The Illogical Appreciation (or why I love the IPL)

Less than one week to IPL 2016, conversation about it begins again; some love it, but many “cricket purists” claim to hate it.

As a cricket fan who loves a great game of test cricket, if you’d told me 10 years ago that a tournament would have 20-over-a-side games, Bollywoodization, fixing scandals, terminated franchises, player auctions and ads covering 70% of the TV screen, I may have laughed in your face.

Yet here I am, illogical as it may be, excited for April 9th, trying to figure out just why.

Everybody knows Chris Gayle is a Champion! – DJ Bravo

Champion – the anthem has summed up the West Indies journey through this World T20 and the folks from the Caribbean will be hoping that the party continues today!

Usually, there is little interest in a final where India is not taking part but that’s the thing about the West Indian team. You cannot help but love them, even if they put your team out of the tournament! Many would have thought that like New Zealand, West Indies may have peaked too early in the tournament. Any such notion was dispelled by a smashing win over India.

Virat played his heart out yet again, showcasing placement, wristwork, running and fitness in his innings of 89* (taking his average to a surreal 136.50 in this WT20). His good innings, though, was undone by two no balls which took wickets. No excuses there, but you have to feel for Virat. So near, yet so far. What a champion!

Will Kohli win India the World T20 single-handedly?

319 runs at an average of 106.33 and a strike rate of 129.14. Virat Kohli’s batting stats? Correct.  In the WT20? Correct again.

Except that these are Kohli’s stats from 2014.

He took home the Player of the Tournament trophy then, even scoring 77 in the final. But Sri Lanka took home the bigger prize by suffocating Yuvraj Singh.

In 2014, Kohli nearly carried India to a world title in Dhaka by sheer force of will.  

WT20, India v Bangladesh : Another miracle in Bangalore!

Got your breath back after India’s last ball win against Bangladesh? What a game! The last over reads 144WWW but it really doesn’t tell the whole story, does it?

India had to win this game to stay in control of their destiny in the WT20. After a desperate loss against New Zealand in Nagpur, we reignited our campaign in Eden Gardens by cruising home against Pakistan, courtesy another Kohli special. Coming to Bangalore, Bangladesh was another must win game for India.

Profile for Peace: India and Pakistan

When I read about Profile for Peace, I couldn’t help but recall a story I read in the weekly school newsletter many years ago. The story was about a young soldier defending our borders. He had shot at and killed a soldier on the other side. The story ended with our hero seeing the face of the soldier he had killed. It was his own little brother, who had been separated from the family during the partition.

A powerful story, one that stayed with me all these years. An imaginary line had irrevocably changed the destinies of the people of two nations.

WT20, India v New Zealand: Beware the Ides of March!

 

“Beware the Ides of March” – Julius Caesar Act 1, scene 2, 15–19.

India begin their campaign against New Zealand in Nagpur on 15 March, marking the “real” start of the World T20.

Without a doubt, this will be Dhoni’s last World Cup campaign, ending an amazingly successful captaincy career during which he has led India to all three big titles – WT20 in 2007, the World Cup in 2011 and the Champions Trophy in 2013. The big man will want to go out with a big bang.

Asia Cup Final : Severed heads and war cries

This badly photo-shopped picture of Taksin Ahmed carrying M.S. Dhoni’s severed head surfaced on our Twitter feed in the last 24 hours – it has apparently gone viral in Bangladesh.

Fan photo : Taksin carrying Dhoni’s decapitated head (Source: Twitter)

While Indian fans spout some absolute rubbish on social media, this photo does leave an especially bad taste in the mouth.

World T20 Favourite Moments: Six sixes in one over

#2: Six sixes in an over (Kingsmead, Durban, England v India, 19 September 2007)

Although India qualified for the super-eights after Favourite Moment #1, our campaign was thrown into disarray after a loss in the first super eight game against New Zealand. India had to win this game to have any hope of qualifying for the semi-finals. Again, this was a crunch situation.

India got off to a great start with quickfire fifties from both Gambhir and Sehwag. Out-of-form Yuvraj Singh was slated to come in at number 4, but instead skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni walked in to bat at the fall of the second wicket.

Yuvraj would have to wait to bat and he was not happy about it. Visibly agitated, he paced up and down in the dug-out. When the third wicket fell with the score at 155 in 16.4 overs, Yuvraj sprinted out to the middle.

WorldT20 favourite moments: The Bowl-Out

With the World Twenty20 fast approaching, we thought it was be nice to do a short series on our favourite moments from the WorldT20s so far.

#1 The bowl-out, India v Pakistan (2007, Durban)

Kingsmead, Durban. Traditional rivals India and Pakistan go head-to-head. With Pakistan having qualified for the super-eights, India have more to lose – a big loss in this game would knock them out in the preliminary rounds of the inaugural WorldT20. After the disaster earlier in the year (in the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies), India could ill-afford another early exit.

Match fixing and spot fixing: Azhar and Amir

We posted the teaser for the film “Azhar” a few days ago on our Facebook page. An interesting question was raised as to whether films like this and Mohd. Amir’s re-selection in the Pakistan team was condoning match fixing and spot fixing.

Let us examine briefly both cases.

First up, Md. Azharuddin. Up-turned collar. Hyderabadi wrists of silken steel. Three consecutive centuries after debuting. A one day hundred in 62 balls. Unforgettable assaults on Lance Klusener. Panther like reflexes in the slips. Captain in three World Cup campaigns and for many of us, indelibly inked in our minds as our first Indian skipper.

Sri Lanka in India, Ranchi T20: Super Sunday awaits!

A complete performance from India in the Ranchi T20 has levelled the series against Sri Lanka. Rumour has it that after the disaster in Pune,  a memo was sent by the BCCI to all the curators in India which said “Enough with the experimenting.We want four! We want six! We want spin!” The Sri Lankans were simply out-gunned in conditions which suited India perfectly. And now, it’s all to play for on Valentine’s Day.

Sri Lanka in India: 5 talking points from India’s defeat in the Pune T20

So, Sri Lanka have taken the lead in the three match T20 series against India. That should spice things up!

Here are five talking points from India’s defeat in the first T20 in Pune:

1. The Pitch

Grass. Bounce. Sideways movement. M.S. Dhoni said it was like playing in English conditions at the post match ceremony. The way the Indian batsman were hopping around in Pune, it looked more like they were playing in Perth! For a population that feeds on fours and sixes, the Pune crowd didn’t have much to cheer about. Have to say, though, it was a pleasant change from watching bowlers getting thumped to all corners.

Preview: Sri Lanka in India, 1st T20, Pune

Here we go again.

India against Sri Lanka .

While they have played quite a bit of test cricket against each other, the last time these two teams played a T20 was the final of the World T20 in 2014. We all know how that turned out for India and for Yuvraj in particular.

Under-19 World Cup: On Virat Kohli and the Mankad

A couple of interesting things have happened since Monday.

One, AllOutCricket wrote a great article on Virat Kohli, questioning whether his classnessness was sullying his class.

Two, the WI under-19 team mankaded their way to the quarter finals of the under-19 World Cup.

Let’s take a look at the second one first.

Having watched highlights of the game yesterday, I can confirm that for 99 overs, it was a cracking game of cricket. There was some seriously quick bowling from young Alzarri Joseph. A direct hit from the West Indian skipper took the 9^th wicket. The game went into the last over with three runs to win and the last man in. Then, this happened.

Singh is King : Australia v India, 3rd T20

Another Kohli special in a big chase. Raina is batting well at the other end.

It’s Yuvraj Singh’s first innings for India since 2014.

The last time he played at the international level Yuvraj scored 11 off 21 in the final of the T20 World Cup. Strike rate – 52.

He was dropped from the team for nearly two years because India had lost a world title. Some heads had to roll.

But he made his way back to the team. He sat with his pads on, watching the kids feast on the bowling for two games.

When he finally got to bat in the last game of the tour, he scratched his way to 5 off 9 balls. Strike rate – 55.

Losing is hard #AusvInd

For anyone committed to playing a sport, losing is hard.

It’s got to be even harder for those making a living out of playing the sport. And losing as an Indian cricketer in Australia must be a pretty special experience.

The constant media scrutiny. The Australian crowds. The well-meaning Indian supporter with advice about your front foot technique. The allegations of match-fixing. Personal attacks on family and friends.

Surely, these guys are mentally exhausted even before they step out onto the field to play the next match.

No pressure, no diamonds #AusvInd

Visualise this.

You are batting beautifully. Hitting the ball right in the sweet spot. Finding gaps in the field. The fielders are fumbling. The bowlers have resorted to sledging. You respond by smashing them even harder. The fielding captain is looking to the heavens for inspiration.

The run chase is under control. All is well with the world. You are already planning your post-match celebrations.

It’s been a massive partnership.Finally, a wicket goes down. Might be a tired shot or a loose one. Never mind, plenty of wickets left in the bank.

Indian cricketers and their new year resolutions – Quiz

In the spirit of the new year, here’s a short quiz to test your knowledge about the new year resolutions made by our very own Indian cricketers.

All you need to do is select the best answer from the three options provided. And remember, there may be more than one great answer to each question. Bonus points will be awarded for more than one answer to the same question.

If you would like to try and answer the quiz, please use the comments section.

Here we go. Have fun.

Warriors : Thoughts on the film #wakethelion

“The eye that leaves the village sees further”

First things first. This is not a cricket film like Death of a Gentleman.

This is a film about a bunch of incredibly brave men who took up playing cricket in their Maasai warrior clothing to spread their message. A message that they took from their remote village in Kenya all the way to London to Lords, the traditional home of cricket, which welcomed them with open arms.

This is a film about how these men slowly wore away at the deeply entrenched thinking of their elders to bring about peaceful change in their community.

This is a film about the power of sport and the global platform it can provide.

This is a film about the difference men can make in the fight for womens’ rights.

This is a film that should inspire men all over the world.

Test cricket is dead, long live test cricket. #AusvNZ

What is tradition?

The dictionary defines tradition as a belief, custom or way of doing something that has existed for a long time among a particular group of people.

How long must something be around for it to become a tradition?

You might say it is traditional for you to do something with friends from school. That tradition is at most a few decades old. Others like wishing each other “good morning” or saying “namaste” are centuries old. Time honoured traditions are a relative concept.

Is something intrinsically valuable merely because it is traditional?

Age-cricket and the law

I came across this article on the internet today. It piqued my interest both as a cricketer and a lawyer.

The case is that of a young cricketer, Sagar Chhabria, who had challenged the BCCI’s process for verification of age before the Mumbai High Court. The Court rejected his birth certificate and his passport as proof of his date of birth and held that the BCCI’s process for verification of age was conclusive and binding.

By way of background, the BCCI’s process is the Tanner-Whitehouse Test which is used to measure bone density. Apparently this has been in place since 2012. A report from another similar case from September 2015, says that the Tanner-Whitehouse test apparently has an accuracy of plus/minus six months.

Sagar’s Tanner-Whitehouse test said he was 16 years and 6 months old and therefore ineligible to play in the under-16 category.

Let me tell you another story.

Freedom Series, Mohali test : In defence of spinners’ wickets

“An army may be likened to water, for just as flowing water avoids the heights and hastens to the lowlands, so an army avoids strength and strikes weakness.” – Sun Tzu

One does not have to have read the ‘Art of War’ to know that historically South Africans haven’t been the best players of spin. So, before the start of the test series, the Indian team made no bones about asking test match curators for pitches that turn.

Mohali was a wicket designed to strike at a weakness against spin.

There’s been a lot of chat on social media about this pitch not being “test match quality”. I simply cannot understand this. Not one ball spat at the batsman or really disturbed the surface of the wicket. The ball didn’t bounce alarmingly high or low. The turn was slow. The pitch was not turning square. The batsmen who applied themselves scored runs. 

Freedom Trophy, First test, Mohali: Time to put your best foot forward

This is what the purists have been waiting for. Tomorrow marks the start of the last leg of South Africa’s longest tour of India – the test series is here!

Tu mera Viru : An open letter from a fan

Dear Viru,

This post is overdue. Not just overdue, it’s very late. Still it’s not as late as you played your favourite cut shot, leaning away to slash the ball over the waiting slips.

To be honest, it’s taken me time to finally come to terms with the fact that you will no longer play competitive cricket – no test matches, no ODIs, not even the IPL. That you will no longer essay any further classics. That I will just have to make do with old memories on YouTube.

Let me try to describe the thrill of watching you bat.

When Ganguly came out to bat, I knew there would be a silky cover drive. With Dravid, I knew that his forward prod would be technically correct. With Sachin…well…I knew that the ball was going to hit the middle of the bat.

But when you came out to bat the only thing I knew you would do is smile.

South Africa’s tour of India: Fifth ODI, Mumbai (Politics, Sport and Batting first)

An MSD special at Indore. A Kohli masterclass in Chennai. Raina striking form. AB de Villiers cracking hundreds at will. Ashwin, Duminy and Morkel out with injury. Shikhar and Miller continuing to struggle.

With the scoreline at 2-2, two evenly matched teams have all to play for in Mumbai.

Speaking of Mumbai, Pakistan-born umpire Aleem Dar was forced to withdraw from officiating the final game of the series hosted by India’s most “cosmopolitan” city.