There were days when they were the talk of the town. Bowlers shuddered by the thinking of bowling at them. Many of them could not progress in their careers after being hammered by them. When 'He' arrived at crease to open in an ODI innings, nation came to a standstill to witness the copybook strokes. They held their breath when 'He' used to step down the track to most feared spinners of the world, to hit them over long-off and long-on. 'He' has been named as 'The wall' and Mr. Reliable and is considered technically the best batsmen the world has ever seen. Elegance of 'His' strokes made Australians wonder why 'he' was not a regular part of Indian cricket team.
You would second me that they have been the best in business for so many years now! But it seems that time has finally caught up with them. They are looking straight down the barrel, all at the same time. The batsmen who was the nemesis of the 'Shane Warne', is gasping for air against a debutant!A'The Wall' is simply clueless. 'The god of off-side cricket' has been no different ! 'His' elegance is pleading for some more time to unveil itself !
I don't think it's all about the 'talent' of the 'mystery spinner'. After all he is the same bowler who bowls to the man with big appetite, Sehwag and new find of Indian cricket, Gautam Gambhir. Haven't they faced the same bowlers? Man, they have given some performance ! But the 'FAB 4' are totally out of sorts. And my dear friend, this could be it. This could just be the start of end of an era which saw greatest Indian (or probably world's) best four individual batsmen come together who could never make a world beater team.
If my worst fears come true, great indian selectors (which seem to me the best group of individuals who run A responsible entity in India) could be tempted to try 'young talent' in test cricket in just the next series which is against the world champions at home. If they choose to drop the 'fab 4', it would be marked as most disgraceful exit for a bunch of cricketers who made the game of cricket look more beautiful. I would advise them like most Indians (we are most selfish when it comes to cricket) to announce their retirement right after this test series against Sri-Lanka. World would never discuss their failures again, if they choose to do so, simply because they would have left behind a large enough legacy of successes to discuss forever. Collectively they have drubbed and set more cricketing records than any other four batsmen playing together in a team.
Whatever may be the case, their exit from Indian cricket team would mark the end of an era. The world of cricket will never be same again. It would be deprived of the best batsmen of contemporary times. But whenever we look back, Sachin's fabulous drives through covers will always make us smile; Saurav's sixes of murali will always be the best example of elegant spin play; Dravid's technique will always be considered a model for defense and VVS would always be looked upon highly for his all brilliance against the world champion team.
Thanking you 'Fab 4' for all the contribution you have made to the world of cricket. Cricket will become significantly poorer when you choose to leave the center stage or when you are made to do that .
