Clarke and Morals: Extremely Contrasting Entities

I'm not usually into writing gossip, however, this one is about a cricketer whose batting I've liked. And the fact that the whole thing is crazy didn't stop me from publishing this post.
Anyway here's the story.

Michael Clarke has proposed to Lara Bingle with a diamond ring supposedly worth $100,000- an offer the famous swimsuit model just couldn't refuse. From the outset it looked like a wonderful romantic story.

A famous Australian starlet coveted by all and sundry (to say it the Aussie way) is conquered by one of the hottest Australian cricketer of recent times (believe me- Michael "Pup" Clarke's stocks are sky high at the moment- He is tipped to be the next Captain of Australia; his batting career on an upswing; the man who conjured up three wickets to bring a fantastic ending to a highly controversial yet ultimately series deciding Sydney Test against India- Michael Clarke is hot in Australia at the moment)

However, a little probing into the matter and I find its all back to Tinseltown. "All that glitters is not gold, matey" I hear a voice say.
Lara Bingle aint your beautiful, yet not available kind of girl, and Clarke is not the hard, yet good cricketer either.

Lara Bingle has been involved in hordes of controversies, one of which would shame any suitor even though her body looks hot (which she showed nude for all to see when she was just 18. She sued EMAP Australia for publishing those pictures and gaining undue publicity as they had been taken when she wasn't so "famous", or notorious I would say). She had had an affair with Brendan Felona, an Aussie Rules Footballer who marriage broke up when the affair became public. She was also the Face of Australian Tourism until she was removed from it unceremoniously and replaced by Bindi Irwin. She appeared as a bikini clad vixen in Fingal Bay for the famous "So where the bloody hell are you?" commercial for Australian Tourism and the parody of this Ad for 2006-07 Ashes series ad in another bikini, this time on a cricket pitch.

The future Aussie skipper is no saint either. He was been involved in various controversies that clouded the Sydney test, and not surprisingly all of them showed his immorality. How immoral could you get if you wed a girl who has already bedded another woman's husband, and that too publicly. Crazy I say!

So that way, they do make a pair, albeit a pair you wouldn't look up as a divine union, but an unholy one. However, it is not up to us to decide that- its their decision, and that is all that matters I guess. Period.

Memorable Moments of cricket in SSN VI

Well folks, I had developed a lot of my skills- fielding, bowling etc. However, I hadn't produced a performance that cried out "I have arrived, fear me!". The day wasn't far from the last memorable moment, I soon found out.

It was a day after I had had a gross injustice committed to me. I had been totally snubbed by Sundar, who was the team captain, while he threw the ball to supposed heavyweights like Santhosh and Ramkumar who were unrestrained in their profligacy. The thing that struck me most was the fact that Santhosh had been given the first oved of the innings, and he went for 12 runs. Yet, he was given the over without even a slight hesitation by Sundar.
If I had given away so many runs in my over, even due to my misfortune, I would have shunned for an entire semester, keeping in mind that single over.

The gross injustice of it all fueled my fire that had been raging for quite a long time. It had already been lit ablaze a long time back when silly idiots used to comment about my bowling. What do these people know about cricket or spin bowling to teach me my job, let alone talk about it?

Anyway, I decided it was time to unleash the fire (maybe instincts slogan was inspired from this moment) in me. The next match I got the opportunity.

I was given an over, with strict warning not to give away runs, with a balanced field. The batsmen at the crease were Vijay and Raghavan- no two heavyweights, yet no pushovers. I went around the wicket for the first few deliveries and found that I had remarkeable spin. Pitching on middle or off I spun the ball way outside off stump that it was immediately termed a wide. I tried my best to control my line or spin, by angling it more towards middle or leg stump, or trying to reduce the spin, all to no avail.

Just then, Vijay had a brainwave. He jokingly told me try bowling around the stumps. It was a casual comment, yet I saw the wisdom in it. The immediately changed to around the stumps, to miraculous effects. From that angle, my balls pitched just on or outside leg stump and spun far away from off stump.

Every ball was speared in at the same spot with the accuracy of a sniper or Glenn Mcgrath (whichever side of the globe you are) and every time the ball spun, bounced and evaded all efforts of Raghavan, Vijay, later Sundar and some others' desperate grasp. It seemed they had no idea of where the ball was heading. I had thought (a few matches before) my heydays as a great legspinner ala Warne had ended, and that I had forgotten the deep leg spin.

Not even in my wildest dreams had I imagined that I would recover my pomp so soon, and at this match. Maybe it was the pitch, or perhaps it was the conditions (sunny day), or perhaps it was just my day; whatever it was I took top honours that day as a bowler.

However, we lost the match- due to Vijay's good fortune, who got more than 3 lives, one of which was a dropped catch of mine ().

Memorable Moments of Cricket in SSN V

I had last left the story when I had learned to judge deep catches and had taken 3 successfully. Today I continue from the last line of the previous chapter- fickleness of fortunes in the cricket pitch. I have two other instances of catches that came my way that I must mention here.
Though I didn’t catch either of these two, due to totally different reasons, I learned valuable lessons from both.

The first was when I had just been to the pitch to celebrate a wonderful castling by some bowler I can’t remember, and was jogging back to my place. I reached it at a leisurely pace, and turned and saw to my horror the ball flying towards me, and I knew that it was going to fall short of me. And it sure did. But what happened next was what that made the moment more special. The ball fell short and bounced in front of me. In a moment of extremely fast reflexive actions, I threw my hands in an effort to stop its journey, and sure enough it was successful. The ball was heading to the boundary, if not for that effort, and I had saved two runs. The fact that a lot of wickets had fallen already, and that I had tried my best and saved two runs impressed my friends. They understood that the ball had been bowled with me not being ready. Nobody even mentioned my missing of the catch, but I felt guilty. If I had been at my place at the time of delivery, this would have been another catch in my bag, However, I looked at the brighter side of it- if I had been at the place and fluffed it, and then all my good work in the day would have been forgotten. So it was God’s way of saving me from disgrace. So this wasn’t a miss actually- it was not my catch at all.

The last of the catches was a simple one, by my standards then- surprising how high standards can rise in the space of just one day. I was at sweeper cover now (the offside equivalent of square leg), and the wind was blowing from my right to the left. So when the ball was heading to me from a top edged square cut, I did all my known basics right, but forgot that the wind would have its part to play. I had also forgotten to see the ball until the last moment. I judged with an air of presumption that I had assumed after having caught so well till then, and placed my palms at a position where according to me the ball would land. If not for the wind, the ball was heading nowhere else. However, the wind pushed the ball further leftwards and it just grazed my fingertips, as my palms closed and fell to the ground, to my horror. That was one of the many lives Vijay would get, in a match where fortune helped in their victory- extras, especially from an over by Shankar, were the hero here, and good old lady luck for Vijay, whose top edges either dropped short, fell in no man’s land, or (in this case) were dropped. Puli (Senthil Kumar) could not believe I had dropped this. I told him what had happened, and he immediately reprimanded me for forgetting the basics. If I had my eyes on the ball, my palms would have moved towards it in a reflexive action. I felt like having been slapped.
I felt my pride melting away. Indeed- if you don’t follow the basics with hard concentration, you only stand to lose, however good a catcher you are.
That’s about my experiences with deep catching. Next in the series comes my exploits in close-in fielding. Keep tuning.

Memorable Moments of Cricket in SSN IV

Well, I’m back with more memories. The funny thing about memories is that you have got to keep remembering them for them so stay put. Else they’ll be replaced by new ones in the fresh category.

Anyway, I had last left story at the point where I had come to a nadir with respect to my fielding. Although my bowling had improved quite well- not quite as well as I would’ve liked, my fielding was fast unbecoming.

So, a few months later, when we began to play cricket (in our last semester in college), I was determined to set the record right. We were now playing in a different place- in the barren lands adjoining the sports block. So I thought- a new place, a new day.

Indeed it was, I was asked to open, and played quite well. However I tried to loft a fast half volley on my legs when I must have just flicked it away with my strong wrists, and holed out to long on. I guess I need more batting practice to start using the full range of my strokes, and make judgments as to choose which stroke for which ball. The fact that I’ve learnt it is a different story- narrated later in this series.

Anyway, after having given a good start to the innings, it was propelled to a good finish by the other batsmen, and we had a good score to defend. I was asked to field at long on this time- quite a new position for me, which is usually kept for bowlers who can easily change after overs during a spell. I was asking God- please give me a chance to prove myself.

And give it He did very soon. Early into the innings, Vijay pulled a short one; got the top edge and the ball flew in my direction. I quickly focused on in it like a hawk focuses on its prey, unwavering from the ball, and my feet started to move all by themselves in the right direction. I moved like in a trance truly and I felt the ball dying, thought it might fall before me so I leaned forward at the last moment and pouched it comfortably, close to my thigh, with both hands.

My joy knew no bounds that I threw the ball high up in delight, while still continuing the run towards the bowler’s end. My first catch in the deep! The fact that I had caught this ball fielding at long on, while my own demise was by holing out to the same place was poetic justice to me.

And there was more to come on the same day.

Later in the innings I had been shifted to long off and another top edge sailed straight to me. This time I was confident. I followed the ball like a missile homes in on its target. I knew I didn’t have to move at all for this. I just steadied my position, bent my knees slightly without moving an inch, and pocketed the gift right down my throat with my palms in the protective posture. It was a catch as cool as it gets- in fact I was calmness personified (true to my name Prashanth), and my technique seemed so perfect that I had even taken care to not prevent my palms from hiding the ball from my eyes even at the last moment. Sadly, the ball was a no-ball. I had seen it the moment the bowler (Shankar) had overstepped, but I didn’t allow thoughts that this was going to be a useless catch to bother me. In fact, I told myself the umpire wouldn’t have noticed the overstepping, but it was going to be a futile prayer. He had crossed the line by a large distance, and it would take a blind man not to see that.

Anyway, I was happy I hadn’t spilled any of the catches so far. If the first made me happy, the second made me delightful.

And there was to be a third as well. This one made me delirious. This time I was back at my stock position; yes you guessed it- square leg. We had just finished a high scoring match which we had won, and we expected to see more fireworks by the end of the day. Right in the first over of the match there were signs. A boundary had been hit, fine off the leg side. Later in the over, Ramkumar (Rockram) pulled a short one, and the ball was heading to me at square leg. This time, I had no issues; nothing at all. I just watched the ball, followed the basics and pocketed another catch- 3 on 3! That catch started a slide, and wickets tumbled. The match was at a stark contrast to the previous one where wickets were at a premium, Prakash and I were amazed at the fickleness of fortunes in the cricket pitch.

To the victor go the spoils

Well, India have had a tough, and triumphant series down under, and now its time to look at the spoils.

First of all, there are a lot of positives from the series, as well some riches unearthed. The most conspicuous and greatest gain of the tournament has been the emergence of Ishant Sharma as a lethal bowler. India has always been handicapped by the absence of a strike bowler who could deliver consistently. We've had some good bowlers who peaked now and then, however, even those bowlers in their day weren't so much as deadly- bowlers like Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, Sreesanth, RP Singh, L Balaji, Ajit Agarkar to name a few. But with Ishant at the helm, and Zaheer, Irfan and Sreesanth (Not to forget the newest member of the squad- the modest Praveen Kumar) India have a pace battery that is varied as well potent.


Uthappa has managed to keep his role as a floater- he can get runs quickly at the end of the innings or at the opening as well. His kind of shots find most use in the powerplays, so Indians must learn to use him well- he was used well in the series, and if the Indian think-tank did it consciously then they are going in the right direction.

Gambhir has emerged as the best No.3 in ODIs India had for a long time. His technique is solid, and he's extremely comfortable against the spinners- and plays it as well as Sachin and Dravid. And the fact that he played so well in the T20 shows that he can change the pace of the innings according to the situation.

With Rohit Sharma's cool head and the big hitting capabilities of Yuvraj and Dhoni, India looks a menacing batting unit- just like ever on paper, but this time for real as well. Yuvraj showed great signs of what he can do in the match againt Sri Lanka- where everybody was struggling to pierce the in-field, Yuvraj revelled in getting his runs in boundaries. We saw a repeat of that in the 2nd Final against Australia, which was cut short by Yuvraj's momentary lapse of concentration and getting carried away. He needs to control his feelings of exuberance, and concentrate on getting the runs more than anything else. Like Gavaskar said "Play good cricket India! Not glamourous cricket!" Tendulkar's presence at the top will be a morale booster for the side while terrifying the opposition, which means others can play their natural game, with the feeling that while Sachin's out there, there's nothing to worry.

Dhoni's captaincy has improved manifold that he actually out thought Ponting in various occasions. His masterstrokes in the final are now part of folklore- introducing Chawla for the first time in the series, in both the finals (even when the pitch in the 2nd Finals was said to favour the fast bowlers), as well giving the new ball to Praveen Kumar on both occasions. He has also changed his batting style to the extent that he scores atleast 30-40 runs at a run-a-ball pace almost every match. Earlier he would score big innings, but sporadically. This style is more befitting the role of a captain, but he must not forget his origins- of the batsmen who demolished bowler's reputations. Already some people have started feeling he has lost the shots he became famous for. The fact that he throws away such talk by saying "Stealing singles is more fun that bludgeoning boundaries" is all nice in the press, but he must know that India might need him in that role as well. But for now, he is the "cement" in the middle order for India (commentatorspeak). If India gets going well from the top more often, he may get the license to hit as he comes at 4 or 5 down.


So all in all, India has become a side to look for- already South Africa are keen to defeat India, looking at it as their salvation of sorts, and so they must constantly be thinking and moving ahead. They must guard themselves against burnout- which is very frequent nowadays, and with the bench strength that India has right now, they can afford to rotate players. The Aussie tour has showered injuries upon the side- as the latest medical report revealed, and its time India took burnout as a serious issue.

Australia goes all in... and loses!

The end of a long summer and India have never been fresher than ever. Instead of turning up in the airports as injured wrecks (both mentally and physically), they breeze into it like Gazelles ready for a race. Indeed the much touted tough land of Australia had been left whining while the Indians can chuckle.



From the most inauspicious of beginnings- a drubbing in the 1st test at Melbourne, and a heart-wrenching loss at Sydney that was scarred with controversies, they came back 180 degrees at Perth and made the Aussies tentative and hesitant to make moves in the 4th test and rounded off a great series. If not for the umpiring errors in the dreaded 2nd test, India could well have got a 1-1 or even a 2-1 result in their favor.



The Indians were considered tough opponents in tests- what with three consecutive series victories accompanied by Sachin, Sourav and Laxman stiking form, the emergence of Zaheer and RP Singh to form a strong pace attack, along with the evergreen Kumble's spin they always had a good chance to put up a fight.



But everyone knew that come the ODI series, and the Indians were in for a beating. After all, the Aussies had won the World Cup for the 3rd time in a row in the most facile manner just a few months before. And the fact that the T20 World Champions were crushed like peanuts by a Bulldozer at the one off T20 match at Melbourne didn't augur too well for India.



However, the fact that they came back strongly to finally pip Australia, actually beat them comprehensively in the Finals to win the gruelling CB Series was a fairy-tale turnaround.



India had a lot of positives to take from the tour- both from the tests and ODIs but sadly the Aussies were left with nothing but broken pride. In fact, they are now far from vulnerable- they are only as good as the next team (and by that I don't mean England or West Indies).



Lets look at what treasures the teams unearthed after this tour:

Australia: I'll start with Australia first as they have so little to show. Jacques flaws were exposed- he is a good batsman perhaps, but nowhere near Langer. His dream start of consecutive hundreds was cut short by a sobering slap into reality by the Indian bowling attack. Australia understood that replacing someone was going to be a tough job indeed. In fact, Jacques has so many batting errors that he might not actually fit the bill for an opener. He plays the horizontal bat shots well- the cut and the pull. But his sense of driving is not sound, and he definetely doesn't have the cool head of Langer.

With the loss of Gilchrist Australia find themselves having to rush Haddin into the Tests and ODIs which would be quite taxing on him. He wasn't particularly good in the series against India a few months back, and didnt get to play in the CB series. So he is an untested product.
With the loss of Hogg to retirement, and Mcgill to injury Australia find that hole left by Warne is biggest they would need to fill. Its so huge and gaping that you could send an elephant through it. And with indefinite suspension of Tait, Australia's bench strength doesn't look so strong as it seemed in the Sri Lankan tour.
Only Hopes seems a good prospect for the future, along with Johnson who is consistent. Lee is lethal, and perhaps the best bowler right now, but I wouldn't say he could be as deadly as Mcgrath. As for Bracken I cant think of him excelling in tests. His pace variation and cutters and smart bowling can only get him so far.

So suddenly, after all the raving about how the Australian domestic system produces the best players, and that Australian supremacy will last forever unless other nations adopt this domestic structure, we find that their bench strength is most thin!
So much for crying out loud! The heavier (in the head) they are, the harder they fall!

Part 2 follows- India unearthes riches.

Sane voices in a mental asylum

There's been a lot of bad blood between the two teams this season, unlike any other I've seen.
There have been instances of opposing teams not being the best of pals- recent examples being England-Australia, South Africa-Australia, Sri Lanka-Australia etc (noticed a trend didn't you?).

However, there has never been animosity between Australia and India- only respect, or even awe to great performers on either side. Harbhajan was not the obnoxious weed when Hayden toured in 2001, or 2005 (except perhaps when he kept picking his wicket!), and Symonds wasn't even in the fray to be provoked- he hadn't even established himself. (He's a weed who has taken root pretty recently). So there had been no problems for the Aussies with the Indians (of course, they are not absolutely in peace with anyone, but well...). And if at all there had been any, the media knew nothing about it, until this summer.

It has been one of the most controversial of the last decade. Something new springs up at every step. At the drop of the hat you have the media ready to gobble anything new to grossly magnify, prevaricate and "sell" to their eager ardent readers (of gossip).

At this juncture, Hayden's comment was entirely unwarranted. He knew the delicate state between the teams, and was it absolutely necessary to give a comment from the heart? It would have been better, and fitting in fact, had he hit Harbhajan for a few sixes and give vent to his feelings in the pitch.

Whether they do it unwittingly or as part of a strategy to incite and provoke the Indians, we may never know. The problem lies in the fact that the Australians are weeds who are unwilling to change. And the new Indian team, filled with hot blooded youngsters finds it hard to bite their teeth and tolerate such cocky behavior, like their illustrious peers, who kept the action on the field, and within cricketing limits. After all, the Aussies are the ones being beaten! So why should they be the arrogant brats! The whole idea of the Indians is ironical. They must just let the losers whine while the winners shine. Even the level headed Dhoni speaks about teaching the "art of sledging" to Indian youngsters, so that they may give the Aussies a taste of their own medicine.

They mustn't forget one thing-there can be good friendship between the members of these two teams, if they make an effort. Neither a (humbug of a) public apology (Not that anyone is willing to do that), nor will handshaking and hugging in front of the media would help amend relations.
Only shifting the attention wholly to cricket is the need of the hour.

Just look at the way the two great warhorses of either side- Lee and Sachin conduct themselves, and you have a ready made solution for this problem.
Lee had just sent in a life-threating beamer, of course unintended, and immediately apologized, Tendulkar started walking towards the leg side to regain his concentration (he was on 98 at that time); Lee walked further upto him and offered his hand and Tendulkar duly obliged by putting his arms into Lee's. Both were in smiles.

The apology was so truly genuine, and Sachin happy, even bemused at Lee's gesture. In fact, he wouldn't have called Lee "a bully" hadn't he persisted with the apology. Because both of them knew each other. It was a glorious moment. I must say each and every guilty party who watched that- the likes of Sreesanth, Harbhajan, Symonds, Hayden, etc. must have been shamed by the kind of friendship, kind of mutual respect these two have, the kind of friendship they could have only in the dreams of fans like us.

Not only that incident, these two have been far away from all this filth right from the start. In fact, Lee and Sachin are two names to come out of this untarnished, and that's a miracle, considering the way they have performed in this tour.
Both have excelled everybody in their respective departments, played hard competitive cricket, and duly respected the achievements of the opponents.

Whenever Lee sent a bouncer or a good ball that unsettled Tendulkar, he would nod his head acknowledging the good effort. And we all know Lee's felicitation of Sachin after the magnificient hundred in the Test at the same venue- Sydney, by patting Sachin on his helmet.
Why don't the players look at Sachin and Lee and learn from them, or why doesn't the media talk extensively about how such a friendship (the way it clinically dissects every controversial incident to the minutest detail) can stand unfettered by the fire that rages around them?

Fans like me who love Hayden's batting and Symonds all round skills, Bhajji's tweakers, and Sreesanth's fiery bowling can only dream of the day when Sreesanth would put his hands between Symond's.

Such a moment may not arrive at all, but if ever Bhajji and Hayden wanted to know what it is to play good cricket and chill off with your opponents after the game, they needn't look far- Lee and Sachin are having a drink (non-alcoholic perhaps, how would I know?) right beside their brawl.

Memorable Moments of cricket in SSN III

Well, its been quite some time since I last updated this series that one starts to think I make up all these memories and that I haven't had any new ideas as of late. I must say to all these non-believers that these are authentic experiences I have been part of in my colorful life.

Anyway, back to my memories.I have always been a sharp fielder especially in the close in position which I developed in my childhood by playing my cricket in confined spaces. There you needed extremely to be extremely watchful to stop the lusty blows from batsmen standing not more than ten metres from you. You had to look, move and grab all at the span of milliseconds. There was no question of deflecting the ball- you either stopped it completely or not at all, as the ball would still reach the boundary even if you got a hand to it.

And direct hits were a must if you wanted to remove wickets regularly. Come to think of it- what with small grounds (you couldn't call my backyard a ground in the actual sense) capable batsmen with powerful hitting, under-arm bowling, no wicket-keeper dismissal (the wall was the stump) and no lbw rule, the only ways to remove a batsman was to bowl him with a fast ball, a very wily one, a catch- all of which were highly unlikely, or a run out. With short boundaries, runs were fetched in the stand-and-deliver manner more often. And with the pitches being short too, you would say there's little chance of a run-out. However you would find it surprising that quite q few important dismissals were run-outs. A sharp fielder who grabs the ball and returns in the nick of time can effect more dismissals than any wily bowler.

Anyway, I learned the art of direct hits there- I don't miss many even now. However the skills I
couldn't learn fielding in the heat of that arena were- naturally those learned in large expansive
spaces- long distance catches and throws. My fielding in the deep was underdeveloped to say the
least.
I was never a good judge of catches and my limitations were blatantly exposed in one fateful match.

I was standing in deep square leg- my usual fielding position then. The batsman pulled a short ball and the ball sped in my direction, in a beautiful parabolic trajectory and I rushed forward in an attempt to prove myself, only to find, in horror, the ball sailing way over my head. It was a misjudgment like no other! The ball would have been right down my throat if I had only stood my ground in the first place.
The guys shrugged it off as a one-off incident. Little did they, or I knew that more was in the
pipeline! The next ball was similarly short and consequently the shot and trajectory no different.

However, this time I was ready- or so I thought. I stood there rooted to my spot expecting the ball like a girl waiting for her estranged lover, but the ball swerved from its purported path, and fell down out of exhaustion not more than half way before its destination! I realized too late that the ball didn't have enough in it to reach me.
I was repeatedly reprimanded by my team-mates for not reading the ball through the air, and was moved to square cover with a strict warning. I was happy now that I was in my favorite position and felt I had seen the last of my misfortunes for the day.

Sadly, it was not to be! In my position you need to look for catches on both sides by stretching your arms far and wide. Its the exact position Yuvraj used to be and where Rohit Sharma is now.
The next ball (of course, it was not the next ball chronologically- its just the next ball of
importance in my story. Perhaps I must add the prefix "later". In fact, it was the last over of the
innings) was short and wide (again!) and it was duly slashed with a horizontal bat. The intention
was to execute a fiery square cut, however the batsman looked with horror as the ball ballooned,
rather launched itself in the vertical direction, stayed afloat for an eternity, and after a vain
attempt to reach the heavens, it began to descend towards me after its lengthy sojourn.

The fact that I was the only one who could go for the catch made me feel naked, however I reassured myself saying this was my chance for redemption, and such chances don't come easier. I didn't move this time- keeping my eyes on the ball all the time, and rightly so- as the ball didn't move from its laser-straight path. It was bound to end up in my hands. It was as certain as the Sun would set soon that day, and everyday. The ball came down, I clutched it, and... botched the catch!

The ball slipped out of my hands as if it had a mind of its own. I had dropped the mother of all simple catches! I couldn't believe what had just happened. How many ever times I try to look at it I don't know what went wrong. Everything had been perfect- my technique had been flawless.

It was the last incident to cap an already rotten day. I had to end the day apologizing to all and sundry. The catch itself had no bearing in the match- they just took one run and it was the last over of the match. However, I couldn't bear the ignominy of such a deed.

I had determined myself to improve on this very important area of my cricket. How I did and came out with flying colors is what the next episode is about!

Memorable Moments of cricket in SSN II

I've bowled a lot of overs in my time, and successfully too. Now I have a reputation of being a wily leg spinner who can spin the ball both ways, and turn the ball tremendously. But none of them have been more nerve wracking than this one I'm gonna talk about.
I had just been mugged by Sundar for 4 sixes off an over a few matches before- That was my first over after a very long time, and so I had lost my pace and had totally forgotten to control my flight. Without those I was just feeding him slow balls right on the slot for hitting- on leg stump line, at a full length. No wonder I had been mauled!
So this over was a make-or-break over for me. I had to impress my fellows to demand, or even ask for more overs in following matches. I was determined, or maybe desperate.
Saisriram was the batsman. He mocked me by standing to right of the off stump- exposing all three of them with a stance pointing towards square leg. He was reminding me of the way Sundar hit all those sixes, and that I was cannon fodder to him anyday.

The first ball I bowled was even fuller than I had wanted it to be- had Sai been in his normal stance that would've been a full toss outside off. But with this stance he missed it- the ball was faster than he expected.
Everyone cheered, or maybe sneered, at both of us- the crowd didn't know whom to mock and whom to cheer. In their eyes both of us creatures of ridicule (in a funny way of course). The next ball was very full- in fact it was a full toss. It rose high from my hand, floated past Sai's bat that met with air (again) and crashed onto the stumps- sucker punch!
I couldn't believe my good fortune! The crowd went wild, and Sai was looking like a dunce! Sai sheepishly walked off the pitch while Raghavan took his bat.
The interview wasn't over for me yet, but I had got my confidence back- I knew had it in me to perform my exploits against these fellas as I had done with my street and school buddies.
I just breezed past the rest of the over, conceding just two runs, and showing samples of my prodigious spin with a ball outside off stump that beat Raghavan's bat.
There had been no hat-trick, not even a wicket earned with a beauty, but the over silenced all my critics (everyone congratulated me) and had signalled to one and all- I had arrived.
It would take about 2 semesters until I would bowl my best spell- which I did recently, which everyone remarked was unplayable except for the wides, (About that spell later on in this series)
however, this was the over that started it all- acting as the tonic that invigorated me back after a career wrenching drubbing.

Memorable Moments of cricket in SSN I

The match was in the balance, Shiva who had bowled an excellent previous over had the ball. Sundar's team needed 10 off 12 balls. Prakash was the batsman. Shiva had spent eons setting up the field and started down the run up with utmost confidence, and the crowd (read five members) at his back. I was at square leg watching history in the making. Shiva bowled at a good length, and Prakash danced down the track, swiveled to face me and smacked the ball high up in the air in my direction.

I could only stand watch, with my mouth gaping as the ball sailed over me, over the boundary ropes, and way over the CSE Block roof, and was out of sight. Needless to say- the ball had disappeared over the tall CSE block and landed on its roof.

For moment, nothing happened. All eyes were glued on the CSE roof, as if waiting for the ball to come back all by itself. The next moment, pandemonium ensued. Everybody was running towards Shiva or Prakash, mostly Shiva to beat him up.

I could only watch and laugh knowingly, as I could understand how it would have felt to Shiva, already having been at the receiving end of a Sundar mauling a few matches. That over almost destroyed my career as a spin bowler.

Shiva was at a similar state now. Just the over before, he had been a hero. Now everyone was blaming him for the abandonment of the match- everyone believed the ball had been lost because of his poor bowling.
Prakash stood there, bemused at his own shot, and his power. It was to become his forte soon- power hitting. This was the moment that started it all. It is one of the most enduring moments of cricket in SSN.

The evolution of Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir has been in the Indian for quite some time to be an easily recognised batsmen- much more than Manoj Tiwary, or Rohit Sharma. That in itself is reason enough that he is not a newbie or freshman anymore, and although he is still a youngster, one must understand that he has had enough opportunities to prove his worth, and he has come out of all the tests with improving performances. His heroics beside Sewhag in the T20 World Cup are now part of Indian folklore, but apart from that he has gotten not too many good innings to show to cement a place, and not too few to completely forsake him.
Although he has produced a brilliant hundred against Sri Lanka of recent, it doesn't tell us a lot about him.
Only his consistent performance (or not) in the series can have the final say.
Not to discourage or downsize the wonderful effort to rescue India beside his captain, one must understand that he hasn't solved his age-old problems in batting.
He still gets out LBW while playing across the line and still gets out (or comprehensively beaten) by fishing for the ball outside the off stump.
However, he has evolved from his early days. He is arguably one of the best players of spin in this side next only to Tendulkar. Dhoni, Sewhag and the others can negotiate spin well just like any Indian batsman can. But Gambhir's technique is solid- he uses his feet immaculately, while he cuts and pulls with ridiculous ease. His inside out shots are as good any you shall see in the international arena.
The way he picked Murali's doosra in the last game shows the kind of player he becomes when he is full of confidence- which he was after scoring an enterprising 70 (till then). His six off Malinga shows that he has the power to clear the ropes, which was sadly devoid of some Indian batsmen who have graced the stage.
It can be safely said that he is the best No.3 in this side. I'm absolutely sure that it is time to say goodbye for sure to Dravid- his slow accumulation has been a constant bane to the side, and with Gambhir now finding his destiny, India can forget those bad days.

Hussey in Mastercard Ad

Michael Hussey a.k.a Mr.Cricket, one of the most consistent batsmen of Test cricket today and one of the Brand ambassadors of Mastercard is slated to appear in its latest ad. The ad reads thus (in typical Mastercard fashion)-

Two tickets to the one-dayer $50.
Replica team shirt $65.
Getting sledged by Michael Hussey: priceless.

The ad is in its post production stages, and is due to hit the silver screen soon. I cant wait to see the AD, although it might not be aired in India (who'd watch Mike Hussey sledging while we have Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh etc etc.

Sewhag in test squad: Master stroke by selectors

Indian selectors are usually considered as next only to their Sri Lankan counterparts- who were recently dubbed by Atapattu as a "bunch of muppets headed by a joker", in their eccentricity, but the latest move of theirs to include Sewhag in the test sqaud touring Australia in 2007-2008 would surely gain immense respect for their fraternity.

The Indian selectors have made some silly decisions from the beginning of Indian Cricket, and the most crazy blunder was the manner in which Ganguly was unceremoniously dropped from the National Squad last year. But, some others may conclude that (on hindsight) it was a good move, considering how tremendously Ganguly has upped the ante to make a fairy-tale comeback which means he has peaked at the most opportune moment, in time for the Aussie series- where the top two test teams of the world- Australia and India clash in a high-voltage series of 4 tests.


Although it would be ridiculous for the selectors to draw any credit for Ganguly's phenomenal growth (and rightly so- they won't), they can be praised for the aggressive stance taken by them ahead of the all important Aussie series.

In selecting Sewhag, they have sent out a message to the Aussies that they shall not be conservative, and that the Indians too have the so-called "ruthless aggression" amongst them. In banking on Sewhag to provide some fireworks in his own demolishing style, they actually send out shockwaves to the Aussie camp.

Not to mention the motivation Sewhag might feel by this move, and thereby he would strive to perform great deeds like he did last time Down Under.
I think the selectors must double up this incusion by selecting him in the playing XI for the 1st test, after seeing how well he is coping upto the conditions in the Warm-Up matches. It could be a gamble- but given Dinesh Karthik's poor form, it wouldn't matter much. In fact, I suggest the selectors judge both players from the Warm-Up matches and pick their squad.
We must forget that Sewhag is as good a fielder as Karthik, a fantastic slip catcher, and a very handy off-spinner well known to break partnerships. He will surely add to the team's strength.

Sewhag had already mentioned to one and all, that it hurts to be out of the team, and this unexpected inclusion, and thereby display of faith would no doubt spur him to perform more responsibly.

The pitches in Australia have pace and bounce aplenty- which batsmen of Sewhag's kind would relish. He is the kind of batsman who likes the ball coming onto his bat. So he shall do well there.
Mcgrath with his accurate line and length, along with his "infinitesimal" movement was a mighty threat for batsmen like Sewhag, with little technical prowess, but right now, without Warne and him- the Aussie bowling attack is not so special as it was a few years back.

But, even without Mcgrath, the Australian Bowling attack looks potent enough to threaten Sewhag with his traditional weaknesses. Brett Lee is bowling accurately now, and with his pace (which is only a bit lower than earlier) he'll be deadly.
But, as I always say- an aggressive approach to the Aussies is the best way to keep them off- and that's the only way Sewhag knows. So it'll be a nice contest- one that would liven up Sewhag's name Down Under for many more years to come. I think Sewhag will come on tops- it's my gut feeling he's a far better batsman than we think he is.

But, if he fails (which I'm sure he will not) he could as well as kiss his Test career goodbye... T20 wouldn't get anyone far, yet it got you a shot at the Aussies, in a transition phase. If you don't cash in now- lightning will never strike twice Sew- T20 and all of cricket will forsake you.
Go on Viru- show 'em! We love you- and we believe you! (so say the selectors- and me as well)

Sewhag Out As India Bat First

Sewhag was unavailable to play on the final of the tense Final of the Twenty20 World Cup against Pakistan, due to the groin injury he was suffering from in the last match. He is replaced by Yousuf Pathan, younger brother of all-rounder Irfan Pathan. He is an all-rounder himself- a batsman and an off spin bowler. But he hasn't had any international experience till now. How he will fill the shoes of India's batting star Sewhag remains to be seen.
The whole of India prays that this aint a blow to India.

An India-Pakistan Final on the cards

After a dramatic clash at Durban which has now become a venue of perennial heartbreaks for the home team (South Africa), the Indians now face a Himalayan task of defeating the resurgent Aussies.
After their loss to Zimbabwe (which might be attributed to complacency), and the subsequent loss to Pakistan, the Kangaroos, on Thursday, decimated the Sri Lankans on a seamer-friendly wicket and went on to brutally bludgeon their opponents of the T20 World Cup. It was a massive statement that would have made the other teams shake in fear, if not for the euphoria of qualifying.

India must be feeling swell after such a win, but the Men In Blue must work on a strategy meticulously to overthrow the Order of the Golden Yellow, who are not feeling all too well in this format. Although Hayden has been his best in the last few matches, he hasn't been his imperious self when faced with quality bowling. And India have Harbhajan, his old tormentor, in peak form. Their duels on the field during the Aussie tour of India in 2001 are the stuff of legend. Needless to say we can expect the piece de resistance from these two.
Man to man, although India doesn't look an equal to Australia, (without Sachin, Saurav, Dravid and Zaheer) the brevity of this format minimizes such differences. If the Indians can eliminate the ridiculous number of wides and play professional cricket (like they did last match), it would be time for the Australians to pray for miracles.

The other semi-final involves two teams who seem to be equals in most respects. New Zealand and Pakistan have so many things in common. They have the big hitters (Oram, Styris, Afridi), the crafty batsmen (McCullum, Mcmillan, Shoaib Malik, Misbah Ul-Haq), the fiery pacers-(Bond, Asif) and spinners (Afridi, Vettori). And they always have been inconsistent in the World Tournaments. Pakistan failed miserably in the ‘99 final while New Zealand has a history of failing in the Big games.
And looking at the recent form of both teams, we can expect a tight match. But, I will still go with Pakistan. They have defeated New Zealand in all the World Cup encounters up to date.

So it does look like its going to be "The Mother of All Finals". An India-Pakistan clash in a major tournament has taken about 30 yrs in the coming and the fate of it materializing is in the hands of the two resurgent teams under two young responsible captains-Dhoni and Malik.

Warney's 50: Not the final say, yet food for thought!

The cat is out of the bag! Shane Warne's 50 greatest cricketers
http://tinyurl.com/27pcfh
http://preview.tinyurl.com/27pcfh (A preview of the site, so that you know its not spam)

Well, looking at it from the outset, you find the names you'd see in any contemporary list, (albeit in a quirky order that wouldn't please many critics or the statisticians) but there are surprises, actually many, in store.

Sachin is at the top, pipping Lara by a tiny margin, which Warne seems to say "makes a lot of difference". No surprises there, as Warne has always held Sachin in high esteem. And the list has all the usual suspects, viz. Curtly, Waqar, Wasim, Border, Mcgrath, The Waugh Brothers, "Tubby" Taylor, Dravid, Kumble etc.

But, the inclusion of certain unknown figures while overlooking some celebrated giants has raised a furore among the critics. Also, the placing awarded to some players gives room for debate. Warney's 50 and 49 are two first-class cricketers, who have never played a single test. Some notable exclusions are Inzamam and Ganguly.

Well, first of all- I'm not going to go over the greatness of each player and his placing. Most of them are household names and the exact placing of each of them is subject one's own perspective. But, the one thing which we find weird is Steve Waugh's place- 26th place? Behind Darren Lehmann, and a few other blokes he captained?? Tim May, an off-spinner of mediocre talent who vanished into obscurity (honestly, how many times have you seen him bowl) with Warne's rise is at 31st place ahead of Waqar, Kapil, Donald.

Many reasons can be attributed to Waugh's placing- and they're widely discussed in the following article in the Age


http://tinyurl.com/2xy29x

http://preview.tinyurl.com/2xy29x (A preview of the site, so that you know its not spam)

I would also like to add my points to the theory posited in the Age. Steve, although considered as a great, fighting batsman (NOBODY, NOT EVEN WARNEY DENIES THAT) was not the best of captains even in Australia. He's got the longest streak of victories in Tests as a captain, but Warne says that he was handed a wonderful team by Taylor (his predecessor). Besides, he wasn't a brave captain at any point of time in his career, unlike the present skipper Ponting (which has earned Ponting his nickname "Punter"). He wasn't able to stop batting assaults even though he had the best of bowlers at his disposal- The Kolkata Turnaround, Sachin's masterpieces at Sharjah, Aravinda's onslaught in the '96 WC final, the list is endless.

He was pretty tentative, and always played by the same strategy. And he was successful even in that one minded approach because he had people who always baled him out. How many times had Bevan saved the day? If not for Warne's bowling in the semi-finals of the '99 WC, his own pompous boast to Gibbs about the dropped catch would've been laughed upon.

But, on the contrary, Stephen Fleming, with his motley group of bits-and-pieces cricketers has been able to produce more than creditable performances for quite a long time. And he took up the mantle when he was very young for the job, unlike Waugh. Martin Crowe, considered one of the great thinking captains for his daring moves (like bringing on a spinner in the 2nd over of the innings), especially in the '92 WC gets to 22nd place (and that's surely for his captaincy).

For so many of us who believe Steve was great, Warne has given us food for thought. In fact, the whole list, however quirky it is, has so much scope to be analysed on various perspectives. Apart from those included for personal reasons (like Tim May, Merv Hughes etc.) the rest of the lot and their respective placings need to interpreted correctly.

Warne's views are not to be lightly taken. He's someone known to frank, and sometimes telling bitter truths without mincing words. (Remember the time he spoke of coaches as being unnecessary?). So if you thought this was just for getting back into the limelight, think again.

Warne isn't the final say, but he opens up angles for narrow-minded cricket fans (like us Indians), and self-proclaimed experts of the game, for rigorous analysis.