, only to find the script of the tournament undergoing a total change with Pakistan spinning out Australia and gaining a better run-rate.

The stadium was packed with Pakistan and Sri Lankan supporters and they cheered for South Africa. When the Proteas went past the 121-run mark, which ended India’s dream of reaching the semi-finals due to their inferior run-rate, the crowd celebrated more than the South Africans.

Pakistan and Sri Lankan flags fluttered all around, but there many home fans who were waving the Pakistan flags since very few Pakistanis had flown in for the match.

It looked as if the crowd did not want India to be in the semi-finals. The thundering applause at the fall of every Indian wicket made it seem as if one was reporting from South Africa.

When asked about the anti-India sentiments in Sri Lanka, a local journalist said: “Sri Lankans were very upset over India’s refusal to support the Sri Lankan Premier League recently, and the fans were waiting to see India’s downfall after we were thrashed 4-1 in the one-day series held in July-August this year.”

Firecrackers burst outside the stadium as soon as India were ousted from the World Cup. One disappointed Indian supporter from Kanpur said: “If not for the rain in the match against Australia, when our bowlers were unable to grip the ball properly, we would have been in the semi-final and would have thrashed Sri Lanka.”

So disappointed was the Indian team that they did not even celebrate their one-run win over South Africa. Except for Laxmipathi Balaji, who took the last South African wicket to give India the exciting victory, none of his teammates were smiling. The team walked back like losers despite the victory.