"It is time for Indian cricket supporters to grow up and accept defeat as an essential part of the game. Sport is not about winning; it is about losing. Trust me, we in English cricket know more about that than anyone," he said.

"They will lose in various ways - some thrillingly, some abjectly - but lose they will. It is what makes the moments of triumph all the more special.

"After all, if winning was all about there was, what would there be to celebrate? Indian supporters, the most immature in cricket, cannot seem to grasp this simple fact," he said.

After India crashed out of the Twenty20 World Cup, fans in India have reacted with unbridled anger, burning Mahendra Singh Dhoni's effigy and questioning his leadership.

Observing how the Indian fans tend to go overboard with their reaction to both success and failure, Atherton said, "So where once temples were erected in Ranchi to deify its most famous son, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, now effigies are burnt. Once the Army had to be called out because the mob had laid homage to a hair salon where Dhoni was having his luxuriant locks lopped off, but veneration has now turned to vituperation.

"Burning effigies of losing captains on the sub-continent is nothing new, as Wasim Akram and countless others would testify. It was, though, more understandable at a time when Indian cricket was looking to flex its muscles," he said.