The Indian cricket team is currently in South Africa for a full tour, including Tests, One-Day Internationals and Twenty20s, starting January 5. Virat Kohli’s men will be hoping to end their drought in the rainbow nation, where they haven’t won a single Test series.
About a month ago, Sony Pictures Sports Network, which is the official broadcaster of the tour in India, released a promotional video for the series. The video, titled “Hisaab 25 saal ka”, or payback for 25 years, plays on the very fact that India have never won a Test series in South Africa since their first tour in 1992.
As Cricket South Africa release their classy promo for #SAvIND, here's a reminder why Indian sports broadcasters need to grow up: https://t.co/roCalw7zPn
— The Field (@thefield_in) January 2, 2018
The video tries hard to evoke a yearning for revenge in Indian cricket fans watching the series. This is evident when Sachin Tendulkar is shown walking off after being dismissed, with the voice-over saying “Badla lenge bhagwaan ke apmaan ka” (We will take revenge for insulting our god). However, the video fails miserably in evoking any sense of revenge, instead coming across as rather juvenile.
South Africa have also produced a promotional video for the series and, to everyone’s relief, it’s got zero jingoism or revenge drama. Instead, it focuses on the shared history of the two countries and the fact that India was the first team to tour South Africa after its re-entry into world cricket following a ban imposed during the apartheid era.
Here’s hoping Indian sports channels watch this: