I bet no country in this world has slipped back so badly in sports as ours.

In the Fifties, our football wizards entered the semi-finals of the Olympics and narrowly missed a medal. Today, we get thrashed by some Dutch team. Olympics or the World Cup, it is a distant dream.

Thanks to players like Dhyan Chand & Co., we won an amazing seven consecutive Olympic golds. Truly record breaking. World Cup, 1986, Indian and Pakistan battled for the 11th place in a 12-nation tournament. More than a half-century back, winning the Olympic gold medal was routine. Now, even if we “qualify” for Barcelona ’92, we’ll be ecstatic.

A trip down memory lane. Ramanathan Krishnan makes it to two consecutive Wimbledon semi-finals. Vijay Amritraj makes his presence in the tennis world, at his peak is ranked 13th in the world. Wimbledon 1991, rising star Leander Paes is out in the qualifying rounds. Quo Vadis, former national champion Zeeshan Ali? He can’t even qualify for the qualifying rounds! What an anti-climax.

On to the Asiads. In the inaugural games as well as in 1982, we got more than 10 gold medals. 1990? One lone Kabaddi gold medal. Our national anthem was heard just once. That gold was also due to the ignorance of the game of other countries, which turns out to be our bliss. Now even Kabaddi is out in future meets.

Whither cricket mania? In 1983, India won the World Cup. In 1984, India won the Benson & Hedges. In 1985, India won Sharjah. 1986? Miandad blasts a six and India is out. Clean bowled: If we don’t win with Pakistan this season, it’ll be ‘Six’ dismal years since we last won with them. That’s the effect of just one ball, a Javed Miandad-Chetan Sharma combine. Oh for those good old days.

How does one react when one reads of an a) Asian gold medallist bus conductor? B) Asian silver medallist watchman? C) A 1980 Olympic gold medallist unemployed?

These are not three fictitious characters, but cold hard facts of Indian sports today. All one can do is either hold one’s head in frustration or pray to God for India’s sports salvation.

(This appeared as a Letter to the Editor in The Times of India)