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Day 93: In Nepal, we had our first taste of the single-minded cricketing obsession of a nation. India’s victory over Pakistan in the Twenty20 World Cup final had sent India into a frenzy of celebration, and on Indian TV it was the only news for at least three days, with English language Indian news channels like CNN-IBN and Headlines Today devoting their entire bulletins to it, along with their current affairs and talking head programmes. There were comparisons to India’s last (50-over) World Cup success in 1983, interviews with players and their families, footage of the local celebrations in far-flung Indian states, and talkback TV asking whether it was time for Indian greats Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly to make way for the younger players who had carried home the Twenty20 trophy.

With the exception of Gujarat, each Indian state immediately announced huge cash prizes for players in the national team - millions of rupees of public money for no apparent reason. The fiscally prudent government of Gujarat did not initially join in the gift-giving madness but belatedly announced some largesse after being lambasted by its Opposition for mean-spiritedness.

We’re hoping to make it to the single Twenty20 match in Mumbai on October 20. Craziness will ensue.

(Felicitation. Odd word, I know, but in common use by Indian media to describe the reaction given to their successful cricketers. Also used by Iranian state media to describe the unverified reaction of Iranian nationals abroad to the successful test flight of their home-made fighter plane. Will felicitation stage an English language comeback?)