To sleep, perchance to dream

I have had an unusual night so far. I was dog-tired when I came home, and was glad to lie down on my bed. But after tossing and turning for what seemed like hours (more like 15 minutes) I gave up and began blogging.

Now (finally!) my eylids are drooping, and my fingers are getting lethargic. Sleep beckons. This time I hope the trip to neverland is swift.

Good night, dear reader.

Update: The not-so-manic Punisher

In the first 4 games of the ongoing series against England, the Indian team has twice chased a target and won an ODI , taking their tally to a world-record 15 consecutive successful chases. In an earlier post I had alluded to the role played by MS Dhoni in this amazing streak. In the two chases since my post he has contributed:

230/6, Dhoni: 39 (off 55 balls)
238/6, Dhoni: 10* (off 13 balls)

In the course of this streak his aggregate is now at 624 runs in 11 innings, dismissed just 3 times (average: 208.00).

Trring, trring

My office phone rings. It is KK at the other end.

KK: Knock, knock.
Me: Who's there?
KK: Interrupting cow.
Me: Interru...
KK: Moo!

Yes, I have friends like that!

Our own Telestra Dome

One of the perks of being at a University where college sports is a huge deal is that they have many huge gymnasiums (gymnasia?). And when the University teams are not using them, other folks can "book" the space and use it to play their preferred sports.

In the winter, when the temperature drops, cricket becomes an indoor sport - with tennis balls. A few days ago I played for the first time and was shocked at how fast some of the fielders could return the ball to the wicket. Consequently, in true Inzamam-style, I managed to get 3 other batsman run out, before justice was finally served, and I ran myself out to end the innings.

Not surprisingly, the match ended in a tie!!

By the way, before you start looking for me in there, I took these pictures.

Silent whispers

Tomorrow, the Wimbledon of golf begins. It has been 10 years since my favorite golfer won the tournament on a day that is more famous for a Shark's meltdown. I do not know who will win it this year, but I do know this - my productivity over the weekend will decline to a near-flatline status.

And if I can convince CB to let me watch it on HDTV at his place, flatline status will definitely be attained.

A switch in time

After a gap of 30 years, the state of Indiana decided to adjust the clock to follow Daylight Savings Time.

In a perfect example of creating one's own market, an Indiana teenager found a way to make a profit out of this (and get visibly profiled by CNN, to boot).

The Fresh Prince

Yuvraj Singh has long been thought of as a flashy guy with enormous potential, but lacking the drive to buckle down and fulfill it. A few months under the new regime appears to have made a world of a difference, as evidenced by the mature responses in this interview.

Lotur Rotak

A few words for my regular readers (MJ style) -

I'm back!

The hiatus

For the past few week or so I have been extremely tied up and have neglected this blog. All I can think of when I come home is to measure the length of my bed.

In a day or two, I shall get back to my normal schedule. Until then, I apologize if your visits to my sphere have been in vain.

As Jack Bauer would rasp, " I promise you...."

Seeing is believing

A few days ago, EC-SB invited a few of us over to their house to celebrate PS's birthday (27 in case you were wondering). Since her husband (UK) is working elsewhere and could not be there, PS called him up just before she cut the cake to talk him through the proceedings.

And then we had a collective brainwave! So, I held a webcam, the others took turns holding a light and PS cut the cake. UK got to see it all on his computer and further, on speakerphone, joined in the chorus as we sang one of the most popular songs of all-time!

Viva technology!

Mad Dog once more!

My favourite non-cricketer is back for his 21st season!

A few of our cricketers would do well to learn from his longevity and also the way he conducts himself on and off the field.

Two sides of the coin

Amit Verma (who helms the award-winning blog - India Uncut) also writes for newspapers and was part of a discussion in the Pioneer on the pros and cons of having Greg Chappell as the coach. Here is his side of the debate/discussion.

Contrast that with the other side, all innuendo and intrigue-speak, provided by Debraj Mookerjee.

I am obviously biased towards Amit Verma, as I frequently read his work, but I feel that he did a much better job of supporting his side of the equation. I would like to know what an unbiased reader (if there is one on this topic) feels about the merit/demerits of both the articles. (I am talking just about the articles, not the issue itself).

Object in the rearview mirror

Ricky Ponting is on a tear and Sachin Tendulkar better watch his back! When November (2005) rolled around, Sachin had scored 34 centuries and had a healthy lead on Ponting, who had 23.

Since then Sachin has played 13 Test innings and added to his tally by 1.
Since then Ricky has played 16 test innings, and added to his tally by 7! In his last 7 innings, the Aussie captain has scored an incredible 5 centuries (all against South Africa who appear helpless to stop him).

Ponting is just 5 centuries from Tendulkar and in my mind it is inevitable (considering how many more Tests Australia plays, and how many more years Ponting has at the top) that he will cross Sachin.

I hope Sachin can keep Ricky at bay for a few more years.

Just in case you were wondering:

• Australia is scheduled to play 8 more Tests this year - one more against SA, two against Bangladesh, and 5 against Australia this year (at home).
• India is scheduled to play between 4-10 more Tests this year - 4 against West Indies, and a series against Bangladesh and South Africa, all away from home.

(In typical fashion, the Bangladesh and SA series have not been confirmed by the Indian Board, while the venues and dates for all of Australia's matches and first-class fixtures have already been confirmed).

Post script: As of March 27th, Sachin has been ruled out of the tour of the Caribbean after undergoing shoulder surgery. So strike those 4 Tests off, too. Now, it seems even more inevitable that Ponting will cross him within a calendar year or so.

AR goes to Hollywood

Last night I saw a Spike Lee directed movie, Inside Man. The movie has an enviable list of actors - Denzel Washington, Jodie Foster, Clive Owen, Willem Dafoe, Christopher Plummer - and it gripped me with the very first scene. And not because of what was on the screen but was playing in the soundtrack.

The movie starts with Swapna Awasthi singing the first two lines of a song, and then Sukhwinder Singh happily joins her. I never saw "Dil Se" in a theatre, but now I have heard the song "Chaiyya Chaiyya" in a movie hall over a Dolby sound system. And it is not just a token cameo. The whole song is played and then a remix version of it is played over the end credits.

Even more reason to go see the movie about a "perfect" bank robbery in NY, which is reminiscent of other heist movies but has some intriguing elements all of its own, bolstered by the excellent acting.

The day the Sphinx squints

Today marks the Vernal Equinox, the first day of Spring.

So how do you view this date? Is it 12 hours of daylight or 12 hours of darkness?

Is your glass half-full or half-empty?

Paradigm shift

A fellow blogger, Buck, made a very pertinent comment on Tendulkar recently. His suggestion was:

Sachin Tendulkar (should be) batting at #5 so that some of the early pressure is off him and he can afford to play grave-digger for a while if the pressure is still on.

When you think about it, it is not that bad an option. Here are some reasons why I believe that playing at #5 may be the way to go:

• Obviously he suffers now because he is usually batting with Dravid and, lately, seems inclined to follow Dravid's lead on how to play the bowling. Most of the time Dravid is defensive and Tendulkar joins him in the same rut. Dravid knows hows to get out of it, Sachin does not. An Arjun-Abhimanyu case, for want of a better analogy.
• By playing at #5 Chappell-Dravid will have their alternating accelerator-anchor lineup in Tests, too. (Jaffer-Sehwag-Dravid-Yuvraj-Tendulkar-Dhoni). (If Laxman/Kaif come into the team, I'd play them at #6 for now. The tail wags long enough these days for them to feel secure about playing their own game).
• If the need is for quick runs, Sachin has the ODI experience to shift it into high gear from the start. If there is a collapse, he can revert to his anchor-role, and not get booed for it, because the situation demands a little stickiness.
• I think he needs a little jolt. A "demotion" in the batting order may be the catalyst needed to jump-start him for the next 5 years.

Personally, I think the second innings of the Bombay Test is going to be one for the ages. Premonition or hope,we shall find out in a few hours.

The girl from Leon

On Saturday night, I saw "V for Vendetta", which is about a man whose goal is to incite a revolution within one year. Set in London in the near future, it was surprisingly heavy on words and light on action (I had anticipated the opposite since it was written by the directors of the Matrix trilogy). Apart from having some memorable visual images, the dialogues were quite witty and fun to follow along, too.

This movie once again demonstrates that Natalie Portman is a fine actress. (Impressively, she speaks five languages fluently - Hebrew, English, French, German, and Japanese).

Now, if she could do something about that British accent which seemed to come and go at times - the only jarring note in her performance in the movie - she'd be set for good.

A slave by any other name

Sometime yesterday my cell phone service died on me. A little while later my cable internet service provider had a meltdown. Suddenly, I was without the services of both.

What was disconcerting was not that I lost both services but that I was felt helpless and unable to do anything without them. I could no longer talk to anyone or look up cricket scores or send emails or update my blog.

Order has now been restored in my galaxy and Jaunty-dom heaves a huge sigh of relief.

Yin and Yang

Michael Atherton interviews the "only real competition that Sachin Tendulkar ever had."

Dead rubber alert - part deux

A couple of months ago, I compared Sachin Tendulkar to Brian Lara, particularly with regard to Lara's tendency to hit big scores in the last Test of a series when the series was already decided.

In the current series against New Zealand, which the Windies are on their way to losing handily, Lara has failed in both innings of both Tests (with egg on his face after his remarks on Chanderpaul). The stage is now set for Lara to post a humongous score in the 3rd Test and end his tour on a high, making people partially forget the failures that came before that.

And when that happens, remember this - you first heard it here.

The big Little Master

In my list of top 5 all-time favourite batsmen, there is one outlier - a player whose career was (almost) over by the time I began avidly following cricket (1982 Indo-Pak series). Most of what I know about G.R. Viswanath is anectodal, mainly from my grandfather and my brother. The rest has been gleaned over the years by reading articles in print, and lately, on the Internet.

I watched him score the last 50 of his career and was once was held responsible for him getting out in Melbourne. I remember rushing home from school to find out the score (my brother was listening to the commentary). As I opened the gate he ran onto the roof and told me to hurry; Vishy was batting on 110. By the time I went upstairs, he had scored another four. I sat down and Vishy got out! Naturally I was to blame. He probably still hasn't forgiven me for that! It happened to be the last century of his career and was enough for India to win a Test match at Melbourne. (That incident had another long-lasting consequence - it gave birth to my supersitious nature when it comes to watching my favourite players!).

Here is an article that talks about Indian batting greats and has a good breakdown of the roles played by them in India's cricketing fortunes. I particularly like the way he deems that Vishy's career marks a defining period of change in the role of Indian batsmen.

Thus spake...

Rahul Dravid speaks about himself and other related topics on the eve of the 100th Test of his career. He continues to set a fine example for any kid aspiring to play for India.

His career average has crept past Tendulkar's and, as Amit Varma mentions, the fact that it does not seem to be an aberration is a measure of his greatness.

Sweet child of thine

My friends, KDK and MK, recently added a new kid to their family. An avid bird-watcher and fitness freak, Mikey is simply adorable. And I haven't met him yet! So, how do I know? Take a look at this photograph. I dare you to disagree with me.

A change in fortune

The recent West Indies-New Zealand Test match may have "swung" in the Kiwis favour because of a monstorous hit by Chris Gayle.

When I read the story I was reminded of a ploy adopted by the English bowlers in both Test matches. I noticed that the English bowlers were having a tough time getting the ball to reverse swing. Soon, Flintoff was repeatedly showing the ball to the umpires, supposedly complaining that the ball was out of shape. Twice (in both second innings, if I recall correctly) the umpires agreed and changed the ball to a newer one.

When the balls were later shown on camera, they did not seem to be unduly out of shape. (No matter how perfect a sphere a ball may be at the start of the innings, eventually the repeated contact with the ground and bat will cause a little bit of unevenness). I am convinced that this is a tactic adopted by them to change the ball if it is not helping the fast bowlers. I will be curious to see if they complain about the ball in the third Test match, especially if the Indian batsmen are on top.

It's a bat, bat, bat, world

The Australia-South Africa run-fest is being hailed as the "greatest ODI of all time". On Prem Panicker's blog, one of the other "posters", Manish Verma, has a very valid point to make. His post on this issue has this little nugget, which reiterates what I had touched touched upon earlier:

How can this game be the best ever, if the bowlers literally had nothing to do? Would anyone have given a similar title to a game where a top ODI team got out for 110+ and then got the opponent out for under 100? Even if it meant scintillating bowling from both sides?

He makes a fantastic point. All the people who have announted this game with the GOAT tag may have a hard time answering Manish's question.

Casting the first stone

Before the ongoing West Indies-New Zealand Test series, Brian Lara challenged Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the current WI captain, to score more runs as befits a senior player on a team that is struggling to be competitive, let alone win games.

Lara himself stood up to be counted, scoring 5 and 0, while lasting a total of 13 balls and falling victim to Shane Bond both times with a golden duck in the second innings when his team came up short by just 27 runs.

Methinks the title of this Saul Bellow book best describes Lara's verbal faux pas?

A matter of perspective

A few days ago when I suggested that India chase down 360+ runs in 90 overs (plus half hour, if necessary) in a Test match, I was in the minority. On various websites I read that this was not possible and would be a foolhardy attempt on the part of the Indians.

After hearing/seeing South Africa chase down 400+ in just 50 overs, I wonder how many of them have converted to my point of view? There's nothing more useful than an epochal incident to put the past into a different perspective.

R.I.P bowlers

In 1984, India beat Pakistan in an astonishing match at Sharjah. After Imran Khan bowled unchanged at the start to register scarcely believable figures of 10-2-14-6, India were in dire straits. But with every bowler chipping in, India won by a huge margin of 38 runs.

That day the Indian team scored 125 runs. The entire match produced 212 runs in about 76 overs. If that represented the mother of all low-scoring ODI's, the grandmother of all high-scoring ODI's was played today between Australia and South Africa. The match has left grown men flabbergasted, unable to put words to the mayhem they watched. In exactly 99.5 overs, 872 runs were scored. Eight hundred and seventy-two runs in 599 balls!

In 2003, I watched Ricky Ponting lace the Indian attack in the World Cup final to the tune of 140 imperious runs, an innings I thought was a once-in-a lifetime feat. On the very same ground, the next innings played by Ponting was a brutal 164 off just 105 balls. And he was overshadowed by Herschelle Gibbs, who scored 175 off 111 balls.

If 434 is not a safe ODI total any more, what is? I know this is probably one of those freak occurances that may never happen again (like a bowler taking 10 wickets in an innings twice in a single season against the same team as Laker did, or a batsman batting 60 overs in an ODI and scoring 36 runs as Sunny did) but an unhealthy precedent has been set. All across the globe ODI's are becoming a one-dimensional event. Batsmen come and plunder; then mercifully, due to an over limit, they make way only for other batsmen to come and plunder even more. It is boring, boring cricket.

With each passing year the pitches become more and more batsmen friendly. A pitch that has grass must be mowed, a pitch that is crumbly must be pounded into a concrete-like state. Any hint of moisture on the pitch is room for a "weather delay". I prefer the nuances of Test cricket as it gives more time for plotting and testing the concentration and other skills that are being robbed from cricket. Everytime a captain complains about a pitch being difficut to bat on, I get mad at the wimpiness of these players, whose cricketing ego's cannot stand to be tested by the fact that a pitch may be aiding a bowler more than them.

Dig up the pitch at the Wanderers. Let teams win games at the famed Bullring because of their bowling, fielding and batting, and not only because batsmen can launch balls into the stratosphere. But from the reaction of most people who I spoke to today, this was just the tip of the iceberg. Suddenly scoring 500 in an ODI seems doable. And an inordinately large number of people want to be there or see it when it happens. Incredible.

I personally want to once again watch a match where a low total is defended (the recent Under-19 World Cup final was one such match). I fear that my wait for a repeat match of this nature shall be a very, very long one.

Trifecta

Today is my friend, RP's, birthday. Not even she would have imagined that the week culminating in her birthday would witness so many cricketing feats worthy of books by themselves. Murali crossed 600, Kumble crossed 500, and my favourite pacer who is also the fastest bowler in the world - Shane Bond - is back!! (Yes, I know Lee and Akhtar are faster but I hope you get my point).

All three of them are men of a different breed. Murali has been abused and vilified for his bowling action and yet the man keeps chugging away. He bowls an inordinately large number of overs almost as if he is hell-bent on bowling his arm out before bowing down to the naysayers.

Kumble went through a phase where he was not the first choice of the former captain and even now, in a perverse way, Dravid ensures that Bajji gets the ball first, almost as if to prove to his detractors that he is not partial to his fellow Kannadiga. In spite of all that the leg-spinner, whose bowling arm injury was the catalyst that paved the way for player contracts from the BCCI, keeps attacking only as he knows best. He is still fit enough to play for a few years, and judging from the way he batted yesterday, his resolve to put up his hand when the team is in trouble has not left him.

Shane Bond is a rarity - a fast bowler that Australian batsmen fear. In the 2003 World Cup he produced spell after spell of devastating fast bowling, almost single-handedly leading New Zealand onwards. If a 10 over restriction had not existed in ODI's I believe that he would have blown away India in the Super Six encounter where he ripped through our batting order. By his own admission he is one more injury away from quitting cricket. His remodeled action looks quite good and, hopefully, those stress fractures of the back are a thing of the past for the Kiwi cop.

But all of their feats paled in front of an event that I did not even watch (more on that in another post).

For the want of a nail

The IKEA furniture instruction sheet, which I had (prematurely) ripped here, was not in 4 languages. In fact, it wasn't even in any language. The entire sheet had instructions in pictoral forms. The diagrams were clear and easy to follow. Now, if only they had provided a Phillips head screw driver, I would have been done last night itself.

Anyway, I have to finish one last thing and I shall have my writing desk and chair. Tonight. So I have said, so it shall be done.

Spice Girls hit - sort of

I once met a man from an ancient land. We spoke. He said,
"What I want, what I want, what I really, really, want.
Is to live life on my own terms."

Easier said than done.
Which is why it is called Life, I guess.
Hmmmm...but if you could, wouldn't you?
I know I would.

Midnight musings

The phone rings and wakes me up. The clock says it is 1:49am (at night). It takes me a few seconds to orient myself and pick up the phone.

Me: (in a sleepy, slurred voice) Hullllllllo??
SR: Hey, quick question.
Me: What?
SR: What was the name of that movie?
Me: Which one?
SR: The bounty hunter. "Jaaack...Jaaack".
Me: "Midnight Run".
SR: Yes! And who was the other guy?
ME: Charles Grodin.
SR: Right! Thanks. Now go back to sleep. Bye.
Me: Bye.

Yes, my close friends are like that!

Hammer and tongs

I went furniture shopping last night. To the IKEA, a good 75 miles away. I had seen a couple of computer/writing desks that I was interested in and wanted to see them first-hand, rather than purchasing it online and trusting the glossy photo that accompanied the description.

When I saw the two of them the same old question reared it ugly head. Style or simplicity? Should I buy the cheaper, nondescript one or the slightly more expensive, better-looking one? In the end, looks won (don't they always?!!). I also bought a simple looking chair to go with the table (maybe to assuage my guilt over having spent so much on a flat piece of wood with 4 legs). Naturally.

So this evening will be spent assembling the table, trying to make sense of instructions that are in 4 languages, but not really explicit or helpful in any one of them. We can send a man to the moon (or so they say) but we cannot write clear instructions on how to assemble pieces of wood into a table.

The 4th inning of the 4th inning

Yesterday I wrote about the Indians not showing the stomach for a fight. And I had suggested that the best way to wrest some initiative back from the English was by attacking the target.

The Indians adopted a different plan - a sort of a compromise between defense and attack. Until tea they were content to let the clock tick away, not taking any risks. At tea they re-assessed and decided to make one stunning assault at the target. They did not leave themselves enough time to really have a good shot at it, but they managed to rattle England. In the last hour Flintoff and Harmison, their two tearaway fast bowlers, were made to run hard and long, and their fielders were made to run around, while it was the non-regular batsmen - Pathan, Dhoni and Singh - who did most of the damage. The best innings of them all, however, was the one Tendulkar played. I hope this cameo convinces him that when he plays the ball and not the occasion or the bowler's reputation, he is still peerless.

Onto Mohali, where I hope they do not resort to completely shaving the grass on the pitch. I want to see a real contest and the Indian batting line-up against the English pace attack is a lip-smacking proposition! But I fear that the safety-first attitude shall win over.

Living up to my name

I am a batsman of limited skills - my best shot is a forward defensive push. I can recount to you ALL the fours I have hit since I began playing summer cricket in the Mid-West Cricket Tournament 8 years ago - and it will not take me too long to tell all the stories!

Until last summer I had never bowled in a match. Towards the later half of the season we were having a tough time getting 11 players to show-up for a game, let alone practice. So at practices I began bowling off-spinners (or rather straight balls with an off-spinning action). Eventually I progressed enough to be able to bowl them from a 15 step run-up. I bowled in the last two matches and even picked up a couple of wickets, much to my surprise.

The skill that I do possess is fielding. My reflexes and stamina are no longer what they used to be in my high school days, when I used to prowl the square-leg to long-on area all by myself, but I am still a decent fielder.

But that is not my best cricketing asset. My most valuable skill does not show up in the early part of the match and sometimes an entire game goes by without my team needing it. In the early part of the game everyone is enthusiastic and jumping about. Also, when wickets are falling, everyone is excited. Then, inevitably, comes a period in the game when the opposing batsmen begin to assert themselves. Shoulders begin to drop, hands start resting on waists, eyes start staring at the ground, feet start shuffling in the dust, and an eerie silence comes upon the ground. Ironically when the team really needs to be making some noise, nobody does. Which is when I begin to earn my place in the squad. When such times come upon us, our captain - SC, puts me at mid-wicket inside the circle and just smiles.

You see, I am a live-wire in the field, incessantly jabbering, clapping hands, jumping about, running around, calling everyone out by name, exhorting them to keep trying as hard as they can. After a while, slowly but surely, the smiles come back on their faces and even though the opposition has built up an unassailable position, our team does not look lost. Last year, we lost 6 of the 7 games we played but not once did our team go completely quiet and give up. I simply refused to let them do that. We may have lost badly, but we were never beaten!

Years ago, I watched Jonty Rhodes change the way fielders behaved and performed on a cricket field. He was the cricketing idol I felt I could emulate the most. (Not for nothing is Jaunty my Internet moniker. Get it?!)

Yesterday the Indian team descended towards a familiar going-through-the-motions stage and, shockingly, only let it get worse. They took an extra half-hour to bowl their overs as they were shuffling around waiting for the English batsmen to make mistakes. The fielding standards dipped, faces started resembling those commonly seen at a funeral, and all the players stood by themselves as if they had each contracted some contagious disease. I was appalled at that. How could they give up so easily?! Haven't they themselves collapsed when seemingly in charge? Why couldn't they expect the same from their counterparts? By allowing themselves to be lethargic, their energy levels decreased and England's attempt to dominate was made easier.

All the talk about the team spirit, heart of a champion, never-say-die attitudes, etc., doesn't mean a thing unless these attributes show up when the chips are down. It is very easy to be upbeat when the going is good. A true champion is one who does not lose before the game is over. I was disappointed with the Indian's on-field demeanor on the 4th day. If on the 5th day they compound it by defending their way towards a draw and still lose - I shall be disheartened, too.

I hope Dravid and his band of men do not let that happen. I really do.

Once more, unto the breach

But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger:
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood.
- William Shakespeare "Henry V"

The Indian team (assuming England declares overnight) has to score just over 360 runs in 90 overs to beat the Pommies in the first Test.

There are two ways to tackle this:
a) Play for a draw; bat slowly and surely, eschewing all risks
b) Play for a win; think of it as a one-day international, but with more overs and less fielding/bowler restrictions

Plan A just will not work (if you doubt this I present to you Karachi '06 and Bangalore '05 as the most recent examples). Once the Englishmen know that there is no risk of their target being attacked they will go all out, putting men around the batsmen, knowing fully well that their bad balls will not be hit to the fence and their good balls may well take some wickets. With each falling wicket they can exert even more pressure on the batsmen.

Plan B should work - the batting lineup (batsmen 1-7) is the same as the ODI lineup, with Laxman replacing Yuvraj. This situation it will not matter since Laxman's biggest problem in ODI's was that he could not accelerate as fast in the later overs as some others. Here, with an additional 40 overs in hand, that should not be a problem. Also, don't forget that he has (in the past) scored some very crucial 2nd innings knocks for the country when chasing a target, so for this time we will not miss Yuvraj as much as we may think. In addition to the 7, we also have Wasim Jaffer. So we have enough batting firepower to attack the target, utilizing the anchor-accelerator strategy that has been employed so successfully in the past few ODI wins. I suggest using Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dhoni and Pathan as the accelerators and Dravid, Jaffer, Laxman and Kaif as the anchors.

By attacking the target, they force the Englishmen to defend, thereby crating gaps in the infield, meaning that a mishit may go to a now-vacant 2nd slip, or a now-vacant short mid-off and so on.

If the Indians come out with a defensive mindset and show no inclination to go for the target I am going to be very disappointed. (Virender Sehwag will go for it, that I am sure of, I am talking about the rest of the batsmen). If that happens I shall not follow this time for a while. As it is their attitude in the field yesterday made me mad (more on that later) and this would be the last straw.

If I see Tendulkar go into that obdurate, stubborn, defensive shell that he has lately been adopting I may just blow my fuse!

Cleaning day

When I woke up I had no inkling that the day would involve a lot of cleaning.

It began with my weekly trip to the Laundromat. While my clothes were spinning around in the washer, I looked out and since it was nice and sunny (but a bit chilly due to the strong wind gusts) I took my car to the car wash. After throwing my clothes in my dryer I then went to work and took care of my needy research plants (did some "cleaning" there, too). Then I picked up my clothes and, rather than go home, swung by the department. I moved back into the building late last year but never got around to unpacking all my 18 (yes 18!) boxes of books and office knick-knacks.

My office mate took one look at all the stuff I had and promptly went home, clearly realizing that the office was going to be a maelstrom of activity. Three hours later here I am, sitting at my desk and admiring my shelves that are no longer barren (photographs shall follow in a few days; keep watching this space).

And lest you think I am done for the day, I still have to go home and finish cleaning my apartment. So dear reader, the vacuum cleaner and scrubs beckon. And after all that I look forward to a long, relaxing shower.

What a way to herald a new week. Or is it the end of the last one?

Raising the roof

The Coliseum at WVU is one of the loudest college basketball arenas in the US and I experienced it first-hand a few times this year. The last time I was at the game, I glanced up and saw the roof. Maybe the pattern on the roof has something to do with the reverberations of the screaming voices. Either way, if you stare at it too long you get disoriented and dizzy. Trust me, I know from experience!

The scoreboard at most basketball arenas is a huge box-like contraption that hangs over the court (see below). From my perch in the stands, the whole thing did not instill much confidence. Imagine running around like ants on the floor, knowing that above your head is this huge gravity-defying monstrosity that is held in place by just a few cables that stretch up to the roof.

A room with a view

I live on a hillside, about 1/4th of the way down from the top of the hill. The view from my bedroom window is one of the reasons I took this place. And when it snows, the hillside is draped in a white blanket that is very soothing to the eye.

The view from my department is not too shabby either. Here is a photo of me looking out towards Woodburn Hall, one of the most majestic buildings on campus.

A brief hiatus from cricket

Okay, okay...a few of my readers (the only readers?) have told me that there is an overdose of cricket in my blog. So to ensure that I do not lose them, I shall not write about cricket for a few days.

However, England is in India for a Test/ODI series so do not expect this break to be a long one!

Little drops of water

MS Dhoni gave us a glimpse into the way the Indian team approaches a target. Chasing 286 to win, Dhoni revealed in a post-game interview that "...the coach told me the score should be around 206 at the end of the 40th over, so I focused on that and then we went on from there.”

So the huge target was broken down into simpler, easier-to-chew-on pieces. With 60 balls to go, 80 runs to get was considered reasonable (they did it with 19 balls to spare!). By giving the players smaller targets to achieve, the bigger picture is de-mystified. This may explain why the players do not appear to be fazed by a rising required run-rate and speaks volumes about the behind-the-scenes contribution of the think-tank.

Oh, by the way, after 40 overs the score was 205 for 2. Strategic planning gets another notch in it's belt.

The not-so-manic punisher

The last 13 times that India have had to chase a target in an ODI, they have emerged victors. One of the reasons for this hot streak is the cool play of the wicket-keeper/batsman - Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Quickly targeted as a basher in the mould of Shahid "boom-boom" Afridi, Dhoni has shown that he is much more than a manic pulverizer of the cricket ball.

While he can smash the ball a fair bit (and does it very frequently) he is also adept at running quick singles and twos and possesses a cool head during tense moments. Consequently, it is no surprise that he usually stays till the end to ensure that the job is not left for others to finish.

In this 13 game streak, here are the teams' score and Dhoni's contributions (DNB - did not bat; * indicates he was not out):

279/4, Dhoni: 37*(off 26 balls)
255/6, Dhoni: 67*(off 63 balls)
123/2, Dhoni: DNB
303/4, Dhoni: 183*(off 145 balls)
262/6, Dhoni: 45*(off 43 balls)
197/3, Dhoni: DNB
245/5, Dhoni: 80(off 73 balls)
171/4, Dhoni: DNB
224/5, Dhoni: 12(off 26 balls)
266/3, Dhoni: DNB
292/5. Dhoni: 72*(off 46 balls)
162/5, Dhoni: 2*(off 5 balls)
287/2, Dhoni: 77*(off 56 balls)

That is an aggregate of 575 runs in 9 innings (average: 287.5). He has been dismissed only twice - his solitary failure being when he scored 12 against South Africa; his other dismissal on 80 was caused by his attempt to end the game with a six.

May he continue to punish bowlers for years to come!!

The articulate Wall

Some cricket captains lead in an imperious manner (Imran Khan); some in an unobstrusive way (Inzamam-ul-Haq); some adopt an abrasive mode (Allan Border); some instill an us-against-the-world "siege" mentality (Ricky Ponting); some will their men into great deeds by wearing their heart on their sleeve (Sourav Ganguly).

And then there's that rare breed that leads with a steely eye and calm demeanor under duress. Rahul Dravid is turning out to be one such motivator. All his best qualities are highlighted in this very expansive interview of his. Articulate, thoughtful and smooth - Indian cricket has found its poster boy for the first decade of the 21st century.

The future is now

India have wrapped up the ODI series against Pakistan. Which means that the last ODI is a chance to find out more about our bench strength. With Sehwag and Singh having already returned to India, there are 14 players still in the squad.

In my opinion, we should "rest" Pathan, Tendulkar and Dravid. Dravid can stay on as the "Supersub", a concept that will be in play for the last time in an ODI involving India. That leaves us with the following 11 (in approximate batting order):
Gautam Gambhir
Mohammad Kaif
Yuvraj Singh (captain)
Suresh Raina
MS Dhoni
Ramesh Powar
Ajit Agarkar
Zaheer Khan
Murali Karthik
RP Singh
Sreesanth

Rahul Dravid (Supersub)

This will be a preview of the Indian team of the future, and will give everyone a chance to show their mettle. Yuvraj Singh, who was appointed the vice-captain when Sehwag returned to India, will get a chance to have the "first game as captain" jitters out of the way and will be better prepared should he be suddenly thrust into the action in the future. Yes, we are a batsman or two short, but who cares about the match? And I have a feeling that this team will be ready for whatever Pakistan throws at them. The hunger of the unproven masses should not be underestimated. Ideally, we bowl first and (should we so feel inclined) Dravid can always substitute for Sreesanth when it is our turn to bat.

What do you think?

Occam's razor

Greg Chappell and Rahul Dravid have been experimenting with the ODI batting order, seemingly randomly, and have left not just the opposition but also the fans guessing as to who would bat where. In particular they have targeted the #3 spot as one of the most flexible ones.

The IndianOil Cup in Sri Lanka was the first time Rahul Dravid was made the captain for an entire series, under the aegis of Greg Chappell. Since that time the following players have batted at #3 - Mohammad Kaif, Irfan Pathan, MS Dhoni, JP Yadav, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, SK Raina, and VVS Laxman.

The critics have been crying hoarse that such instability in the batting order is not good for the team's "chemistry". Chappell-Dravid repeatedly tell reporters that they are not experimenting but rather are indulging in "strategic planning". They insist that there is a rhyme and a reason for sending whomsoever they send in at #3 on a particular day. So, if indeed there is some method to who goes to bat where, what is the pattern? How do they decide whose turn it is to bat?

I searched for a pattern and I think I am beginning to see one. The Indian think-tank (Chappell, Dravid and Tendulkar) appear to have broken up the batsmen into two categories - the accelerators (Sehwag, Yuvraj, Pathan, Dhoni) and the anchors (Tendulkar, Dravid, Kaif). These 7 form the central core of their batting lineup.

The manipulation of the batting line-up is based on pairing an accelerator with an anchor as much as possible. Which role-players will go in to bat depends upon the state of the match:

The generic formula: Sehwag and Tendulkar will open. Sehwag's mandate is to accelerate, while Tendulkar's is to consolidate. If Sehwag gets out early - either Pathan or Yuvraj or Dhoni will go in. If Tendulkar gets out first - either Kaif or Dravid will go in.

Scenario 1: Batting first

• Corollary 1a: If India is batting first, and a wicket falls with a major portion of the PowerPlays still available to exploit, two accelerators will be paired up.
• Corollary 1b: If India is batting first, and a wicket falls with most of the PowerPlays having been consumed, the replacement batsmen shall be of the same category as the dismissed one.
  

Scenario 2: Batting second

• Corollary 2a: If India is batting second, and a wicket falls with a major portion of the PowerPlays still available to exploit, the replacement batsmen shall be of the same category as the dismissed one.
• Corollary 2b: If India is batting second, and a wicket falls with most of the PowerPlays having been consumed, the replacement batsmen shall be an accelerator if the asking rate is high or the replacement player will be an anchor if the asking rate is manageable.

(Naturally, the personnel will change due to injury/selectorial whims but I think the basic principles are in place. As time goes by, it will be interesting to see if I have correctly gauged the think-tank's intentions. I shall keep you posted on it.)

Now, the less obvious strategy appears to be in terms of marshalling the bowling resources. I admit that I have not really paid attention to that side of the equation. With the pitches being the way they are in most of the Indian subcontinent, I wonder if a strategy, other than to bowl a good line and bowl more slowly as the pitch wears down ,will even be necessary.

Menage e trois

I was talking to SM this morning when another friend, KK, called me. I switched lines and told KK that I'd get back to her in a few minutes. By the time I came back, SM had hung up. So I dialled her number, she picked up and said that she was on the phone and would call me back. So I hung up, called KK only to have her say that she was on the other line and would call me back. Turns out, the three of us had been calling each other with a phase difference of a few seconds, resulting in a comical call waiting scenario.

I decided to put an end to it when SM called me back again while I was on the phone with KK for the third time. I told SM to hang up and to not call KK anytime soon! Sigh! Isn't technology supposed to make things less confusing? In the good old days before call waiting (it was not too far back in the past in India) there would be none of this calling around in circles. You would get a monotonous beep-beep that told you the phone was 'engaged' indicating in a very straightforward manner that two people were conversing (so could you please hold onto your horses?) .

Back then, I could get lost in that idyllic two person island, where the only interruption I might encounter may be physical, such as siblings snatching the phone from you, impatient to travel to their own secluded islands....

The Broad sword of justice

Chris Broad had a chequered playing career, shining brightly during one glorious summer against the Aussies. Now he is a match refree seemingly on a mission to eradicate the menace of chucking from cricket. Everywhere he goes, a suspended bowler seems to follow in his wake.

Currently, he is the match refree for the Indo-Pak one day series. And Shoaib Akhtar and Harbhajan Singh have niggling injuries that just don't seem to be healing.

Coincidence? I wonder.

Dream or nightmare?

A friend woke me up, very early, this morning.

"I have to tell you a dream I had before I forget it", she said. "I dreamt that Salman Khan, dressed handsomely in a sherwani, announced at a press conference that, henceforth, he would no longer be taking his shirt off in his movies."

"Wishful thinking", said I.

"I know", said she. "Too bad it was a dream."

I smiled. She giggled. I slept fitfully but woke up with a huge grin on my face!

It's Yesterday Once More

The website cricinfo (self-proclaimed "Home of Cricket on the Internet" and the world's biggest single-sport website) recently launched "Cricinfo Magazine", a print version featuring lots of columns, interviews and reports. I subscribed to it and received my first copy yesterday - and loved it!

Apart from all the interesting articles, it has a feature that is missing from mainstream American sports magazines such as Sports Illustrated or ESPN-The Magazine. In addition to providing a report of the games itself, Cricinfo included the box scores (scorecard) with the article. Growing up in India, I remember reading Sportstar and always liked the scorecards as it gave me a chance to view what happened during the course of the game more clearly.

I collected every Sportstar for almost a decade during my high school years. I look forward to doing something similar with Cricinfo.

To read, perchance to dream

I hardly watch the idiot box these days. (The only time I am glued to the set is on Monday nights, as my regular readers will know by now). Sometimes on Sundays I follow some sporting event (last weekend it was the Buick Invitational tournament, where Arjun Atwal frittered away a chance to enter the playoffs; next weekend it shall be the Super Bowl).

When I come home, reading a book (and cooking) relaxes me. Most nights, I usually read till I fall asleep. Within arms reach I can see a few books as I type this post. This material can be broken into some distinct categories:

a) Books already read (for casual reading on the days I don't feel like paying too much attention to detail). Right now the books in this category are ...

• The Collected Short Stories of Jeffrey Archer
• Asterix the Legionary (by Gosciny and Uderzo)
• Partners in Crime (Agatha Christie)
• Cricinfo - The Magazine (edited by Sambit Bal)

b) Books that I am currently reading (once again, the genre I read depends upon my mood; and yes, I have read a little bit of all of them).

• Foul Lines (Jack McCallum and L. Jon Wertheim)
• The King Must Die (Mary Renault)
• The Best American Mystery Stories-2005 (edited by Joyce Carol Oates)
• Two Lives (Vikram Seth)

c) Books that I shall read

• The Bull from the Sea (Mary Renault)
• The Last of the Wine (Mary Renault)
• The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
• Scaramouche (Rafael Sabatini)
• Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Robert M. Pirsig)

So what am I in the mood for tonight? I think it shall be Foul Lines, "an explosive, fast-paced satire that will do for today's NBA what North Dalls Forty did for the NFL a generation ago".

The Irascible Defender

"I am Federal Agent Jack Bauer, and this is the longest day of my life".

The inimitable raspy voice of Kiefer Sutherland introduced me to the world of "24". I saw the complete first season of this television show, albeit a couple of years later on DVD. I came to respect Dennis Haysbert as the POTUS-to be, while watching a show where surprises are the norm and no character (except Jack, of course) can safely be assumed to negotiate the day unscathed.

Now, years later (I think season 5 is currently in progress) I picked up this show again and every Monday from 9-10pm my friends know better than to call me, as I breathlessly follow Jack as he crashes headlong from one impossible situation into another.

Being in a dangerous situation has become so common place for this dude that he no longer even bothers to tell us that this season represents the longest day of his life!!

Sources say this post may get delivered late

All too often I read an article that quotes "inside sources" who are safely anonymous but reveal a lot about the inner thoughts of a closed room discussion. But all too often I wonder - what stops an intrepid journalist from making up sources, just so the report can seem more credible? Journalistic integrity? If you are pushed to write a column and want to sound more emphatic about the point you are making, the temptation to ghost comment must be immense.

(Sources close to me say that this post was written while I was simultaneously balancing a knife on my head and watching the Screen Actors Guild awards on TV).

Lets Goooooo....Mountaineers!!

The Coliseum at WVU is one of the most intimidating college basketball arenas in the US. After 8 years, I finally got to see the Mountaineers play the Friars of Providence University on January 17th. Here is a view from the first tier:


And here is a view from my seat. The students section (with the students decked in golden coloured t-shirts) is to the left side of the picture:

Lead foot in the grave

The VVS Laxman of circa 2001 is no more. Back then the trademark of his batting against spinners was his decisive footwork when he danced down the wicket to play with and against the spin. Shane Warne will be the first to attest to that.

Today, Laxman stays rooted to the crease, putting a long stride forward, looking to smother the spin and venturing to put the ball away off the pitch only if the bowler errs badly in length, premitting him to rock onto his backfoot.

Why has this happened? My belief is that it stems from two reasons - one physical and one mental.

Physical: After that 281, Laxman injured his knee while fielding in a one-dayer and went to Australia to undergo reconstructive surgery. He hasn't been the same since. He is cautious when he runs, cautious when he has to stop and turn, cautious when he has to come down the track to the spinners.

Mental: With the supporters of the recently-deposed captain circling like vultures, waiting for a crack to appear in his edifice, Laxman has eschewed flair for substance. Today he looks to bide his time, nudging and nurdling singles, the occasional couple, and the rare four, as he bats with one eye on the ball and the other on the safe ground of personal milestones. It is no coincidence that only after he crosses the 50-60 run plateau does he begin to get expansive with his strokeplay. By then he probably believes that he has averted a removal from the team for another Test. For he knows that a Sehwag or Tendulkar can fail a few times and not be culled from the team, but his place is in constant jeopardy.

Sad really. A batsman capable of taking a game away from an opposition in a session or two is now just another regular middle order guy. Seriously speaking, is today's Laxman any more dangerous than a Bell or a Kallis or a Chanderpaul? A huge fall for a person who once walked with the Gods.

I just wish that the fear of failure is removed from his line of sight and we can once again relish the free flowing willow that caresses the ball to the boundary. Against the turn.

Dead rubber alert?

Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar are considered the pre-eminent batsmen of this generation. For a long time I had the feeling that Lara made a lot of his famous centuries in dead rubbers, wherein the fate of the series did not hinge on his suceeding or failing. I put that hypothesis to test, using StatsGuru on CricInfo.

For the purposes of this analysis I considered that any Test match in a Test series that would not alter the final outcome of the series was a "dead rubber" Test match. For example, in a 3 Test series if one team had won the first two Tests, then the third Test was a "dead rubber".

Sachin Tendulkar has (to date) scored 35 test centuries, of which I counted 3 dead rubber tons:
114 vs Australia 1991/92 at Perth
177 vs Australia 1997/98 at Bangalore
176 vs West Indies 2002/03 at Kolkatta

Brian Lara has (to date) scored 31 Test centuries, of which I counted 7 dead rubber tons:
375 vs England 1993/94 at St. John's
132 vs Australia 1996/97 at Perth
100 vs Australia 1998/99 at St. John's
221 vs Sri Lanka 2001/02 at Colombo (first innings)
130 vs Sri Lanka 2001/02 at Colombo (second innings)
400 vs England 2003/04 at St. John's
226 vs Australia 2005/06 at Adelaide

I may be biased, but I think my hypothesis is supported to an extent. Lara has finished quite a few seires with a bang and is remembered for that.

On a whim, I also checked to see how their centuries stacked up with their team's results. This is what I found:

Wins - Lara 8, Tendulkar 12
Draws - Lara 10, Tendulkar 15
Losses - Lara 13, Tendulkar 8

Here, the picture is not clear as valid arguments can be made by supporters of both players.

Explanation

In a previous post I used the phrase - "GOAT discussions". The acronym stands for - Greatest Of All Time.

("GOAT" is the title of a recent, humongous biography of Muhammad Ali. When I say humongous, I mean humongous - GOAT, which is nearly 800 pages long, weighs almost 34 kgs (75 lbs) and is 50 cm x 50 cm (20" x 20") in size).

As Time Goes By

During my undergraduate days, 3 close friends and I invented a new game.

My university had an indoor sports facility that featured a TT table and a badminton court (usually unoccupied since shuttlecocks are well beyond a student's budget as the feathers break too quickly). The line for the TT table was always long and one day, tired of waiting for our turn, the four of us invented Tenniton. A game that is played on a badminton court, with a (plastic) table tennis ball, featuring lawn tennis rules. It quickly became our favourite sport and we spent almost every evening playing for hours till dinner time.

And we got really good at it - Sravan was as steady as a rock, Anand (the best TT player amongst us all) was able to produce exaggerated spin and bounce with his top and side spins, Verma (a Boris Becker fan) was a relentless serve-and-volleyer, and I was able to control the ball better than any of them and (in those days) was able to run down almost every shot.

I can count on one finger the number of times I lost a set in all the years we played the game. When it came to Tenniton, I was the undisputed, undefeated, and (unfortunately) undocumented #1 player in the whole world.

I haven't played the game since I left that place, but I have often thought of it. Everytime a player is said to be "in a zone" or is talked about in "GOAT" discussions, I have flashbacks to tenniton. Jordan, Tendulkar, Federer, Woods, Schumacher - I know exactly how it must feel to dominate a sport, knowing that on that given day no matter what new wrinkles an opponent throws at you, you have an answer for it. It is a feeling like no other. You do feel invincible.

Oh, how I wish I could play it, play it again for old time's sake...

For a few dollars more

They say everything evens out in the end.

Earlier today, at the grocery store, the lady at the check-out counter returned my change to me - but miscounted and gave me an additional $10 bill. As she was counting the money I knew she had messed up. So when she handed me the money, I told her that she had done so, and returned the bill. I could have walked out and she would not have missed the money till it was time for them to count the day's take. But I didn't.

And even earlier today, I renewed my membership in a scholastic organization and realized, after the fact, that I had been charged the student rate. I sent them an email clarifying that I was no longer one, and forked up an additional $22 to cover the difference.

Jerry Seinfeld once demonstrated in a memorable episode of his popular sitcom that things always have a way of evening out.

As I was driving home a thought occurred to me - what if it does not even out? In that case I am short by $32. Or maybe over the years I have accumulated a positive balance of $32 in my ledger and today was the day it all evened out.

Aiiyyaaayyyy, the idle mind is, indeed, a devil's workshop.

Words from deep within

A few years ago a friend went through some depressing times. She tried to talk to me about her situation but always became tongue-tied and frustrated that she was unable to describe it. So I encouraged her to write what she was feeling. Her attempts to articulate what she was going through resulted in many essays, and one poem. Here is the poem:

(And for those amateur psychologists out there - the "friend" is not an oblique reference to myself!!)

The River

The river makes me smile, it makes me happy and calm
it flows and winds and talks to me.
Nothing in the world can be better than the cool fresh breath of mountain air blowing over my body high on a bridge above the water...
and then I watch, just slowly creeping around the bend is a misty fog.
It is coming for me and it passes over me softly. Talking to me as it passes all the furrowed lines upon my brow...

The smell of trees and whitewater and earth...it's like medicine. But they dont try and they ask nothing of me - they just are....existing forever in every form imaginable.
Can't help but give in to it. It will be ok, as long as I stay here..but at that moment the fog - which came partially from the river - gets thick and the cold seeps in.

It knows what I want and turns me away...but not just yet..
The river jumps and swirls sending me back to the other place - where? Where I am supposed to be, I guess. I listen. It knows. Suddenly I know, too. And I go away.
But somehow driving slowly away, I hear it still, tilling my mind over and over.

I'll be back, I think...I'll always be here, it says.

-- J.S.
May 2003

Fore!

This summer some friends and I visited the World Golf Hall Of Fame. The highlight of the day was a chance to swing a golf club. They have an island green challenge where you get prizes for hitting 2 out of 3 balls onto the green, about 145 yards away, protected by water on all sides. Indicative of my abilities, I got only one on. If you look closely at this photograph you can actually see the ball on its way. Yes, this was the one that was on the right track!

Sing me a song

I always have a song playing in my head. I wake up humming, I go to bed humming, and during the day when I am working I often realize that I am humming (or lately, whistling) to myself. And songs jump into my consciousness with no apaprent rhyme or reason. Mostly.

And sometimes songs long forgotten are restored in the mind, perhaps triggered by other events. For the past couple of days a Patty Smyth song (featuring Don Henley) that I have not heard in a decade has taken over; particularly these haunting lyrics:

But there's a danger in loving somebody too much
And its sad when you know its your heart you can't trust
There's a reason why people don't stay where they are
Baby sometimes love just ain't enough

Almost heaven

Fall is my favourite time of the year and this photo, taken at Cooper's Rock, gives a fair idea of why that is so. Every year I get into my car and drive around while soaking in the changing colours and once in a while I get a perfect angle into one of the many valleys in West Virginia. And for a few moments everything seems just right.

The brook

During the past year, my last as a student, I shared a house with 7 other graduate students. It may seem like we lived in cramped quarters, but actually each of us had our own bedroom (and our own Internet connection) so it was quite a comfortable co-existence. I was the first among us to graduate and always assumed that I would be the first to leave, too, but found a job right here in Morgantown. But one by one, each of them have now left this town after finding a job elsewhere. Last week as I dropped the last of my roommates at the airport I realized that I had outlasted them all. It has been a long stay in this town that I have come to think of as my second home and as I drove back from the airport I was reminded of the last lines of a poem by Lord Alfred Tennyson. I quote:

For men may come and men may go,
But I go on forever.

The clock stops

I have very closely been following a couple of promises made by the BCCI.

a) That the source that leaked Greg Chappell's email shall be identified by a probe.

On September 27, 2005: The BCCI President, Ranbir Singh Mahendra, condemned the action (leaking of Greg Chappell's email to the media) and promised to find out the source of the leak. He announced various times over the next few days that an internal "probe" of the matter was being conducted by the BCCI.

b) That the ACC shall announce a charity match to benefit the victims of the recent earthquake.

On October 18th, 2005: Shaharyar Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), said: "During a recent conversation with Jagmohan Dalmiya [ACC president], an ACC-sponsored relief match was considered. We agreed to examine possible dates for an international match in the next few days."

A couple of things have happened in the interim - Jagmohan Dalmiya is no longer the ACC President and Ranbir Singh Mahendra is no longer the BCCI President. Consequently, the above two promises appear to have died a natural (but unsurprising) death. Expecting the latest edition of the BCCI to follow up on these promises is not a great idea, especially since their primary focus seems to be in getting endorsement deals for anything even remotely connected with Indian cricket.

And with that, my solitary vigil on these two issues ends.

The hungry Hyderabadi

VVS Laxman played an innings yesterday that would have made Rahul Dravid proud. The general impression about Laxman is that of a wristy player who is always looking to score runs in boundaries (almost 60% of his Test runs have come in boundaries). But like Scottie Pippen of the Chicago Bulls, his true worth may only be realized after his playing days are over.

Sanjay Manjrekar once described him as "an attacking batsman with the temperament of a defensive player." How true. Many an opposition captain believes that if you dry out the boundaries Laxman will perish. This is far from the truth. The man has played some monumental innings and you cannot do that by simply bashing every 5th ball to the fence. And if you do not believe me, compare his numbers with other contemporaries - only Hayden and Lara have a higher career best score in first class cricket. Laxman is the only person to score two triple centuries in the Ranji Trophy. (A certain recently-deposed former captain would do well to learn from Laxman's purple patch in domestic cricket which paved the way for his comeback to the Indian team).

And as the Tests pile up his list of important contributions to the fortunes of the Indian cricket team keep increasing. And yet people cannot look beyond that 281, expecting him to match it every time he wields the willow. It is time we did so. Here is one such effort to do just that.

At the end of the day Anil Kumble, he of the 100 Tests, discussed the days proceedings and other issues quite eloquently.

Good guys do finish first

Anil Kumble will play his 100th Test match a few hours from now. For most of the '90's, having left the shores of India, I followed the Indian cricket team via the Internet. Only in the past few years, with the help of live video feed on the Internet and cable TV, I have been able to follow the progress of the Indian team once again, here in the US.

I have been fortunate (and privileged) enough to have watched the resurgence of the man since the Adelaide Test in 2003. I still haven't fathomed how he did not play in the World Cup final against the Aussies. (Dinesh Mongia over Kumble?? Would we have had to chase 360? Maybe, maybe not, but Kumble would certainly have made some difference. I also believe VVS Laxman at that stage was a better option than Mongia. But enough digressing). I shall stay up tonight and watch him take the stage. And applaud him with all my heart. For his accomplishment is a victory for all those people who persevere without sacrificing their ideals or their morals.

The essence of the man is captured well in this piece in Cricinfo, where you can also watch this photo-feature on the man's major accomplishments. His teammate, and fellow great-guy Rahul Dravid, pays tribute to the man who showed that spinning a ball 3 inches is all you really need. Sometimes, simplicity is the most destructive option.

The final word

In the movie "Saajan", the two heroes (Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt) are in love with the same girl - Madhuri Dixit. Once they both realize this, they go to great lengths to try to "step out of the way" of their friend's love, eventually reaching a climax where Madhuri, finally, catches on to this. And she says (liberally paraphrasing and condensing her teary, voluminous rant), "All this sacrificing each other's love is well and good, but has either of you considered, even for a second, whom do I want to be with?"

Why was I reminded of "Saajan"? The vox populi has been that Ganguly deserved a more ceremonial exit. Further, that he should have been allowed to announce his exit himself, rather than be dropped. To which I would like to ask - Has anyone asked Ganguly if he even wants to exit? The man has been almost vehement in repeatedly stating that he has a few good years left in him. So if the selectors were to have gone up to him and said that the Ahmedabad Test would be his last, would Ganguly have then agreed with them and gracefully exited the stage? I don't think so. Therefore, one must wonder what ulterior motives all these politicians have, so much so that the Indian Parliament is going to discuss this. Discuss what? Will they, after the discussion, pass a law that forbids the BCCI from dropping anyone until they have had a chance to leave on their own terms? Don't these people have more pressing matters to attend to? As I was pondering this, I came across an article that wrote about this and other related points.

I am tired of thinking and reading any further about Sourav Ganguly and the merits/demerits of his inclusion/exclusion from the Indian cricket team. As a parting shot - here is an article by Peter Roebuck, a foreign voice making some very valid points that the mudslingers would be well-advised to read. And with that, on this blog, I shall not discuss this issue any further.

Do kingmakers themselves have to be kings?

One of the most common point of the verbal attack on the BCCI selectorial committee is the opinion that some of them lack experience at the highest level of cricket to make a judgement on the abilities of people who have played 100's of international matches. Here is an example of one such diatribe, where the central thought is condensed into a couple of sentences that themselves are sad to read (and, once again, raises that 15,000 run monster...grrr).

So, five men with a collective experience of 49 Tests (and 103 ODIs) sat in judgement over Sourav — somebody with over 15,000 runs in international cricket. It’s laughable. Regrettable, too.

How come such a hue and cry is raised only when your favourite player is not chosen in the team?

Prem Panicker, on his blog, compiled a list of recent selectorial committees and says all the things I want to say about this issue, and responds to the above article. Reproduced below is an excerpt from his posting.

Actually, what to me is both laughable, and regrettable, is the fact that issues about the qualifications of a particular selection committee are raised only as part of an ad hominem attack when you want to query a particular decision. To underline my point, check this out -- here is a list of selection committee members (first named person being the chairman) starting with the 1995-'96 season:

1995-'96: G R Vishwanath, Kishen Rungta, Sambaran Bannerjee, MP Pandove and Anshuman Gaekwad (You will remember this as the committee that picked Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly for national duty; incidentally, you are all suitably impressed with the stellar Test and ODI records of Rungta, Bannerjee and Pandove, yes?)

1996-'97: Ramakant Desai, Rungta, Bannerjee, Pandove and Shivlal Yadav (The committee that installed Sachin Tendulkar as captain for the first time)

1997-'98: Desai, Rungta, Banerjee, Pandove, Yadav (The committee that sacked Tendulkar, giving 'Captaincy has affected his batting' as the reason, and reinstated Azharuddin, two weeks after the latter in Sharjah blotted his copybook so badly, even then-secretary JY Lele called for his head. Did anyone at the time pause to wonder how many Tests and ODIs this panel had played, to sit in judgment on a Tendulkar in his prime?)

1998-'99: Ajit Wadekar, Shivlal Yadav, Ashok Malhotra, Madan Lal, AP Deshpande

1999-2000: Chandu Borde, TA Shekar, Ashok Malhotra, Madan Lal, AP Deshpande (The committee that, following Tendulkar's resignation on the heels of a 2-0 defeat by the Proteas at home, anointed Sourav Ganguly skipper.)

2000-'01: CG Borde, TA Sekar, Ashok Malhotra, Madan Lal, Sanjay Jagdale (How many articles in how many papers do you recall, from this time, questioning say Jagdale's qualifications to be selector?)

2001-'02: CG Borde, Shivlal Yadav, Ashok Malhotra, Madan Lal, Sanjay (that man again) Jagdale

2001-'02: Chandu Borde, Shivlal Yadav, Malhotra, Kiran Mre, Sanjay Jagdale

2002-'03: Brijesh Patel, Kirti Azad, Pranab Roy, Kiran More, Sanjay (what, again?) Jagdale (By being otherwise occupied, I must have missed all the heated articles questioning Pranab Roy's immense Test and ODI experience -- which amounts to all of two Tests and no ODIs?)

2003-'04: SMH Kirmani, Kirti Azad, Pranab Roy (encore), Kiran More, Sanjay (oh yes, again) Jagdale

004-'05: Kiran More, Yashpal Sharma, Pranab Roy (take another bow), VB Chandrasekhar, Gopal Sharma (Anyone, anyone at all, remember anyone, anyone at all, questioning VB Chandrsekhar's claim to selectorial fame?)

2005-'06: Kiran More, Bhupinder Singh Jr, Ranjib Biswal, VB Chandrasekhar, Sanjay Jagdale

Point being? Simple -- our selection committees have invariably comprised gents without the paper qualifications to sit in judgement on players of the accomplishment of an Azhar (ignoring for the moment his off field activities here), Sachin, Sourav, Rahul, Kumble and such. The More committee dropped the Karnataka leggie for the domestic ODI series against both Sri Lanka and South Africa despite a record that boasts more match winning performances especially at home than even Sachin, or Dravid, or Sourav; in his first outing this season, he has proved his current form with a match winning performance in Tests -- is this a good time to argue that after Brijesh Patel and then Kirmani (both of whom got to serve just one year apiece) were 'sidelined', 'sacked', whatever, the committee developed a distinct anti-Karnataka bias?

The writing on the wall

So Sourav Ganguly has been dropped from the Indian team. The reaction to this has, naturally, been very bipolar.

Though, come to think of it, no matter when the decision would have been taken it would have been a contentious one. His exclusion from the team would not have created a controversy only if he had announced his retirement, which in any case would not have been likely for another 4-5 years had he continued to be in the team. So the selectors were placed in a dilemma.

They supposedly decided this in 5 minutes. Having done so, I wish they had spent an additional 55 discussing how to announce this to the public. Then their reasons for exclusion, which have come under considerable ridicule, would not have provided additional fuel to the fire.

I have intentionally not linked to any of the articles that discuss opinions on this issue. There are way too many of these. Oddly, one thing keeps popping up - almost everyone is questioning "why now" (i.e. after his Delhi performance) rather than "why not". The overall consensus being that he deserved to be able to go out on his own terms. But his "terms" did not match the selectors "terms" so this decision was inevitable.

And if I hear one more time that he scored 15,000 runs and deserves a spot .... grrrrr. By that token G.R. Vishwanath, Kapil Dev, Mohinder Amarnath and all the other greats who were jettisoned before they wanted to retire should still be playing until they "had a chance to leave on their own terms".

My frank opinion? He should have been in the 15, but not in the 11. If any of the batsmen got injured (or lost severely lost form) then he should have been next in line to replace them. That way he could still be a mentor to the youngsters and we would have a viable experienced batsman as a back-up option. And how long should he continue in this role? As long as he continued to show form and fitness in the first-class matches that he would have to play during the non-Test period to show that he still was capable of playing at the highest level. If experienced footballers can end their careers playing as substitutes, why not Sourav?

Dancing too close to the flames

His first 5 scores in Test cricket were: 110, 48, 105, 122, and 54 not out. His last score was 102. In between somewhere, according to a CBI report, he was lured to the dark side. Accused of fixing matches, he was tried and found guilty in the court of public opinion and by the BCCI, though Mohammad Azharuddin has insisted ever since that he is innocent.

I do not know what the truth is. What I do know is that since my grandfather first pointed him out to me as a batsman to watch out for, he was a source of joy for the next 15 years or so on the cricket field. A magician with a bat in his hand, and a superb fielder with a trademark prowl - he ignited an interest in cricket that has not waned since then. In my wallet I still carry a small card in which he wrote, "Best wishes", and signed his name.

To me he shall always be the person because of whom I fell in love with the game of cricket.

As time goes by

The Fateh Maidan Club is located in the bowels of the Lal Bahadur Stadium in Hyderabad. I was reminded of the place last night as I sat down to eat the lamb curry I had cooked for dinner. I had a sudden longing for Fateh Maidan parathas - a unique type that I have never encountered anywhere else. I have eaten many a pretender but none that surpassed the ones I had in my memory.

Are they really as good as I remember them to be? Or is time the real distance that makes the heart grow fonder?

The sounds of silence

Have you ever sat quietly and just listened? I do it sometimes and the various sounds that we filter out while we are "busy" doing other things is quite amazing.

Right now, most of the sounds around me are drowned by the central heater blowing away in an earnest attempt to keep the sub-zero chill out of my apartment. But at other times, when it is quieter, I swear I have almost been able to hear the grinding of the wheels in my brain. Almost.

The passing of the torch

For years, Kapil Dev has held a unique distinction - of being the only person to hold the world record for wickets in both limited overs (ODI) matches and Tests. Today, Sachin Tendulkar made an entire nation come to its feet by matching Kapil's feat in terms of centuries made in both forms of the game. (There are some well-compiled profiles and articles about his achievement on Cricinfo).

The self-proclaimed "child of the one-day age" is now the greatest accumulator of 100-plus scores in Tests (35 and counting), to go with the 38 he has in ODI's.

On the same ground in Delhi where Sunil Gavaskar had equaled Sir Donald Bradman's century mark, Sachin eclipsed one of his childhood heroes. Gavaskar's century was a frenetic affair, smashing fours almost at will and reaching his century off just 90 balls, a type of innings one imagines Tendulkar usually conjures. And ironically, Tendulkar's century was one that could have been manufactured by Gavaskar - 177 balls of studied determination, defending ball after ball, waiting for the bowlers to change their line and length to his demands.

For a long time one complaint I had against Tendulkar was that while he had the hunger to score centuries, he did not seem to have the temperament to make it a huge one. Someday, somewhere, a key was been turned in his mind, and a lock opened. In the past few years this has changed as evidenced by his scores the last 5 times he has crossed a 100 - 193, 176, 241 not out, 194 not out, 248 not out.

What is better than starting the day batting on zero? Starting the day batting on 100! Tendulkar gets to do that tomorrow. I look forward to watching this one unfold.

The menacing metronome

As the years have gone by, one bowler who has risen sharply in my esteem is Glenn McGrath. Having followed his initial career through scorecards and match reports I had built an image of a metronomic bowler who invariably won the battle of attrition. In the past few years I have had a chance to see him bowl in many different settings and realized that he is much more than a metronome, he actually hunts with a plan.

Slowly and silently (though sadly, he does occasionally resort to ugly verbal volleys) he sets up the batsman and lulls him into a false sense of security. And when the batsman lets his guard down - in a flash the man strikes again.

And lest you think he feeds on meek tailenders - he is at his best when bowling to the top order. In fact he is better at prising out top batsmen than any other fast bowler in the game's history (among those who have taken at least 300 Test wickets).

And how vital is he to the Aussie team? In the recent Ashes series, he did not play 2 Test matches and Australia lost both of them. In the 3 Tests he played, Australia won 1 and drew two.

When McGrath claimed his 500th Test victim, Peter Roebuck wrote this ode to him.

In summary

On Rediff, Prem Panicker has a thought-provoking piece, encapsulating most of what I have felt or wanted to say over the past few weeks about the off-field activities in Indian cricket.

Lara ascends another peak

A man with a penchant for big, big scores - Brian Charles Lara - added to his legacy with a fighting 226 (the next highest score was 34) for the West Indies against Australia at the Adelaide Oval. In the process he became the highest run-getter in Test history, a position that he may just be keeping warm for the other great legend of this era - Sachin Tendulkar. In a career spanning almost 13 years, Lara has had more highlights than a generation of cricketers combined.

Opinion is divided on who the better batsman of the current era is - my money is on Tendulkar as he is more compact and consistent - but there is no denying that Lara clearly outdoes Tendulkar in one department - getting a huge score once set at the crease. Only Don Bradman has more Test double centuries (12) than Lara (8 and counting), while Tendulkar's first (of 4) double century was the 21st century of his career. Lara's first century was a 277 against Australia! (Lara is also the only man to have posted scores in the 100's, 200's, 300's, 400's and 500's).

The return of the maharaja

In one of my previous posts (unhelpfully titled - L.P. Sahi in the news), I had mentioned that Sourav Ganguly did not deserve a spot in the ODI team, though I did feel that he could not be dropped yet from the Test team. The Indian selectors felt the same way, too, but stopped short of backing him on batting merit alone. By doing so, they intensified the pressure, not only on themselves, but also on Ganguly. The impression they have now created, due to their bumbling explanations, is that Ganguly is in the team solely because of the shenanigans of people behind the scenes.

The point I am trying to make is explained here, with greater lucidity, by Harsha Bhogle.

Two thumbs up, way up!

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of her show, Oprah Winfrey revealed that she owed a lot of her success to another Chicago televison icon - Roger Ebert. On his website, Ebert's recounts how it happened in his inimitable style.

Profiling a role model

VVS Laxman is the subject of an article, by Dileep Premachandran, in which his quiet dignity and simmering passion for the game of cricket is captured quite well.

The Bird of Paradise

Native to South Africa, the Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae) is a large tropical herb that is a member of the banana family (Musaceae). The plant gets its name from the spectacular flower shape which resembles a bird's beak and head plumage.

The Biology department at WVU has a plant that flowers periodically. And when it does I cannot resist capturing it on film.

Night vision

The dust- and pollution-free atmosphere of the lower southern hemisphere allows photographers to capture the Milky Way and other galaxies very clearly at night. The above photo, amazingly, was shot without any additional or artificial light. Imagine lying on the ground at night and looking up at that. No wonder the great poets of the past rhapsodized endlessly about stars in the sky.

Tick, tick, tick...

In a couple of previous posts titled "Here we go again...(??)" and "The curious incident", I referred to two promises made by the BCCI, one on October 18th, 2005 and the other on September 27, 2005, respectively, and decided to keep track of any further news on that front.

It is December 26th 2005, today and the BCCI has sadly, but not unexpectedly, kept mum.

Laxman's other wrist work

My favourite contemporary cricketer is VVS Laxman. Apart from being a joy to behold when on song, I discovered that he is quite thoughtful and frank when he writes about the game.

Here are his views on sledging, playing our biggest rivals, the current kings of the game, the mental aspect of the sport, and finally, why he wields a bat and not a stethescope.

I hope the fellow Scorpio plays for many more years, and writes for even more years beyond that.

Empty pocket, empty....

He may be the most powerful man in the world, yet all President Geroge W Bush carries in his pocket is a white handkerchief. At least he is well prepared should he have to relinquish his position.

Riches cannot buy you everything

The BCCI is the richest cricket board in the world. And India is the hotbed for computer software engineers. Yet the Indian Board is the only one that does not have an official website. Obviously some marriages can be made only in heaven.