It is said that cricket is a religion in India. Well, I would say cricket is like super star Rajnikanth!! There is nothing specifically interesting in either, yet everyone loves both. It is almost a status symbol to like them, especially in UK.

Have you ever examined the reasons for Indians loving cricket so much? If you haven’t, then I am going to lob at you a few full tosses. Whack them for sixes or get bowled.

First of all, it is a team game. So you can blame someone else for your failures. Dropped catches, missed stumping, getting run out because of someone else, and some distraction behind bowler’s arm – these are some examples.

You can also blame 'situations beyond one's control'. Pitch behaviour and condition, weather factor, and sun in the eye while taking a catch, bowling action, and insufficient light -the list can go on and on.

Indians always like length. I mean they want most things to be stretched in terms of duration. Be it a movie, concert, executive working hours or a game – the longer, the better.. While a 50 over match lasts for the best part of a day, even T 20 matches last more than three hours. Of course, test matches take the cake. We are satisfied with the money and time spent only if the duration is long enough.

The rules of the game of cricket are quite simple as compared to other team games –there are no confusing terms like offside, three touch etc. We only believe in simple things and love them. In spite of its simplicity, sometime you find "lovers" of this game glued to it without a clue as to what is happening and why.

Cricket is played only in few commonwealth countries. Wouldn't you feel very proud if your child came second even in a race run by TWO people? Well, the same logic applies here. You will be surely within the top ten in the game, played perhaps by only ten countries. What satisfaction!

Cricket is perhaps the only game where a player can go out of the game for some time - even take a nap and eat a meal – and then rejoin the game. So much like us, resting during work. What more, in cricket you can actually ask someone else to do your running around (which I think is not possible in any other game), like having a runner for you when you bat. How we love somebody else doing chores for us while we relax and take all the credit.

Options – another great aspect of this game!! If you fail as a middle order batsman, you can try for a opening batsman’s place (or vice versa), or can become a bowler too or perhaps even a wicket keeper. If nothing works you can be the captain, for your “shrewd cricketing brain”. Remember Mike Brearley?

Cricket lovers, mull over these. But let me admit that I love cricket as much as you do, if not more.

Cricket and Indian's passion for it, VAAZHGA!! Happy world cup viewing! Enjoy the moment MSD lifts the world cup!!!