MUMBAI, March 24: Former players, board officials and the national media were united in condemning the star-studded Indian team that had all but crashed out of the World Cup in the Caribbean on Friday.

Winners in 1983 and finalists in the last tournament, India suffered a 69-run defeat in their crunch Group B match against Sri Lanka and their slim hopes of progressing now hinge on an unlikely defeat for Bangladesh by debutants Bermuda on Sunday.

“It is disappointing. This is not what we deserve,” former Test batsman and coach Anshuman Gaekwad said on Saturday.

“But mistakes made earlier turned out to be very costly,” he said, referring to the shock defeat to neighbours Bangladesh last Saturday led to this predicament.

“They didn't play well at all. No partnerships. You don't win matches unless there is a team effort,” said the former coach of India's woeful batting display against former champions Sri Lanka.

India were skittled out for 185 in their attempt to chase a challenging total of 254-6.

Indian cricket board president Shard Pawar said it was time to encourage younger players.

“The time has come to sit, discuss and take future course of action,” he told reporters.

“Start encouraging younger players, and provide them more opportunity to play in international games, which will ultimately be helpful in building team, and we will follow this process.” added Pawar, who is also an influential Cabinet minister.

‘CAPITULATION’, ran the page one headline in national daily Hindustan Times with a picture of a dejected Sachin Tendulkar walking back to the pavilion after being dismissed for a duck.

‘Super Flop, not Super Eight,’ screamed the page one headline of the Times of India as it asked, “Bermuda win over Bangla can save us, but do we deserve it?”

The World Cup-frenzy in the country had been fuelled by a multitude of television channels and media houses who have touted the team as favourites and were tracking the action minute-by-minute since the team arrived in the Caribbean.

Television channels reported that Zaheer Khan's restaurant in Pune was stoned while police said that security had been beefed up outside the residences of Sachin Tendulkar and Ajit Agarkar in Mumbai.

Hundreds of cricket fans across the cricket-mad nation burnt effigies, defaced posters and held mock funeral processions of the national team.

Cricket is taken very seriously in India, where players are treated as huge celebrities, paid big money to endorse major commercial brands and put on pedestals by cricket-crazy fans.

But on Saturday, television pictures showed furious cricket fans in towns and cities across India taking to the streets to show their outrage at their national team's defeat.

In the northern city of Kanpur, dozens of residents held a mock funeral procession where people dressed as the 11 cricket players were carried on stretchers through the streets.

“Everyone should leave this cricket team, we should have new youngsters with much more power and more aggression and all these old team members should retire,” said one angry fan.

In other places, fans burnt effigies, stamped on glossy posters of players and daubed their faces with black paint.

Others lashed out at pictures with their shoes.

“It was such a waste of time to see India lose one wicket after another and finally lose the match, I don't want to even talk about it,” said Jatin Panchal, a businessman in the western city of Ahmedabad.

Security has also been stepped up outside the residence of India captain Rahul Dravid's home in the southern city of Bangalore, for fears of an attack or stone-pelting by fans.

In the eastern city of Kolkata, travel agents said many fans planning to travel to the Caribbean to watch India compete in the Super Eight – the last eight remaining teams – had cancelled their bookings.

“At least a dozen persons, who had booked their tickets to the Caribbean to watch India battle in the Super Eights next week have already called to cancel their trip,” travel agent Anil Punjabi said, adding travel agents stood to lose millions of rupees from booking cancellations.

Sumanta Banerjee, 41, was planning to fly to the Caribbean next week to watch India play in the next round, but changed his plans immediately after India's defeat.

“I would rather go to Thailand for holidays now,” he said.—Reuters