AUSSIES COME CRASHING DOWN

I just won a bet with my friend .. i bet on SA winning the test series in Australia.. a couple of them even called me "Mad" when i put up my reasons, but i have the last laugh :-)

Well done Graeme Smith and SA !! Sensational year of Test cricket..

Dont relax though, MSD and Apna India are right behind.... we want to see some feisty contests ahead

Bye Bye Punter, you are a useless captain

Cheers to Test Cricket !!!

TREK biking

It’s been about 3-4 months since I bought my mountain bike, an orange, super cool looking TREK 4300. I paid a lot of money for it. I was inspired by a friend of mine, Mithun fondly called NP. He had bought his TREK a year back and would use it to commute daily to office. I always wanted a bike for long, but definitely hadn’t thought of a mountain bike. One ride on NP’s bike convinced me that I needed to have one. Yes the price was a bit on the higher side, but I decided it was worth it. It was better than spending 60k on a motorbike, fuel and getting stuck in traffic. I made up my mind that I would use it for most of my commutes around the city. Half hr’s ride every morning prior to catching the infy bus would be a daily routine I thought. However, I wasn’t able to keep that up. I would ride it around during weekends, but daily morning was really tough. Sleeping late, laziness and cold weather were excuses easy to make up. Meanwhile NP, (who jogs for 6-7 kms daily morning) was making plans of going on a long bike journey. Nandi hills, Big Banyan tree were some of the places he thought off. I would always say, “Sure” to him, but I was not sure if I had the stamina to bike 70-80 kms. Plans kept happening, but something would always come up and things didn’t materialize. This weekend, both of us were free, and our gang hadn’t met up for long. So we decided to meet up in Nandi Hills. Plan - Np and me to start the bike journey early morning and for the rest to join us in their car and bikes on top of the hills. I hadn’t biked enough for nearly 2-3 weeks and had doubts if I could actually do it, but I was determined to have a go. What’s the use of an expensive mountain bike, if I don’t make it do what it’s supposed to? So, everything was set.

Np calls me up at 5-30 in the morning (I was in deep deep sleep). I don’t know how I picked up the phone. He said he’s setting off from his place and would meet me beyond Hebbal Flyover in half an hour. I said “OK”. I almost went to sleep again, but somehow managed to drag myself out of bed. I was ready by 6 and set off to our meeting point, which was 3-4 kms from my place. It was precisely 6-20 when NP came and we set off. I was enjoying the cool breeze. “We are not stopping until we near the airport maga” announced NP. “ok maga”, I replied meekly, not very convinced. I had given my cash to him and had nothing but the phone in my pocket. We alternated between steady and short bursts of speed. The taxis, buses and cars would zoom past us, all heading to the airport. We would slip into the side roads at every opportunity to be on the safer side. It was smooth going till Devanahalli, which means we had covered about 28 kms. I had kept up with NP for most part of the ride, but he had surged ahead later on and I couldn’t see him at the end of the long highway. I was tiring by now. Non-stop for 28kms, without any warm up, what do you expect?? I desperately wanted to have a few sips of water, but I had no cash. I stopped for a while, and NP called up saying, he’s waiting for me at the deviation towards Nandi. I inched my way for next 2 kms and there was NP, looking fresh as if nothing had happened. He set off once he saw me; I shouted out with whatever energy left and asked him to stop. I needed some liquid else I would have collapsed. There was a small shop in the corner. I bought 2 bananas, gave one to NP. He reluctantly took it, saying he wasn’t too hungry. He could sense my struggle, but encouraged me - “Just 23 kms more maga” Eating another banana wasn’t such a bad idea, I figured. We set off again and NP disappeared from my sight soon. I just couldn’t feel the bike moving, though I was putting in every bit of my energy. I would eagerly wait for the next downward slope to relax. My hands and especially my backside were beginning to hurt. My neck muscles weren’t in happy state either. I reached another deviation point which read, 12kms to Nandi. I expected NP to be waiting there. He had told me earlier, we would have breakfast at the second deviation. He wasn’t around and I cursed myself for not taking some cash from him at the first deviation. I couldn’t even buy a bottle of water and there was no network coverage to call him. I struggled another 4-5 kms, and encountered a steep upward road. I decided there was no way I was going to make this one, and parked the bike on the side and made myself comfortable under a tree. People in every vehicle that passed by would look at me curiously. They were probably saying, “Who is this specimen?” I almost dozed off, until a couple of stray dogs, started barking ferociously at me. I’m guessing they were startled to see something with a bright red, strange looking helmet and an orange bike. They probably thought I was an alien. They would alternate between barking and howling. They didn’t stop for 5 mins and it was getting embarrassing for me. Finally I said. “Tommy… Tooommy… tommy tommy tommy”. It worked!! They were convinced I was human and disappointedly went away. I kept an eye on them to make sure they didn’t attack from behind. I rested another 10 mins and decided to walk up the steep road pushing the bike. I reached a downward slope soon and happily hopped on. Soon, I reached the foothills of Nandi. Np wasn’t there ..again and I still had no cash. Luckily the network was back and I got a call from him. He was just 2 kms from the top. He had actually biked 8 kms of steep hill road at one go. Phew! Meanwhile 2 of our gang, Anish (Shetty) and Abhilash (lambu) were on their way by car. The rest of the gang had ditched the plan, obviously too lazy to get up. I was happy to hear that a car was on its way. I quickly decided that I would use the car to reach the top. No way would I attempt biking up the hill in that state. The car arrived and thankfully lambu paid for the biscuits i had gobbled up waiting for them. I got into the back of the car and we slowly made our way up. Finally, we reached and the weather was awesome. Chill and foggy, it was a beautiful sight. Finally we found NP, and everyone was amazed to see him looking pretty fresh. What the … I thought.

We went to a hotel and hogged 1 onion dosa + 1 tomato omellete + 1 plate Maggi + Boost. Finally I felt alive. We walked to Tipu point, enjoyed the chill breeze, clicked some pics, saw a dog and a monkey fight, a kid telling a monkey “That is the last piece of biscuit i'm giving you” and a cute little girl asking if she could ride my bike. We spent about an hour and a half there and decided to leave. Np and me got a head start and zoomed down the hill. That experience was probably one the best of my life. I'm guessing we were coming down at a speed of 40-50 kmph and the curves, late breaking, overtaking motorbikes made it a wonderful experience. That gave me the JOSH I desperately needed and decided I should complete the entire return journey by bike ( I was contemplating getting into the car till then)

Shetty and lambu caught us soon and asked if I was fine enough to ride another 55 kms. I said yes and they left. Once again, keeping up with NP was going to be impossible. I was slipping behind with every passing mile. We got caught up in 2 heavy downpours and were drenched and had to halt. I was happy coz unlike the onward trip, this time I got some rest every 20 kms. Finally after 3.5 gruelling hours, I reached home at 3 pm. A cold water bath was what I needed and it felt great. My body was aching all over, and my backside the most severe. Had a good lunch and crashed. 3 hrs on, I found it difficult to get myself off the bed, an “Aaah” here and an “Ouch” there. The usual power cut at 8, and it struck me that a blog would be good time pass.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience. 100 plus km (up and down), wasn't a bad start i guess. Hopefully it’s the first of many more memorable bike rides.

“Aaaaouch, my back is hurting real bad”

I think a good masseuse is what I need right now.

Caaamaaaan !!!!!!

Dadagiri ki Jai !!!

In 1996, ESPN had just about entered the Indian television space. They had the exclusive telecast rights of India's tour of England that year. Most cable operators refused to relay ESPN and I didn’t get to see the entire tour. For some strange reason, I didn’t know much about that tour. I had no clue what the team composition was and all the hype surrounding it. The tour happened a few months after India’s tearful exit from the World Cup at the Eden gardens. Probably that’s why I wasn’t even following the tour in the news or papers. Even after the tour had concluded, the name “Saurav Ganguly” didn’t strike a lot of excitement. I had read in the papers that he scored back to back hundreds, however I hadn’t seen or followed those knocks live on television; it didn’t generate the same enthusiasm.

Nevertheless, it was much later that I understood the uniqueness of what Saurav had accomplished in that tour. It probably was the most bizarre sequence of events which led to his arrival. Having being dumped after one tour game in the 92 aussie tour, he was making a comeback to the Indian side. His selection for the tour had sparked off wide spread accusations of it being political and zonal. It may or may not be true, but no one in their wildest dreams would have expected what was to follow. Navjot Sidhu returned home from the tour claiming he was humiliated and Manjrekar was injured. This opened the gates into the first team for Saurav and Rahul. The innings Saurav played in Lords, was a shocker. I call it a shocker coz he probably hadn’t played so well ever before. His brother and Bengal teammates later confessed that they didn’t know he could bat in that fashion. Everyone was stunned. But not Saurav. After being picked in the first team, he was supposedly told by many that if he failed in the test match, he would probably never play for India again. This was how a debutant was encouraged in the 90’s. Ironically it was he who changed all that a few years on. He confessed later that never once did he think of failure, when he was batting. Maybe it was easier for him to think that way, since he was a Prince, born with a silver spoon. If he failed he could still go back and lead a privileged life. But he wasn’t a loser. He batted like he was possessed with the desire to prove all wrong and produced the most stunning debut performance ever seen. Saurav Ganguly had arrived and many had to stitch their lips.

The next 4 years in his career was something of a phenomenon. He formed a lethal opening partnership with Tendulkar in ODI’s and averaged in the mid 50’s in Tests. Heck, he even got 5 wicket hauls. He seemed to play with a kind of passion and aggression, never visible in an Indian cricketer before. No wonder then, he was given the captaincy after match fixing had infected Indian cricket. The public had lost faith in its team. India needed to start fresh. Saurav was the perfect choice.

Somehow the team under him seemed to show more interest. It all started in Nairobi, against Australia in the Champions trophy. India played with the “Im not afraid, I’m here to Win” attitude. Even Sachin Tendulkar (who had taken enough verbals from the aussies in 99) gave it back to Mcgrath after smashing him for 2 sixes. The look on McGrath’s face is legendary. Never before had an Indian player given it back. In fact a year back in Australia, Srinath apologized to Ricky Ponting after hitting him on the helmet, only to see punter bark back the 4 letter words. Srinath looked stunned, but did not utter a word. Some may say Srinath was dignified, but it affected the team. It gave the impression the team was intimidated and not courageous enough to stand up against nonsense, mainly coz they didn’t have the confidence to back the talk with performance. Ganguly changed all that. Every youngster making the team was not told he would go back home if he failed. He was encouraged to play the way that got him there and he will be given a fair run. This is a simple art of sport which is well known theoretically, but very rarely done practically. In any sport, confidence brings out the performance. Ganguly changed the way India played its cricket. Pride for the India cap, passion, aggression and fearlessness - these were the basics on which the team was built. The results came soon. 2001 series against Aus, 2002 in West Indies & England, Natwest Series, 2003 WC, 04 in Australia & Pakistan. Results which were never expected a few years earlier were beginning to happen. Slowly but surely India had started to win Tests abroad and were creating a reputation of being a strong team. No wonder then, Ganguly’s biggest achievement was as captain rather than a player. Ganguly had become the “Dada” of the team. This took its toll though. Dada had grown into such a powerful leader and in his quest to improve the team, lost focus on his own game and fitness. His status carried him through for a year, but not for long. The team was now established and they had learnt the mantra to succeed. It was just a matter of going out there and doing it consistently. Dada’s batting had suffered and he was rightfully dropped, though the manner of ousting was deplorable.

It is never easy for a leader to demand performance from his players, when his own performance is below par for an extended period. But a good leader deserves to be treated with respect. Greg Chappell’s scathing email reached the media (shows the high degree of professionalism BCCI maintains) and Dada was publicly humiliated. Most of Greg’s criticisms’ of Dada may have been right, but it needed to be handled professionally. Both Greg and in particular BCCI lacked it. All of Dada’s work in the last 8 yrs was forgotten. Dada was down in the dumps. Courageous Leader to forgotten man, quite a steep fall. No one gave him an iota of chance to comeback. The Dada chapter was closed. Yeah right!

It would have been easy to give up and announce retirement. After all everything was against him. But a fighter never lies down. Determination and will to succeed were his strengths. He went back to Ranji with the sole aim to regain his place. Not surprisingly barring a few initial hiccups, Dada was back among the runs. His determination was evident from the Pepsi ad in which he says, “Main Saurav Ganguly, boole toh nahin” What amazed me was the fact that he had the guts to do an ad of that nature, practically announcing he’s gonna comeback. Some may call it cheap, some brave. Well, evoking extreme reactions was Dada’s pastime.

When you have the will, there will always be a way. The once closed doors to the Indian team were beginning to re-open. The youngsters inducted were too raw and it didn’t help that captain Dravid was not as pro-active as he probably should have been to guide them. Colonel Vengsarkar decided it was time to get back the man he dropped as captain. SA 2006, Dada walks into to bat in the warm up game on a lively pitch with the scoreboard reading 40 for 4/5 wickets. He rescues the team from folding up and plays a classy innings. Grabbing the opportunity presented is an art well mastered by him. He ended up being India’s highest run scorer of the tour. He had changed too, happy keeping to himself. The steely resolve within still existed, but the aggression was not visible. It was like he had attained peace. There was nothing more left to prove.

He continued his brilliant batting for another 2 years. One bad series in Sri Lanka saw him dropped from the Irani trophy squad. It seemed like the curtains were drawn on Dada’s career. Many thought so. I didn’t, I knew for sure he would play against Australia. (A certain Mr Sachin is proof that I said this) This was surely not the way a glittering career was going to end. He was destiny’s favorite child. Something was bound to happen. He deserved a better farewell. It did indeed happen. The selection committee was changed, and the lovable Chika was appointed the chairman. Talk of writing the perfect script. No surprises then, Dada was in the team. One could call this another mini-comeback. Dada decided to announce retirement, timing the moment as sweetly as his cover drive.

The burden was off his shoulders. He could enjoy his last 4 tests. What’s more, it was against his favorite opponents. He got a 100 and 85 in the tests that India went on to win. Never mind the golden duck in his last innings. You could have expected the anti-climax. Dhoni’s wonderful gesture to let Dada captain for the last few moments of his career showed the respect he commanded. After all Dhoni is a student of the ‘Dada school of Cricket’. It brought an end to the career of India’s finest left hand batsmen and more importantly the most influential captain in Indian cricket. Dada’s short speech during his felicitation along with Kumble was one I’ll never forget. He spoke with assurance and dignity. His parting line "During the journey, I made both friends and enemies but it was all for the good of Indian cricket” probably sums him up.

He will forever be remembered as the cricketer who truly changed the face of Indian cricket and for good.

THANK YOU DADA

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=w0-Ocbe4Imk

Cheered me up on a dull day, :-( to lol in 5 secs

Did Jumbo read my first post ??

I publish my first post and within a few minutes, cricinfo tells me Kumble has announced his retirement. I would like to believe he read my post and sensed my frustration .. lol.

Jokes apart.. Jumbo.. dont worry , you've made the right decision. You've been a champion, India's best match winner by far. A BIG thank you for all your efforts. You deserve a dedicated post. One on Dada is pending too.

Looking forward to the next phase of Indian cricket.

We'll be number 1

Dhoni bhai.. sun rahe ho na :-)

Progress for God's sake

As i type this post, much to my frustration at India's pathetic negative display at the Kotla, India are 4 down and find themselves in a position whereby losing 2 more quick wickets after lunch will put us in danger of losing the test match !!! Or thats what the general feeling is among the experts and majority of the viewers.
Now why is this so surprising ??? After all we scored 613, in the first innings and were favorites to snatch back the Border-Gavaskar trophy, with the same anger that was displayed at the end of the Sydney test earlier this year. I'm sure India will get the draw, they are so desperately seeking to carry the 1-0 scoreline to Nagpur. At the end of the day's play Kumble and co will be satisfied at having protected their lead. But is it actually a good result for India ???

A vast majority would say, 'YES'. The pitch was flat, the turn was slow, we dropped too many catches, else the test match was ours. Oh REALLY !! Wasn't this pitch a parting gift to kumble to get another ten wickets atleast ? Well so much for all the hype.

What India have done in this test match, is made no progress in their cricket. After a wonderful Mohali test , full off positivity, India are back to the drawing board, trying to save the test on the last day, as they have been doing for ages now. I would say it's got to do with the return of a defensive leader at the helm. Now is it justified to point a finger at Jumbo. After all he has been India's greatest match winner and he has given everything for the country. Yes he has, but i'm criticizing his captaincy alone here. Isn't it time to be practical ??

Why did we win the Mohali test early on the 5th day ? Why did the ball reverse swing dramatically, why did the ball spin more, why were the batsmen more positive. Well, i would say the only obvious difference in Mohali and Delhi is the attitude. Whose attitude ?? Why would the players attitude change over one test match. Well, it's the attitude of the leader or rather the change in the leader. Wait a minute, am i saying Dhoni is a better captain than Kumble and thats the only reason we won in Mohali. Why should i judge Kumble's captaincy over one test match? I should judge Kumble's captaincy over an extended period. Extended period ??? I might as well, stop watching cricket, if Kumble is going to captain for an extended period in future, with Dhoni in the same side. Am i being too harsh ?? Hmmm.. maybe.. but i want to see progress, not stagnation. It's a rarity that i'm not watching the live telecast when i'm home and typing away on my laptop instead. I've been patient. Patiently waiting for Indian cricket to progress for the last 12 yrs. We were quite pathetic in the early and late 1990's justifiably called "Tigers at home, lambs abroad". 2001 was when i saw some hope, when a fiery Bengal tiger, raised hopes of taking Indian cricket to the next level. I'm a big fan of Dada. He had a new team, and very tough task in hand. Slowly but surely he made progress with the new young team inherited after the match fixing scandal. Sure there were times with Dada at the helm, when we were trying to save test matches on the last day. Nothing different happening here, one can say. But why am i so frustrated. Well let me explain.

Dada's team was a learning one, not a winning one. With hiccups along the way, he built a team that was considered "strong" to compete around the globe. So what's next ?? Taking it to the next level. What is the next level. Winning test matches consistently. Yeah, that's the ultimate goal isn't it. Winning test series on a regular basis. So once dada was out of the team in 05, in came the "WALL", India's best test batsmen during Dada's reign. Could he push the team to the next level ?? Unfortunately no, not surprising considering Dravid is not a natural leader. So who the hell can ?? There is no one left. Hmm.. there's Anil. Poor guy hasn't been given the chance in his prime. So he rightfully gets the job. He surely had earned it. It's been a year now right. Stats please... Won 3, Lost 5, Drawn 5... hmm.. i think 3 series have been at home and one in SL. Hmm.. 5 draws already.. heading for another. Do i see a problem in this leader. YES YES YES. Please Anil.. quit as captain...i know you are giving your best, but it's just not working.. please do it on your own. Dhoni's ready.

Why do i have so much confidence in Dhoni. After all he has just captained 2 tests and won both. Is it enough to convince me.. You bet. Why do i think Dhoni can improve India's test record in the future. Isnt it obvious ?? He's shown that he's a strong leader and a smart one. "How can you say that da ??" , some friends would ask me. "Dont get carried away". "Kumble hasn't been lucky and dhoni is just plain lucky". Some intelligent people have said, "Fortune favors the brave", "You make your own luck". Kumble is brave too. Yes, he is a brave bowler, but a brave captain ?? I'm sorry.


Mohali
=====

Dhoni wins the toss. Aah.. plain lucky again. Unlucky Kumble coudnt win it in Bangalore, else the test was ours. Gambhir and Veeru play with purpose as they usually do irrespective of who the captain is. India get a good total. Get bowled out for 500 odd with all batsmen playing aggressively bar one sedate knock from Dada holding the innings together. That was fine, considering we were 170-4. India had the chance to bowl enough overs at Aus on day 2, whether by design or chance doesn't matter. The pitch was flat wasn't it. But the bowlers were aggressive and got their rewards. Aus, lost a few wickets and were on the mat. India start day 3 on top and suddenly the team is buzzing. The team is fired up at the chance to take a lead in the series and there is positivity all round. India get a sizable lead and now they have to bat again. Dhoni comes at number 3. Was it neccessary ? We have a good lead and there is enough time to bat normally and bundle them out on the 5th day. Is it? Thats not how positive captains think. Dhoni strides in with his swagger and there are men patrolling the boundary everywhere. It would look foolish to hole out to one of them. Instead he steals the ones and twos and makes 60 odd in quick time with just 4 boundaries. India have a good enough lead in quick time and Australia have just a matter of 4 1/2 sessions to get 500 odd. I'm sure thats how Aus were thinking. Thats exactly what Dhoni wanted. Not give them 600 to chase in 3 sessions and make them bat for a draw. Did it work ?? Oh yes it did. The Aussie pride was hurt with the opposition playing the way they used to. Sure enough the test match was wrapped up early next morning and India had one of their best thought out test victories.

A week of celebration and news channels go berserk. Cut to the kotla.

Delhi
====

Kumble is fit and pumped. 'Delhi is my favorite ground' he announces. Poor mishra might have to sit out. Oops .. bhajji's not fit. Mishra gets his chance and so does Kumble, to do an MSD. I wished he did so. Wins the toss. Perfect start. The gods are with him. Right, lets bury Australia and add salt to Ponting's wounds. Day 2, mid way through the second session. I'm in office, thinking 'What is Kumble thinking'. I'm sure he is going to tell the batsmen to push and declare around 530-550, at tea and bowl 35 overs at Aus before close. India crawl to 513 at tea, with VVS playing VVS'ly .. very very slowly i mean. Ok.. another 30 runs maybe.. we can still get 30 plus overs in. Oh no no .. this surely cant be happening. VVS taking singles giving kumble and zaheer the strike. Surely the captain has told him, "No hurry Lax, take your time and get the double. Lets put 600 plus on the board". What a shocker. They declare at 613, and lax has reached 200. WoW.. applause applause. So much for all the talk about, 'We have a good chance to wrap the series in Delhi'. We have 16 overs to bowl at the aussies. Can the bowlers get 2 wickets to save kumble's face. Oh no they cant, as it often happens when one doesnt think positively. I mean, the only justifiable reason to get 600 plus, would be "Atleast i cant lose". If thats what the thinking was, then i'm shouting at the top of my voice. "Anil, have you thought of life after cricket ??? " Well the victory had actually slipped that evening and i was disgusted. But well, im a positive person, so i hoped our bowlers could get back the initiative their captain had thrown away. Sadly it didn't happen. Fine... these things happen in cricket. If we had declared at 550, around tea, maybe Aus would still have got 570 odd. Fine lets forget that, so we have finally dismissed Aus for 570 on day 4 , after a series of dollies dropped and we have to bat 15 overs with a lead of 36. Do we have an outside chance of victory? Am i crazy ? Just shut shop and bat out a draw, would be the general opinion. Oh how sad !! Would Dhoni have thought of a draw.. don't think so. There still was an outside chance. How ?? Bat normally and reach a lead around 120, within the first hour of day 5. So there are still 75 overs left. Bat positively for 25 overs, with hopefully 7-8 wickets left. Get another 100-120. Surely they can throw their bat and get 100 atleast. Set 230 in 48 overs, on a last day wicket with 3 decent spinners turning it a mile from the rough. Sounds too scary ?? What if the aussies get it ? If thats what your thinking, then welcome to the 'Kumble-Dravid leadership course'. If your thinking, "Lets get them guys", welcome to the MSD Fan club. There's a quote in John Wright's book- Indian Summers which mentions an observation on great champions, "They play in the F*** You mode and stay there". West Indies of the 70's-80's played with that attitude, while the Aussie team of the last 15 years played(under Taylor) and mouthed it (under waugh and punter). It's time we did the same (mouthing reserved for aussies alone) and scale up. Dhoni is the man to take us there and i'm waiting.

Oh yeah .. cricinfo tells me the score at the moment is 154/5 and Tendulkar has just got out to White. C'mon warnie.. err whiteee. There's another boring draw. Bravo Jumbo. No offense, but hope you don't recover in time for Nagpur.