Pillow talk

Those whom the gods wish to destroy they first make proud.

From the time the Indian cricket team landed in New Zealand they have been treated as kings. The hosts have even gone to the extent of having an advertisement campaign that calls them the "rockstars" of cricket. Unlike the Australians, the Kiwis have been going around praising each and every Indian player to the skies. This is mental disintegration of a different kind. The Indian team under MS Dhoni has fed off adversity, circling the wagons so to speak, in bucking historical trends. In the absence of malice, many of the Indian players seem to have been caught up in the hype. Two losses in the T20 matches have had the media scrambling to find a plausible explanation for the team's failures. I haven't seen the matches, but from the excellent descriptions of CricInfo it just sounds as if many of the batsmen are underestimating the opposition bowlers and throwing their wickets away.

Steve Waugh and the Australians did not get into the Indian team's head as easily as Vettori and co. have. And all it took was some sweet talking. Whodathunk it?!