Diplomacy’s ‘doosra’

Who needs diplomats when the Indian cricket team is at hand?
‘Love thy neighbour’, says the commandment. Our cricketers go one better – we let the neighbours win. And while we are at it, we let a lot of other countries win too. Fans who fume at this string of debacles are missing the big picture. If they focus on the positive outcome of defeat, they will realise that the silver lining far outweighs the cloud.For what is the larger aim of sport? It is to spread goodwill, and nobody spreads it as generously around the world as Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men.
Think back to our recent international tours. Australian cricket was in the dumps before we landed. Having just lost to arch rivals New Zealand, the public standing of the Aussie team was lower than that of Kingfisher’s with the DGCA. It was the India XI which gently nursed their batsmen back to peak form and helped their bowlers to rediscover their rhythm.
In Bangladesh, we were even more magnanimous. Here was a country that despite its best efforts was still being looked upon as an ‘Economy’ class passenger who had somehow wangled an unpaid upgrade to ‘First’. The Indian team took it upon themselves to bring about a transformation. We believed in them – more in fact than they believed in themselves. By providing them an opportunity to beat the world champions, we made a nation of 160 million feel good about itself.
You don’t need to be a philosopher or psychologist to know that nature abhors regular, relentless winners. The teacher’s pet who knows all the answers by heart and stands first in class every time is not really well-liked. He may earn what seems like respect but to win the endearing popularity of the backbenchers, he needs to let others share the limelight.
This idea of losing a game in order to push an off-field agenda has been tried and tested across all walks of life. During my courtship days long ago, i remember being repeatedly beaten hollow by Lalitha’s dad at chess and scrabble. This cemented the old man’s reputation within the family as a cerebral hotshot and advanced my case as a suitable boy, offsetting my meagre financial prospects. It happens often in the professional world too. We all know of ambitious young executives who get ignominiously defeated by their ageing bosses on the badminton court, and soon after get plum postings and out of turn promotions.
What works for individuals works even better for nations. If the BCCI gets together with the ministry of external affairs, the potential for track two, or ‘doosra’ diplomacy can be exploited to the fullest with countries with whom we have outstanding issues. The ‘doosra’ may well prove more productive than the mainstream efforts of our envoys because it appeals directly to the masses.
To the man in the street in Dhaka, Colombo, and i dare say, Melbourne, concepts like bilateral trade and most favoured nation status appear remote. They don’t affect him one way or the other. What really lifts his spirits is the sight of our superstars – never mind if most of them are approaching superannuation – turning their local boys into heroes.
Happy people make more accommodative negotiators. So if you believe in striking when the iron is hot, this is as good a time as any to settle the river waters dispute with Bangladesh. The best part of this brand of give-and-take is that it does not flout any known law. There is no match-fixing involved since our cricketers are not expected to fraudulently underperform. All they need to do is play their natural game. If they continue with the friendliest of pace attacks and keep harbouring that mortal dread of any ball that rises above knee-height, ‘doosra’ diplomacy will do the rest.
Now, if only we could get the Chinese to play cricket.