Unless you're God, a.k.a. Sachin Tendulkar, a few bad outings for the Indian team are enough for fans to write you off.
It's another thing that they will come running back to sing your praises when you hit form again.
Fan loyalty is more vulnerable than even brand loyalty in highly competitive purchase environments. That's where the rest of the persona helps.
Reactions to Sreesanth's dismal show in India's first match against Bangladesh (5-0-53-0, the worst by an Indian bowler in WC history) leaves us with questions beyond the cricket field.
For instance, what would be his core attributes as a celebrity?
One point of view is that he is a humanised and possibly more dramatised version of the Japanese anime character Shin-chan.
A quick check on Wikipedia tells us that there is a definite fit. So what must he do to change that persona? Nothing, in the view of some spin doctors (a.k.a. image managers).
“Sreesanth has been in the news, even if it has been more often for the wrong reasons. There's an impression that has formed and to undo that he will have to conform to norms – a radical departure from what has been embedded in fans' minds,” notes an image manager, off the record.
There's some merit in the argument for maintaining the ‘bad boy' image, especially in the context of the forthcoming IPL 4. But it may do him some good to tone down the eccentricity, now that he will possibly be the face of the Kochi IPL team.
Speaking to The Hindu (January 19), Geoff Lawson, coach of the Kochi IPL team, said that Sreesanth will be the Kochi team's crowd puller, the big star. It's a tricky road ahead for the Malayali cricketer. On and off the field.
A country cousin of his foresees a career for him in mimicry - and Malayalam cinema thereafter.
One senses though that he'll possibly be eyeing Bollywood instead. If he does make the cut, he'll have his bad boy image to thank.
In the meantime, let's pray for his return to form on the field, at least until April 2.