My alter ego

I always thought I had jussssst a bit of Rahul Dravid in me....and that did me proud. Now I am ecstatic - 'coz I just learnt that Dravid too perhaps has a bit of me in him!!
Check his 'tree analogy' for Test cricket, while trying to explain why other forms of cricket don't have a hope in hell to survive without it, even though these other formats do not 'appear' to depend much on Test cricket right now: http://post.jagran.com/rahul-dravid-bats-for-daynight-test-matches-with-pink-balls-1376997540


Now check the 'family analogy' this old Pavilion View post, supporting Dravid and Pink Ball Cricket while the former started actively promoting the latter couple of years back: http://pavilionview.blogspot.com/2011/04/need-your-support-in-favour-of-marching.html

If you find similarities in the two analogies, I will buy you a drink. Not that such analogies are unlikely to come to anyone's mind, but forget that mundaneness and imagine how much happy a Dravid admirer can be when he finds that his idol's mind thinks along the same (albeit obvious) lines as his own on while thinking of the same issue!

Ready for the drink I offered? Now give me your sweat analysis report....:-D

How about Gurunath getting a 3rd degree called "24 hours of compulsory attention to Shastri's commentary"

Ravi Shastri is selected in BCCI's three member committee for probing spot fixing. 

Hope he can fire on all cylinders and drive some tracer bullets into fixers, make them disappear like huge sixers before the contest goes down to the wire. it's his for the taking, that's what the doctor ordered. 

However Shaz's greatest achievement would be bringing down the (BCCI) president if he can...he has got good credentials as a 'president shooter' to start with: a three letter initial (same as LHO and JWB) !! 

That will set the cat among the pigeons...c'mon Shaz, throw caution to the wind and be like greased lightning. The situation is touch and go...it's a pressure cooker, and something's got to give.

Can almost hear him commentate on the findings: "what Indian cricket needs now is a wicket...what Srini needs now is a partnership. Srini is rapped on the pads and the finger goes up....the umpire knew exactly what he was doing there. This decision sets up rest of the enquiry nicely ...now Guru..edggeeed, and should be taken...aah, Delhi police have dropped it. Unbelievable - they will take it ten out of ten times. the atmosphere is electrifying..is there another twist in the tale? One gets a feeling Guru may have injured himself there..."

[acknowledgement: http://blog.rohandsa.com/2010/04/ravi-shastri-commentary-generator.html]

"Waqar essentially just did one thing with the ball"

When Wasim & Waqar were in their playing days, I used to hang around in a group of late teens / early 20's chaps who were more attracted to Wasim. That variety in swing and seam, that lift from a seemingly innocuous action, that magic surrounding his towering persona. In comparison Waqar appeared to be more of a ramrod to breach defences, the guy with perhaps the most imposing bowling action of his time.

However subsequently I have watched more cricket. And with the increasing dominance of the bat, I have come to value bowlers who had an aura of inevitability. With that realisation,  Waqar Younis and his craftwork during the 90's is a subject of particular interest to me. 

This passage in a lovingly written article on Waqar precisely describes why some of us find the Waqar phenomenon so intriguing: the inevitability of what the batsmen already knew was coming:

"International batsmen generally have half-decent balance, but the Waqar Younis inswinging yorker made fools of them all. Given a choice between losing their toes or losing their dignity, most batsmen opted for falling flat on their face, a position from where they could better hear their middle and leg stumps going their separate ways. Where Wasim was an expert lock pick with a wide array of tools at his disposal, Waqar just burst through doors with a battering ram so immense he could just as easily have gone through the wall. Wasim could do a million and one devious things with a cricket ball, but Waqar essentially just did one. And he only needed to do one. The Waqar Younis reverse-swinging yorker might just be the most destructive delivery in the history of cricket.

Maybe all of this is painting him as one-dimensional, but it was that yorker that grabbed me when I finally got to see him bowl, and it was that yorker that largely explains his phenomenal ability to run through a batting order in the time it took a dismissed opening batsman to say, "Mind your toes." Delivered with a different, more round-arm action to the one he used when opening the bowling, it was a virtually unstoppable delivery, and one of Waqar's greatest strengths was that he acknowledged that fact and was perfectly happy to bowl it again and again and again, where other bowlers might have held it in reserve as a surprise weapon. It didn't need to be a surprise, because knowing what was coming simply didn't help the batsman all that much."

Here's a video of that one thing that Waqar did incomparably. 

The circle of a day

In the morning this daily quote flashed up on my office desktop as I booted up the comp:

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent. The slogan ‘press on’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” – Calvin Coolidge

12 hours later I was preparing to shut it off.
I checked gmail and, as I was about to log off, I found a link on Virat Kohli's phenomenal rise.
I am pasting an extract from the article:

"His work ethic is brilliant, his focus is immense," says Yuvraj Singh. "Since the time he has joined the Indian team, I saw his work ethic and wished and wondered why I didn't have that work ethic when I was his age."

I reckon Yuvraj and Rohit are even more talented than Virat.They always were.
At the end of the day, my working day, Virat is pipping those two at what Calvin Coolidge quoted to me when I started the day.
Good night, folks!!

The single biggest reason to strive "doing the bestwe can with what we have"

Cannot resist sharing these 2 paragraphs I just read in Ed Smith's tribute to our Rahul Dravid:
-------------------------------
I last bumped into Dravid late last year at a charity dinner at the Sydney Cricket Ground. He was the same as he always has been - warm, self-deprecating, curious about the lives of others. As ever, he made a point of asking about my parents - their health and happiness - although he has never met them. Family and friendship, you sense, are central to his life and his values.

In the q&a that followed his speech, one answer got close to the core of his personality. What motivated him still, after all these years and so many runs? Dravid said that as a schoolboy, he remembered many kids who had at least as much desire to play professional cricket as he did - they attended every camp and net session, no matter what the cost or the difficulty of getting there. But you could tell - from just one ball bowled or one shot played - that they simply didn't have the talent to make it. He knew he was different. "I was given a talent to play cricket," Dravid explained. "I don't know why I was given it. But I was. I owe it to all those who wish it had been them to give of my best, every day."
-------------------------------------
http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/557122.html

Test batsmen and spectators bid adieu

AUs-vs-RSA, 2nd Test, 2nd day at Jo'burg


Tahir with Steyn.
Top class leg spin with express pace. 
Joyous to see both bowlers make the ball talk on same pitch, on same day.


It could be called a great session of Test cricket, if only we had batsmen brought up on better stuff than T20...batsmen who "don't look at 3rd slip fielders as aliens encroaching their space" [to borrow the commentators' words]. Pathetic state of things. And ominous when seen with Eden crowd not crossing 10000 on any day. Tells us that a generation of skilled Test batsmen and their spectators are all bidding adieu across the world hand in hand.


Pink ball day-night first class cricket must be tried next season, if not this one. It can't be worse for either cricket or cricketers than this...and it can always be eased out after letting the 'evening cricket' generation have a taste of cricket in whites.


[adopted from my FB wall post]

"You have been lucky if you have failed with time left to benefit from the lessons"

Actually that thought, posted as subject line, came to my mind as I was browsing through some old Facebook posts in my profile.


I came across one on 12th March, as South Africa were taking advantage of India's inactive fields / bowling plans during middle overs. Here's what I wrote as a comment at 8-51pm (at around 40th over of South Africa innings):

"Dhoni lets opponent get away in middle overs...I am seeing this coming loss as a blessing in disguise - may be now he will be forced to rethink his strategy in middle overs.. he will see that he is winning INSPITE OF it and not due to it...but then these opponent batsmen,they get out just as I see a silver lining - and perhaps give MSD a chance to carry his poor strategy to the KO's."

Well luckily for Indian team, South Africa did NOT panic for once and scraped through to win that match..in retrospect we can thank this loss for the obvious rethink of Indian middle over strategies that subsequently worked so well against ALL the former World Cup Champions (West Indies next match, Australia in QF, Pakistan in semis & Sri Lanka in finals).

Let all Indian Cricket fans therefore gather at India Gate, candles in hand, and shout thankfully in unison to commemorate the last over of that match:

"ASHISH NEHRA AMAR RAHE"

'Change Managers' & 'Continuous improvement agents' Dhoni & Kirsten

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was part of the previous Indian world cup (2007) team that was eliminated early. He, in fact, was integrally involved in the failure, when he failed to support the then skipper Dravid in the still-in-balance elimination match with Sri Lanka. He played the ugliest first-ball shot of his career to Murali first up and departed almost looking happy to go.

Then came the elevation. Dhoni became the T20 & ODI skipper in 2007. The T20 WC win gave him some power with the authorities as well. And he set about arranging his pieces for the change he saw as compulsory.

Irrespective of what people think of him, everything he has done since was done with the good intent of increasing India's chances of success. Some of them were drastic yet right decisions. Dravid & Ganguly's one day omissions were such. These are two players he respected for their ability and Test performances, but also rightly judged the unsuitability of these two to modern limited overs cricket. Some in recent times have been controversial. The selections (or non-selections) of Pragyan Ojha and Ashwin in various series / tournaments are amongst those.

While each decision can be discussed and criticised, it surprises me that so often the INTENT of MSD's decisions gets questioned. And especially as it involves a man who is the first one to admit his positives and his mistakes including his own non-performance after every match in front of all the world (try that just ONCE, to understand what it takes to do it) and tries to build further on it. All of it an extension of the mission of continuously improving the team he is entrusted with.

For the Indian ODI side, we have seen the COMPLETION of transition from dependence on the 10 year+ greats in the match yesterday. Make no mistake. What the cricket world saw yesterday was awe-inspiring.They saw a bold, formidable team which has delivered when it mattered. What's awe-inspiring? That the win came through guys that will return at the next world cup at their peak powers (or still close to it). This team has its problems, but it is aware of those and is perhaps smart enough to assess them well and chart a near perfect 'horses for courses' solution for the chinks. Much of it MUST BE thanks to their skipper and coach...combined with some support from the selection panel who at times have trusted these two guys even when they were unconvinced themselves.

Gary is now leaving for home. Do you think this is going to be Dhoni's BIGGEST contribution to Indian cricket? Much less. He has a far tougher transition in hand in next 2 years - doing to the Test team what he did to the limited overs side. That side is far more dependent on 10+ experience players. Alarmingly it still remains so even after retirement o 2 greats like Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly. And the reason behind it is why that makes it more important - young talents are not adept at the longer version as the older generation and this gap is increasing ALARMINGLY. Dhoni's ability to keep the Test team at the top and hence creating a 'suction' for Test cricket amongst youngsters picking up a bat or ball is critical to the health of Indian cricket (and hence cricket in general) in next 2 decades.

Imran Khan made a great comment after yesterday's victory when Rajdeep Sardesai asked him if Imran was expecting India to win the World Cup. Imran said words to this effect:

"India have been doing well in all forms of cricket in the lead up to world cup. And this is what was Pakistan team was also doing in 1992. This is always the case.'

Imran was not far off the mark. India 1983 were the SOLE instance of a 'not-doing-too-well-for-previous-years' team winning the world cup and sending shock waves. All the others were always major contenders. Success in all forms of cricket is thus intertwined.

If India's Test side tails off, it can still enjoy ODI / T20 sucees for a couple of years. At most. But such anomaly will indicate inability of Indian first class cricket to produce Test quality players...and soon enough the cracks will show up in ALL forms. See Australia between 2007 & 2011? If the Aussie case looks like a moderate decline, we need to remember that such decline in quality is happening INSPITE of an Aussie cricket system in place to prevent it. We do not really have a strong system as yet - we depend heavily on the individual leaders for identifyig talents that come up, how these talents are nurtured and focussed to perform well as well as work for team's cause. This has a big bearing on the team performance, hence its ability to create a following and generate for talent.

That is why people like Ganguly & Dhoni are important to create this 'suction' at top by generating success. That is why the ONLY person I have seen close to God in cricket is Imran Khan of Pakistan, where even the gradually-shaping-up cricket system we have is non-exitent.

From that ugly dismissal in 2007, to the gutsy and brilliant innings culminating in an unforgettable winning sixer in 2011 - the circle probably turned the proverbial FULL circle for Mahendra Singh Dhoni when India chased a once-in-4-years Cup final with 2 of their 3 "10+ years big batting guns" gone within 1st 12% of the chase.

The ODI transition is complete for now, even though Sachin chooses to plays on for a couple of years.

Waiting for the next great transition show for Indian cricket - the Test team. And this time Mahendra Singh Dhoni will need to bridge a bigger gap, with no Gary Kirsten as his accomplice. This where the new coach is going to be critical in carrying on the legacy of Kirtsen-Dhoni combo, albeit with tweaks to suit the style of the new guy. And this is where all of us - cricket followers & media alike - are also going to be critical. How? Simply by appreciating that the Test transition is going to be tougher, with the self-styled-self-techniqued-self-taught-but-team-oriented Amazer from Ranchi himself getting on in years.

The legacy of Dhoni-Kirsten will matter. Just as it always did ever since a rotten, shame-ridden legacy was chucked away 11 years ago and a new legacy gradually emerged under Sourav Ganguly and John Wright. A legacy that has since underwent upheavals, modifications, even personal clashes and downward spirals but nevertheless always strove to achieve improvement [Some things do not really change, perhaps..]

-----------
[Edited from a note in my Facebook page]

Need your support in favour of marching towards floodlit first class cricket

My appeal to any cricket followers that read this post by intent or by accident:
-------------------------------
Please spare a thought about supporting first class / Test cricket played with pink balls. It needs support. No use supporting the branches and leaves (read ODI's & T20) of a tree whose roots (first class cricket) are shrinking by the day.



Currently floodlit first class cricket has a downside: it leads to more consumption of resource (power) but I believe that can be managed in near future by advanced solar energy harnessing resources. A cricket stadium receives a lot of solar energy in daytime - which can be used at night!

Want to see the pics? Here they are: http://www.lords.org/latest-news/news-archive/mcc-v-nottinghamshire-champion-county-27-30-march-2011-sheikh-zayed-stadium-abu-dhabi,33,PS.html?imageNo=4

 
While the cricket crazy world is keeping collective eye on the climax of the global event, a silent revolution has been started by people concerned with the health of the 'Mother' format of the game - first class cricket.
It is clear now that while the Son (Tests) augmented the mom's health since itis inception, Grandson (One dayers) had been a mixed bag- positive in some ways and negative in others. Mother was still doing fine but now the Great Grandson (T20) threatens to finish it off by pumping away all blood (read talent) from it by lucre of money.
This development is quite a shocker, as the lifeline for all 4 generations resides solely in the mother. Without survival of the mother, the next three generations might either perish or go into a coma (read 'associate member quality'). Problem is: the Great Grandson is kind of a 'bull in a china shop' guy, one who has immense power but does not know about using it for family's good.
For the Mother to stand a chance of survival, she may need to raid the Great Grandson's territory. The 'positive move' may or may not work but it is worth trying as the mother is dying anyway if she tries nothing.
The preparations for that assault into grandson's territory started at Abu Dhabi on 27th March. Support the cause.
-------------------------------------------
More links:

MCC website report of Rahul Dravid endorsing to take 'pink ball first class cricket' experiment forward: http://www.lords.org/latest-news/news-archive/dravid-pink-the-future-for-tests,1969,NS.html
Pink ball day-night first class match between MCC & Notts at Abu Dhabi - scorecard: http://www.ecb.co.uk/stats/fixtures-results/score-card.html?Pfixture=com.othermedia.ecb.stats.Fixture-L-16738

Here's a link to my previous post listing the exact concerns on health of first class cricket that I discussed heart to heart with a cricket loving guy I know very well - MYSELF.

This is the cricinfo report where Dravid, after completing his participation in the experimental floodlit first class match at Abu Dhabi, has endorsed the new idea as good for cricket's future. The comments in that article list concerns of the readers - one of which was negative impact on energy consumption.

Pak-Ind WC semi final at Mohali: My facebook posts during the Pakistan chase

After Nehra's 1st over:

Nehra - you must come good. You also got swing in 1st over. C'mon

Upon my thoughts going back to Wahab Riaz's deliveries in the Indian innings even when the Pak chase was on:

Wahab Riaz - can't still get over him!! Wonder what he can be if he gets swing both ways regularly.

Upon why I thought India had a good chance of winning, even after making concession of Pakistan being a better bowling side than India:

Pakistan created 15 chances out there (the 9 dismissals + the 6 lives of Sachin including the reviews). We need to create 10 (or 11, keeping cushion for 1 dropped chance)..

comment after further progress of play: we have missed two (Dhoni missed Younus before he was caught 2 balls later, and Yuvi misses running out Umar)..so NOW we have to create 12 chances;-)

While watching Munaf bowl good spells in today's match and remembering his remarkable spell to English midle order in his debut Test, Mohali 2006:

‎5 years back at Mohali, in another March, the fastest bowler (then) in India made his debut against the visiting English team. And decided the match in the 2nd innings with proper fast bowler's wickets. His name: Munaf Patel. History counts for nothing... and today Munaf's pace is unrecognisable. Still it remains the same venue, and the same bowler...

After Yuvi took two important wickets of Pak middle order to compensate for his batting duck:

Punjab ke gaon gaon mein, sarson ke kheton mein ei badi purani kahawat hai:



"You can't keep a good Yuvraj Singh down!"


'Wah - ab' yeh bowler banke inteqam lega.

Finding a familiar favourite batsman lurking behind the frame of Pakistan's Misbah ul Haq as the latter kept failing to get the ball off the square, thus conceding dots:

There's a lot about Misbah ul Haq which reminds me of a Very Special player from Hyderabad, India, someone who is arguably the greatest player NEVER to play in a World Cup. Misbah has the same wide shoulders, same clean-n-strong-jawed face, the same solidity, same age, same calm & solidity..& unfortunately today, also the same struggle in limited overs format to get the ball of the square. Feel for him..

After Munaf took his 2nd wicket:

Munaf & Mohali - made for each other!!!

After Pak reached the close of 40th over will  one set batsman (Misbah) and a willing ally in Wahab:

Pak need 62 off 6 overs, PP3 yet to be taken, Misbah & Wahab Riaz at crease, 3 wkts remaining. Can it get better than this??

After the Indian win, while trying to rub it into the folk that pretend they know EVERTHING better than the national skipper:

For all those who played pundits and thought Dhoni & team mgmt knew less than jhontu's and montu's of the para: have a look at Munaf and Nehra's figures. Sometimes, just sometimes (which is most of the times) Captain Cool knows better. He sees these guys at the nets too..we don't.

Quoting the most interesting personal note I heard in a tele-channel just after completion of the semi final match: Quote of the night when India won against Pak in WC semis:

"Main Mumbai mein hasoonga - 1996 mein main roya tha magar ab hasoonga."

          - Vinod Kambli, on a TV channel.

[This one is for eternity, irrespective of what happens on April 2]

On news pouring in from FB friends in other cities that crackers are being burst:

I cannot hear many crackers being burst: probably Kolkata hangs on, holds its guns for April 2nd..SUPERLIKE!!

comment after learning that crackers are being burst at some parts of Kolkata as well:
CORRECTION: Salk Lake holds its guns for April 2nd

 
Upon seeing bowling figures of Indian bowlers at the end of the semi-final with  Pak:

Zaheer 2, Munaf 2, Nehra 2, Bhaji 2, Yuvi 2....no 6th bowler...talking about pack hunting, HAVE YOU SEEN ANY BETTER THAN THIS?

Sharing a video of the Indian national anthem (recorded in 2009) where India team has Ashish (Nehra) on the screen and the word (ashish) in the song as well:

Time now for some POSITIVE Nehra jokes:



Q: Who is the only cricketer who will have his name pronounced when the Indian national anthem is sung at Wankhede on April 2nd?


A: 'ASHISH' Nehra, of course!!


-------


Check the video below - I shot it before Ind-Pak ICC trophy 2009 match. India lost that one. Then the team had 2 players whose name ...was in Indian national anthem - Dravid had been recalled!!

On the recurrence on 'mis' prefix in Pak's misadventure in the chase:

Wondering if one of the Pak newspaper headlines tomorrow will be:



"MISbah's MISbalanced MIScue ends MISsion"

My subsequent correction to comment: More correctly: "MISbah's MIScalculated innings culminates in MISbalanced MIScue, ends MISsion"

On Sachin: note on 'When desitny begins to wilt and comply to your will':

http://pavilionview.blogspot.com/2011/03/when-destiny-wilts-and-begins-to-comply.html

When Destiny wilts and begins to comply to your will...

"itni shiddat se maine tumhe paane ki koshish ki hai



ki har zarre ne mujhe tumse milane ki saazish ki hai....



kehte hai agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaaho toh poori kaynaat tumhein usse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai...aap sabne mujhe meri chahat se mila diya...thanks, thanks very much, kehte hai ki filmon ki tarah hamari zindagi mein bhi end tak sab theek hee ho jaata hai..happys endings...aur agar theek naa ho toh woh the end nahi, picture abhi baaki hai mere dost"

- quote from Hindi film Om Shanti Om, based on Paolo Coelho's similar thought in his novel 'The Alchemist'
-----------
In a 1999 WC Super six match which could have eliminated the Australians, Steve Waugh scored only the 2nd international hundred of his career when he came in at fifty something for three chasing 250+ against a formadable South African attack. Gibbs, the 2nd best fielder in the world after Rhodes at the time and certainly the world's joint best catcher with Rhodes and Mark Waugh, famously 'dropped' him by throwing the ball in celebration too soon after catching..that Steve Waugh ton allowed Australia to win 3 world cups and start a phenomenal winning streak of unbeaten matches that took 12 years to stop.

Anybody with only 2 hundreds in ODI's who did better, and at a more opportune time? Destiny intervened that day, perhaps.
Probably because Steven Rodger Waugh wanted that Cup badly enough.



Cut to 2011. Another Cricket world cup.
Sachin Tendulkar. He generally gets bad calls from umpires, some of them especially in crucial moments in Test matches. But extension of Test innings is the last thing on his mind today.
The only thing he wants badly today is an ODI World Cup win. He went the whole distance to a final once 8 years back but returned empty handed from the last step.
How badly does he want to win the 2011 World Cup?

So badly that Destiny is forced to comply and contrive to make it happen, as that saying goes. It certainly did so today, by returning back ALL (and I mean all - six to be precise) of Sachin's career earnings of 'bad dismissals' with interest in ONE SINGLE innings, the one innings that needed him to succeed for his team to take him where he wanted to - playing a 2nd WC final. And play that game at home, the city where he grew up in and learnt his cricket, the city where his elder brother & other family members made sacrifices to let him become what he is today. And possibly win the game, to attain his one remaining unfulfilled dream. The one he wants badly, very badly, so badly that destiny is beginning to comply. "Itni shiddat se" and all that.
Quite un-dramatic, isn't it?
Almost as un-dramatic as that win coming through Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar scoring his 100th international hundred in the final. For destiny also took care, probably with an understanding half-smile on her face,  that Sachin did not end up getting his 100th ton in a semi final which will be remembered as much for him getting 6 lives as for India playing Pakistan in a semi final match for the 1st time in a WC to come up tops.

[shared as a note on my Facebook page]

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: This post has been insipred by a comment of Rajdeep Saedesai to the tune of 'Things getting set up for a Sachin dominated finale in Mumbai' on CNN IBN today after India won the semi final against Pakistan

Super Semi at Mohali: the match within

Cricinfo's Andy Zaltzman on the main sub-plot of the Indo-Pak WC Semi final:

"India’s batsmen now average 74 against Test-opposition spin in this World Cup. Pakistan’s spinners average 21 against Test-team batsmen."

Sometimes statistics can surprise you by speaking the truth like no words could. That battle may well decide the war.

The brisk Walker

A former cricketer on 'walking' controversy in 2011 WC:

"It's nice to see people walking but that doesn't happen now I guess,There is a system in place now so that you can't get away with it. I mean people still take chances and why not? Jayawardene took a chance and it went the other way."

Guess who said it? 'Walker' Younis!!

 

Zaltzman on Yuvraj's magnificence not reflecting in his stats

Here's a compliment for His Gloriousness Yuvraj Singh from the unlikeliest of quarters - cricket comedian Andy Zaltzman.
--------------------

Yuvraj is one of those few fascinating cricketers who combine majesty with vulnerability. As a Test player, he has mostly disappointed, the average of 35 that you see in the record book at odds with the left-hand Wally Hammond that you see at the crease. That GraemeFowleresque, ShivSunderDasian figure of 35 is often used by atheists, when set alongside Graeme Smith’s equivalent of 49, as an aesthetic argument that proves the non-existence of god.


Even Yuvraj’s distinguished ODI career had taken a pronounced downturn over the preceding 18 months. This tournament, the visual splendour of his stroke play has been matched by its assurance and determination. 57 not outs rarely glow like beacons on scorecards, but in a match that was not merely spell-binding, but presented witchcraft’s top 20 recipes boxed up in a commemorative gold-plated folder, and that was played in the tightest margins between defeat and victory with big players on both sides exerting significant impacts on the drama, Yuvraj decisively broke the Australians.

------------------

I was touched by that note from Andy. This rather special couple of paragraphs, and their perspective, befits a cricket historian like Ramachandra Guha, or a cricket romantic like Neville Cardus.

I always knew all along Yuvraj has been stealing many more hearts with this batting than his stats would ever, EVER suggest.

Like he stole mine 5 years back.
First with his performance (blogged here at the time)...
Then with his opulence. Sorry, no blogs on it - for lack of words to make posts on what he makes me feel with that arc of bat swing he paints when he is in unrelento-creato-destructo mode.

The Sho's coming to a close

Won't say much....as the feeling is yet to sink in.

Just got swept off my feet reading the man's words on 'his most special moment' during the press conference announcing his imminent retirement. Shoaib Akhtar truly is one of a kind..a rather heterogenous one.

Links to other very readable cricinfo articles on the occasion:
Remembering the 'colours' of Shoaib: http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/506747.html
Agony & Ecstasy (mid career article): http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/251280.html
Career timeline: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/42655.html?index=timeline
Gallery: http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/current/gallery/506727.html
His best six: http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/current/story/506631.html
And last but not the least, lend him your ears: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/story/506743.html

The Magnificent B*****d

You have read millions of articles on 'Dada' evoking love and hate alike. Dileep Peemachandran's cricinfo article on the same topic does not offer new insights to start with...you can skip the "oh no, not again" parts in the first 10 paras.

I suggest you go to the 11th paragraph straightaway, where Dileep begins his account of Ganguly's 144 at Gabba. Indeed it was Dada's finest hour of both batsmanship and leadership.
 
THAT is when the journey to No. 1 got its wheels.
 
The last 2 para's are too good, especially in context of a bit of 'unmentionable' history attached to Eden Gardens 2001!

Minutes before he raised his hundred, I'd gone down to the stands where the Fanatics stood, waving their Boxing Kangaroo flags. Some of them had history with Ganguly. On the tour of India in 2001, when India did a Houdini at the Eden Gardens, one of them had told me that they had footage of Ganguly and Harbhajan Singh showing them the middle finger after the victory.







The men and women I was surrounded by weren't admirers. It was fairly apparent that they'd love nothing better than seeing him run out for 99. But when he wasn't, after he had charged between the wickets to make his ground and then run a third of the way to the sightscreen to celebrate, I asked one of the flag-wavers what he thought of the man.






"He's a bastard" was the reply. After a small pause, he added: "But what a magnificent bastard."

That was a delightfully memorable anecdote, Dileep. Thanks a ton.

FB wall posts on 'silly' ODI's

Disappointed at the tame end to the 3rd Test with South Africa, and also sensing some upheavals on personal / professional front, I made this 'wall post' on Facebook couple of days back:

Apologies to my non-cricket loving friends for an overdose of cricket (Indian cricket, actually) related messages on my wall. For next 3 months there will be overdose of silly ODI's and sillier T20's, so not much chance of me getting as excited as the SA series...

However after the 2nd ODI with SA ended THAT way (see commentary in the link) I am on the backfoot once again (like Team India at the start of any series these days):

Did I say ODI's were silly? Smelt some egg on my face during the closing stages of 2nd ODI with SA today..Today I played in a cricket match** and watched another to re-learn that 'catches win matches'..glad that India did better than learning it bitterly.

**Don't laugh, I actually did - but managed not to raise howls around the field by avoiding bowling and batting in the 12-overs-a-side tennis ball match. We missed catches offered by the best opposition batsman during their chase and he made us pay dearly by leading his team to an eventually facile win.

I issued that 'retraction statement' to mitigate my humiliation, but I suspect I may have to keep eating some of my words steadily till the current series is over.


Update: Siddharth Monga of cricinfo has noted this incident, as a fallout of a strict commandment issued by World Bowlers' Association stating "Thou shalt bounce Suresh Raina whenever thou spot him":

"The moment he saw Suresh Raina, Lonwabo Tsotsobe went on a bouncer spree. So excited was he that he nearly bounced himself with one, pitching it at his toes in a way that the ball almost hit him in the face during his follow-through. Smith, fielding at straighter extra cover, had the best seat in the house and fell down laughing."

Unendulkar, the Timeless

The quote below, amongst all I have read in past 5 years that praise or criticise him, best sums up the single biggest quality that defines the Sachin Tendulkar of today. Slyly, slowly and singlemindedly he has gone for the 10th mode of dismissal. Sachin has 'timed' everyone out through his continued love affair with Test cricket.

21 years after debut, it is quite extraordinary that he is likely to score as many centuries (6 achieved, 7 possible) in the current year as he got in 2 seasons even at the peak of his powers in 1998-99. To put in another yardstick, Sachin got as many tons in the first 4-5 years of his career and we all know how unimpressive he was in those days....

I won't be surprised if 40 years hence people start questioning the records when they chance upon this passage of his career. "This guy's incorrigible," the Mask would have remarked. Or in Boycs-ology terms, "it would take 10 horses to pull him off a cricket field."

Quite aptly, this quote has come up on Time magazine - or so I am told (apologies for not verifying). Enough of banter - 'time' to enjoy the quote:

"When Sachin Tendulkar travelled to Pakistan to face one of the finest bowling attacks ever assembled in cricket, Michael Schumacher was yet to race a F1 car, Lance Armstrong had never been to the Tour de France, Diego Maradona was still the captain of a world champion Argentina team, Pete Sampras had never won a Grand Slam.

When Tendulkar embarked on a glorious career taming Imran and company, Roger Federer was a name unheard of; Lionel Messi was in his nappies, Usain Bolt was an unknown kid in the Jamaican backwaters. The Berlin Wall was still intact, USSR was one big, big country, Dr Manmohan Singh was yet to "open" the Nehruvian economy. It seems while Time was having his toll on every individual on the face of this planet, he excused one man.

Time stands frozen in front of Sachin Tendulkar. We have had champions, we have had legends, but we have never had another Sachin Tendulkar and we never will."

But honestly, how do you make them honest?

I just read an interesting article by Rudi Webster on 'the psychology of cheating', including possible ways to encourage integrity in sportsmen. Recommend it even for non-cricket fans..especially the results of the tests with and without vows of code of honour.


What the article does not say: Does it work as well even on sample students taking their 100th test with such vow? Those tainted guys across all sport - none of them did it in their first match. In all likelyhood they would not have done it even if there was to be an offer.
 
Sharda Ugra has her individual take on the factors that may lead to sportsmen demonstrating loss of morality. She tries to answer her question:

Sporting heroes build their careers, their lives, on reputation. Of athlete as fighter, athlete as adventurer, athlete as risk-taker, but a man or woman doing so always within the rules of their sport. When the boundaries around those reputations begin to fray, we are faced with the same old, weary questions. Guilt and innocence. Reason and impulse. It's what was asked of Hansie Cronje or Mohammad Azharuddin or Saleem Malik, even of Mark Waugh and Shane Warne. Why? Whatever the hell for? What on earth were you thinking?



We want to know what leads men of such skill, achievement and fairly firm financial ground, to make choices that, before they are unethical, are so utterly illogical.

She cites another example of a non-cricketing great sportsman explaining the 'why' what for' 'what were you thinking' questions by looking back to that dark phase:

Tiger Woods described what life was like inside elite sport: "I thought I could get away with whatever I wanted to, deserve to enjoy all the temptations around me. I thought I was entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn't have to go far to find them." That was his answer to the questions "Why?" "Whatever for?" "What were you thinking?"

I also found some words of interest in Sandy Gordon's study of such incidents as excerpted by Sharda. Along side his famous contributions to international cricket teams, Sandy is professor of sport and exercise psychology at the University of Western Australia's School of Sport Science, Exercise and Health.

One of the more unusual terms Gordon used in his responses to ESPNcricinfo was the "derailer". It comes from a psychological questionnaire called the Hogan Development Survey (HDS), used to study an individual's responses under stress.


The derailer refers to traits that belong to the "dark side of personality", which can sometimes take over under pressure and play an important part in decision-making - traits that are normally tolerated, even indulged, as Gordon says, but which, when "tempted with opportunity", can derail. "It's about character meeting opportunity and/or sport revealing character," Gordon said. Temptations come in many disguises; what stays constant, though, is the powerful lure.


The personality types on the HDS scales include "colourful" (seekers of attention, productive, with ability in crises, and possessed of belief in self and ability), "bold" (overly self-confident, arrogant, with inflated feelings of self-worth) and "mischievous" (charming, risk-taking, limit-testing and excitement-seeking). Gordon says "bold" and "mischievous" characters abound in the entertainment industry (e.g. professional sport...) We may often call them "characters" in cricket.

Cricket, the Aussie way

Here's Andew Hughes' fun take on the Aussie cricketers' own rules of the sport. Besides enjoying the humour, many of us would admiringly agree with Andrew's findings from the last day of Australia's recent loss to Pakistan:

"Why don’t they give up? Every other nation on earth would have gone through the motions this morning. Where does it come from? It certainly isn’t a genetic inheritance. The English way is to give up properly and give up early, before mounting a completely futile rearguard action when all chance of victory has gone."

To be fair about that second part, it seems to be changing since the millennium turned. The days the English are formidable 'pests in Tests'.

But coming back to Aussies' approach to cricket, I recall Steve Waugh visiting India last week. He was asked about Australia 'slipping' in recent times. Steve named South Africa, England, India, Sri Lanka and Australia as the simultaneous 'almost number 1' teams in Tests. However he also said some more words that communicated a quiet confidence that although times will keep changing Australia wil never be found close to the bottom of the heap.

You never do in Test cricket unless you keep giving up.

Update 1: Here's an interview of another guy who never ever gave up - and in fact did way better than just doing that. He is the one man you don't want to see in your opposition team even if you have Bradman, Richards (both Viv & Barry) and Sunny playing for you. You can be Alexander the Great and yet with him on the other side you will end up giving your most famous (albeit disputed) quote:

"I am not afraid of an army of lions led by sheep but an army of sheep led by lions."

In the interview he narrates how he came back from his 1987 retirement lured by the prospect to win a Test series against the 1980's WI side in their backyard. He was seeing a win where other 35+ guys would be relieved to have retired and thus avoided ignominy. That is more like the Imran Khan I know. Suits the man far better than coming back to aim for a less impressive 50 overs World Cup win.

No wonder Immy is the only man I can stand inspite of using as many 'I's as he uses there. I never see him painting a halo for himself. He already has one, so he does not need to.

Update 2:

My orkut profile showed a 'thought of the day' that looked like a nice summary of some immortal-yet-forgettable Australian test innings from the late 80's and early 90's...innings that came mostly from Alan Border and Steve Waugh barring one - the best one - from Dean Jones:

"Many of the great achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged men who kept on working."