“The Redeem Team,” currently streaming on Netflix, makes for a fascinating and gripping watch. It documents the humiliating losses of the US basketball team of NBA superstars at the FIBA (International Basketball Federation) Games in 2002 & 2006 and the Athens Olympics in 2004. The dominant Americans had slipped into ‘the bronze age.’ Then followed the mission of the national team to redeem themselves in the eyes of their fervent home fans and regain the respect of the world of basketball. Culminating with the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

At one point in this docudrama, a sports commentator asks whether ‘the money and greed of the NBA’ had diluted and undermined the competitiveness of Team USA on the global stage. So I started connecting the dots between the IPL and the underwhelming performances of the Indian cricket team on big occasions in world cricket. NBA is a huge business and the IPL is now touted to be the second richest sports league in the world. The US national coach says in the film, ‘We have to learn their game to be able to beat them.’ Just as India cricketers have to step out of the IPL celebrity bubble to take on the raw, relentless, and hard-nosed competition at the ICC championships. A US Olympic team player says that ‘the coach has told them to forget about Cleveland, Lakers, Chicago Bulls on their jerseys. This is all about the national team.’ Read- forget about MI, CSK, and RCB on the jerseys. The Men in Blue represent India. Most interestingly, “The Redeem Team’’ refers to 2 Alphas on the court- Kobe Bryant & Lebron James. ‘Also, we don’t care as to who the Alpha is so long as Team USA wins.’ So be it. Does it really matter if 6 or 7 of the Indian team hit a purple patch or 1 Alpha takes us through the semis or finals or 2 new heroes emerge to take India to the ICC T20 championship trophy on the 13th of November in Australia?

In 2007, Kobe Bryant was widely regarded as an arrogant, controversial loner. The best in US basketball and by default the best on the planet. The ‘Kobe, Kobe’ madness in Beijing in 2008 spoke about his global super-stardom. The gold medal at the Olympics took him into the stratosphere- a huge impact player, a team leader, and the man who stepped up his game when it mattered the most- as in the exhilarating finals against Spain. Will Virat Kohli step up to the crease and win key matches for The Men in Blue?! Will he stamp his majesty and class at the ICC T 20 tournament Down Under to universal cheers of ‘King Kohli’?! The moment is now and here.

The great Kapil Dev has rated India’s chances to enter the semis at a mere 30%. Other experts like Sehwag feel that Babar Azam from Pakistan (who has never played in the IPL) will be the highest run-getter at ICC T-20 2022. The Indian team had lost the last tourney without qualifying for the semi-finals. In 2019, in England, India exited the ODI tournament at the semis stage. At the World Test Championships final at Lords, the Kiwis lifted the trophy. There is no silverware to adorn the BCCI cabinets since 2013. Hopefully, this is going to be our very own ‘Redeem Team.’ Bringing back the Winner’s Cup and the medals and the glory.