Keep the Faith

After a rather painful and completely unexpected Super Eight elimination in the ICC World Twenty20 Championships, the bits, pieces and a meaningless match against champions-elect South Africa are the only sources of minimum redemption and face-saving hope that Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his fallen heroes can pick up. The barrage of criticism that has followed the exit of the Indian cricket team from the prestigious event in England is, not to say the least, shocking.

The media, in particular, has again demonstrated typical opportunism and singled out Dhoni for the utter failure of the defending champions. Undoubtedly, Dhoni has made errors not suited to his cricketing brain but to lambast a man, who has sacrificed his entire batting career for the thankless job of the Indian cricket captain, for defeats in two matches (one by a close three runs) is shameful to say the least. The media is clearly still nursing the wounds of that clash with Dhoni regarding team spirit and Virender Sehwag. In the wake of that ugly confrontation, they have been presented with a roaring opportunity to get even with the Ranchi cricketer. And boy have they have made use of it.

TV channels are running amok with excessive replays of specific errors made by Dhoni in the key defeat against the West Indies and experts from all spheres of life are castigating him for tactical errors. How unfair. To single out Dhoni and give a clean chit to the likes of Suresh Raina and Gautam Gambhir is extremely unjust and what is even more ridiculous is that this inevitably makes captaincy in cricket indirectly or even directly responsible for the poor form of other players. And this even defies logic.

As expected, opinion polls are waiting breathlessly at the end of the tunnel of Dhoni’s journey with many fans and news websites pondering whether sacking Dhoni could pave the way for a new era in Indian cricket. Whether India are better off without his ultra-cool demeanors on field and excessive rotations of the batting order.

Well, the simple answer is No.

To pass a judgment on the career of Dhoni based on a single tournament smacks of rhetorical nonsense of the worst kind and there is clearly no single stand-out successor to Dhoni in Indian cricket’s current scenario. The likes of Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh are better off captaining their respective IPL teams while the leader in a Rohit Sharma or a Suresh Raina is clearly an infant who needs time to blossom.

If Mahendra Singh Dhoni is fast becoming the problem, then he is also the only solution. In him lies the brain to intellectually sort out the wrongs of the current Indian set-up and it is he who has the calmness to realize his and the team’s mistakes and rise out of the ashes. And mind you, it’s only his first major failure. The immediate apology offered by him at the end of the game speaks volumes about Dhoni’s level-headed nature and mental toughness and he is one man who knows and feels the pain of an early exit and collective failure. And what it means to a billion people.

Keep the faith. This isn’t the end of ends. This is a new beginning.

[Posted on Wordpress]

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IPL Ins and Outs

After Shilpa Shetty and her boyfriend Raj Kundra's investment of Rs. 7.5 crores in Rajasthan Royals IPL franchise, Ms. Shetty has said and rightly so that she is here to add glamour to the Royals. The Royals were the winners of the first edition of the Indian Premier League.

"Well I am not going to bullshit myself into believing I've been brought in for my business acumen. The team had it all. They needed the glamour quotient and for that I am here," Shilpa told IANS. [CricketNext]

Refreshing honesty, I must say. Although Ms. Shetty also goes on to add the following gems later in the interview:

Raj is a crazy cricket fan. And why shouldn't he be? He's an Indian who lives in England. All Indian men are crazy about cricket. And everyone knows cricket was born in England. So Raj has a double reason to buy a part of the IPL.

All Indian men are indeed crazy about cricket (and glamorous hot women, skimpily-dressed cheerleaders and Shilpa Shetty herself of course). And cricket was but of course born in England.

And hence Raj's reason to buy a stake is not to see a return on investment but because he is "an Indian who lives in England" and because "Indians are crazy about cricket" and "cricket was born in England". The logic is confounding.

In the wake of Ms. Shetty's pomp-filled arrival on the stage of cricket ka maha yuddh, the IPL has also faced some withdrawals.

Pakistani players
The Pakistan "government" stepped in to ensure no Pakistani player features in the 2009 IPL season.

"We have been informed by the foreign ministry today that the situation is not conducive for Pakistan cricketers to travel to India," sports minister Aftab Jilani told the Associated Press. The sports ministry had last week given clearance to the players to participate in the Indian Twenty20 league, while informing them that their security would be their own and their IPL franchise's responsibility. [Cricinfo]

Oh. Whom will Shah Rukh Khan now jump on after match presentations (and expose a little innerwear in the process for girls to go ga-ga over)?


Michael Clarke
Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke has also pulled out of the IPL. Clarke claims that a busy international schedule is the main reason, but Lalit Modi has a few more things to say. Apparently, Clarke's base amount of $1m was too much to pay.

"I don't think anybody is ready to pay that kind of price," Modi said. [IE]

Maybe Clarke needs time out to contemplate how Australia can undo this.

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Bailgate

Can anybody stop Dhoni and co? In a thundering second one-day international, India defeated Sri Lanka by 15 runs to take a 2-0 lead in the away series.

But what was more post-match news than the match referee summoning Yuvraj Singh for dissen(raised bat towards the umpire for a blatantly wrong decision) and a Sri Lankan, on the lines of Pakistan's famous seen-in-every-match supporter, signalling towards Rohit Sharma to sit down when the player was celebrating the win?

The bails. Umpires are humans. Their mistakes are understood, irrespective of the existence of a bias. But bails! What could basic cricket equipment have to do with India's path to greatness in the sport?

Well, I managed to sneak up on the bails. For no reason, I choose to call them President AAZ and Prime Minister YRG as I failed to get their names. Here's what happened:-

President AAZ: Hey listen YRG. Today, I've come up with a master plan to make sure India doesn't win.

Prime Minister YRG: What plan?

AAZ: Today I've decided that whatever happens we will just refuse to move when India is bowling.

YRG: What? Are you sure of this? Will such denial work?

AAZ: Yes. Trust me. The only way India cannot present a just case to claiming a wicket is by us refusing to fall off.

YRG: Wow. What an idea! This way India may just fail to win. When do you plan to not fall?

AAZ: When Zaheer Khan is bowling. If the ball just merely touches the wicket, don't fall down.

YRG: OK. But wouldn't the Indians be suspicious?

AAZ: Dont worry about that. Even living, breathing umpires are against them. We are non-living.

YRG: Any other time?

AAZ: Yes, when their captain Dhoni attempts a stumping or a run out. I urge you to not fall during this time too.

YRG: OK.

Later, when Dhoni's attempted run-out fails to dislodge the bails, Dhoni moves towards the wickets in an attempt to shake the stumps up off their ground and fix them back again.

Dhoni grabs hold of the bails.

AAZ: Aaaaaaa....Ouch.....Oooohhhh....I'm falling.....

YRG: Aaaaa....Me too....







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A mixed bag post: Awards, Links and Cricket

Awards
It's raining awards everywhere. And I'd like to thank three of the best bloggers I've known in recent times for recognizing me and this blog.

Amit of Mashed Musings and the Indian Home Maker presented me with the Butterfly award for the coolest blog. Thank you.


Thanks for the recognition. It means a lot in these testing times when I was actually wondering whether this blog had lost its cool and become HOT because of the previous post which has a female presence that many would savour without complain. No, not Behenji.

Mampi presents me with a Certified Honest Blogger award. Thank you.



Bloggers Krishna, Vinod Sharma, Amrutha, Kiran, Kislay and Rambo Doc, kindly accept the awards from this blogger.

I'm happier than George Bush was when he came to power.



Links
Suno, suno, suno! Over 42,000 free "wallposters" of hot actors, actresses and Enrique Iglesias can be found at the Bahujan Samaj Party website [Link]. Download NOW. Offer valid till BSP in power in Uttar Pradesh.

Former Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy writes this heavily biased pseudo-secular piece [Link] in the Huffington Post that confirms where her true loyalties lie. Some Indians hate India so much that you can sense that the only purpose of their life is to indulge in majority-bashing and minority-appeasement to give their "views" to the world. It's a shame that the West looks to such people to get an idea of what India is about, while these people on the contrary give them the exact opposite of what reality is and the exacts of what India isn't. Why do such Indians exist?

Greatbong provides a sane analysis of this piece. The exact type that should be read [Link].

Cricket
WOW. What a win. India embarassed England in the first Test at Chennai, helped by one of Sachin Tendulkar's most spectacular centuries. Spectacular in cricket terms and critical terms. England basically deserve no credit for letting slip a match such as this, which was clearly in their grasp till the second session of Day 4.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is on the way to becoming one of India's greatest captains ever. With an eye-popping 100% win record in Tests, it is difficult to go beyond the Ranchi man's acumen in handling tense situations and swinging games from draws to wins. And this man definitely doesn't know how to lose.

The catalyst for the win was Virender Sehwag, undoubtedly. The Delhi man's blitz in the final session of Day four had bred optimism in the Indian camp of a win. Sehwag's swashbuckling hitting took the pressure of the rest of the team and hence the fourth-highest target ever in Test cricket was comfortably chased out.


India didn't snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. They whole-heartedly went seeking victory and deservedly got it so. Period.







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And Now He's Gone

He came.



He saw.



He conquered.



He came back again.



He saw it all again.



He conquered it all again.



And now He's gone.



And there will be no coming back.


Be well, do good, keep in touch.






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Goodbye Jumbo

One of the all-time greats of Indian cricket has retired. Anil Kumble, I thank you for some great memories and excellent moments. But most of all, thank you for being a true gentleman, a great cricketer and an inspiring leader. You will be missed.






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Greatest ever? You bet

Sachin Tendulkar cemented his oft-acknowledged “Best in the World” status yesterday. The planet’s finest willow-weaver went past 12,000 runs in international test cricket, in the process breaking West Indian legend Brian Lara’s record. The 35-year old sporting icon produced not only a trademark performance in his innings of 88 (tantalizingly short of a century yet again) against Australia, but a potentially match-saving innings.

With India poised at a wobbly score of 163/4, most fans would’ve feared the worst. However, Tendulkar combined with a resolute Sourav Ganguly to string up a solid middle-order partnership and steer India through the first day of the second Test at Mohali. Ganguly himself produced an outstanding century, after partnering Tendulkar and later, Ishant Sharma and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

What is remarkable about Tendulkar, even more than his incalculable achievements, is his continued insistence that Team India remains the cause and purpose of his life and not just a medium to stage his vast inventory of talents. Tendulkar remains the role model and youth icon of millions of Indians across the country and many more across the globe.

The only glitch about falling head over heels in love with Tendulkar is that the day of his retirement isn’t far away and I shudder to think about it, even if he does go a little further and features in the 2011 World Cup. With achievements of such excellence, we can only hope and pray that Tendulkar walks away with the World Cup trophy for our beloved Team India. And cricket, of course.

If you believe that All Good is the raison d'être of human existence, then you believe in Tendulkar.

Image courtesy: The Telegraph





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Say hello to league cricket

In what is set to turn cricket into a rabid, monstrous business, the Indian Premier League kicked off in Bangalore amid the hype that is certainly here to stay. It’s cricket, cricket and more cricket than ever. The obsession just got worse. Fast-paced matches, inter-city rivalries, cheerleaders who make as much of an impression as the players and most importantly – a format of the game that seems to be played on steroids and takes passion in the Gentleman’s game to a whole new level.

Never before has India witnessed such an extravaganza in sport (although inter-city rivalries do exist in football’s I-League). Never before has an Indian crowd expressed an unnatural silence when Rahul Dravid hits a four, and followed it up with ecstasy at his dismissal. Never before have the corporates and film stars been so heavily involved with sport. This is a new era.

But this is league sport just the way it should be. It has existed for years in other countries and people thrive on their local clubs and cities coming up and delivering trophies and garnering acclaim and applause. It is new here. But you could clearly see that the Eden Gardens welcomed Brendon McCullum like a home-grown hero and went berserk at the dismissal of VVS Laxman, the architect of India’s famous win over Australia in the same ground seven years ago.

This will eventually benefit India, despite the opinions of cynics and critics of the league. Imagine the amount of experience the youngsters will gain in this tournament. They will get used to playing with the best, playing in front of huge crowds, playing with passion and working towards becoming national heroes. All that remains is for us to welcome them with open arms.

Let’s say cricket just got sexier.

Inflation, the UPA and 76 runs

Facing heavy pressure from the Left and the BJP, the UPA government has finally taken steps to reduce a high-speed increase in prices of food products. Inflation touched 6.68% last week, but there is clearly a global food crisis. Bumper stocks have fallen and the UN has warned the world that 36 nations face an impending food shortage. Rice and wheat are the worst hit, with prices at an all-time high.

The UPA is facing a critical phase in national politics, which will test its decision-making abilities and crisis management skills. Problems with the BJP regarding the Kandahar issue are surfacing and their Hisaab Maango campaign to get Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati talking about corrupt activities in the state will add more pressure, if nothing else. This certainly won't help the Congress in their election bid for the upcoming Assembly polls, although evidently they are targetting exactly that.

On par with such problems was a dreadful display by India on Day 1 of the second Test match against South Africa at Motera, Ahmedabad. Being bowled out for a measly 76 runs (the team’s second lowest score ever while playing in India) left me and one billion others shell-shocked as the batsmen collapsed dramatically, and in a way that wipes out all recent successes from memory.

You can’t say that the match is over, at least out of hope in this very formidable, experienced batting line-up which is more than capable of posting huge totals. But the fall down definitely gives the visitors the advantage and it’s up to them to make the most of what happened today. Harbhajan Singh called it the worst day of his career. For me, it was the third worst Indian showing after the 2007 World Cup debacle and the 54/all out against Sri Lanka in Sharjah 8 years ago.

Scary stuff. But it ain’t over till it’s over.

Hope's greatest icon

If ever there was a part of my youth that I am truly proud of or feel rather gifted to have witnessed and be inspired by, then it is having lived through the zenith of Sachin Tendulkar’s illustrious cricketing career. The great man must have lit up the formative years of so many others like me, who were inspired by his magic, talent and most importantly, himself as a person.

The un-complaining, never-whining, always calm Sachin taught us how to fight even when everything is seemingly conspired against you. He has been the victim of the harshest of umpiring errors and probably even a lot of abuse that we never notice on TV or while attending the matches. But he is still loved and cherished simply because Tendulkar is a lesson by himself in anger management, showcasing the right attitude and embracing greatness without a sense of self. He is a stand-out example of a theory that has never been given the kind of respect it deserves – the talk less, do more supposition.


There is immense pleasure gained from his game. Not only in terms of what young batsmen all over the country learn as far as cricket technicalities go, but also because he is the role model that we should all compulsorily look up to and admire with maximum exaltation. In an age driven by media brainwashing, hypocrisy, fake idols and so much life-wasting banter and hatred, Tendulkar stands out as a true icon. A genius, whose talent and ability knows no bounds. More importantly, a man whose culture comes above all and he hardly ever breaks the ideals he has set for himself.

The day Tendulkar retires won’t be a black day as such. Because then we would be very unfair to so many young players attempting to emulate the Little Master and give India new idols, icons and heroes. But it would be almost impossible in this era at least, to go beyond his feats. And we are indebted to him for what he taught us and what he bestowed us with – a reason to live with honour and respect.

May God bless God.

Absurd Indian Thoughts & Implementations

With nothing happening in the world to blog about as such (There is a lot happening actually, but like the gossip-stricken Indian media, I’m more concerned about a spat on a reality TV show, Shahrukh Khan appearing in an item song and Kareena Kapoor inaugurating a jewellery store), I decided to hop back in time to pluck out some of India’s most embarrassing ideas and their even more delirious implementations.

Regional pride and the “Sons of the soil” concept are numero uno in the list. In what is an absolutely baseless, senseless, hopeless, half-mental and three fourth-detrimental school of thought, Raj Thackeray and the MNS have outdone all other embarrassing Indian ideas to actually create a North-South divide that is anti-constitutional, anti-national and all the other anti’s you could pick out from your understanding. God only knows what Thackeray had in mind when he decided to undertake some “noble work” for his “fellow populace”. Unleashed on the roads were wild Marathis who sabotaged “non-local” cab drivers, ruined their hard work and proceeded to showcase the un-Indian paranoia that has gripped them with a demonic clasp.

There was a ghastly, mind-boggling, common sense-defying suggestion not too long ago in the Times of India editorial stressing on why cricket players from different countries should play for another country. The article tried to convince me and other astounded folk of the country who read the same that how exciting it would be to watch Brett Lee put on an India jersey and represent cricket’s most passionately supported team. How exciting, indeed. Our lack of sports intelligence clearly shows as we are willing to go to such extents to ensure maximum entertainment. Entertainment, I said. Not passion and love for a sport. This one wasn’t implemented. I guess, not even considered.

Another appalling Indian idea was the government’s decision to remove hockey and football from India’s list of “sporting priorities”. One is India’s national sport. The other is the world’s most followed sport. To the embarrassment of the federation, the players of both sports produced outstanding Cup tournaments which followed this horrendous decision. The men with the sticks won the Asia Cup after producing a goal fest (57 goals were scored by India. Only 5 were conceded) and an authoritarian display to run amok. The footballers won India’s first trophy, the Nehru Cup, since the LG Cup in 2002.

Some more absurd ideas and their implementations will follow soon. Till then, let’s hope reality and the Indian government don’t throw up new ones.

Cheating champions

Some things never change. Some lessons are never learnt. Some Australians never stop cheating.

Another dubious catch. Another pitiable umpiring decision. Another immoral Aussie win.

Yes, it was an eventful day at the WACA in Perth. Firstly, Adam Gilchrist’s farewell at his home ground couldn’t have been scripted better. The guy deserves to be honored as the greatest wicketkeeper-batsman to have ever played the game. He will be missed of course. A final spectacle was what his home crowd sought and that is exactly what he gave them. What we witnessed was an extravaganza of runs from Gilly that accounted for half of the Aussies’ total against the Sri Lankans. And in reality, was the reason for their win.

The Lankans in reply exploded onto the scene, but you wonder whether that was the need of the hour. When you have 6 players on your team whose batting averages don’t even touch the 20-run mark, then you shouldn’t seek a run-rate of 6-plus when chasing 236. Even if you have three of the world’s best lining up for you.

They were eventually tamed, despite Kumar Sangakarra’s valiant effort. But could things have been different had Andrew Symonds shown some long-lost cricketing spirit? Unfortunately, we’ll never know.

To sign off, here’s an excerpt from The Australian describing Symonds’ catch:-
“
Andrew Symonds lit up the WACA with the most wonderful diving catch to get rid of Chamara Silva for a duck.
The world's best fieldsman threw himself horizontally to his left at ground level to snaffle a scorching cover drive in his left hand just centimetres from the ground.
“
So, how much does a centimeter measure?