Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar: The People’s Champion

My family didn’t own a television set back then, and we were living in this about-to-collapse dilapidated chawl. I remember running back home and telling my brother, “India won. Sachin took an outstanding catch.” I had just seen a match peeping through the window of a house that boasted of owning a rare colour television. But the catch that Craig McDermott offered at long-on was as straight forward as any would be on that day at Perth during the Benson and Hedges World Series in Australia in 1991. Something that even I would have caught in my sleep! But, I made that catch sound almost Jontyesque to my brother.

That is something Sachin made most of his fans do. He was just two years into international cricket, but was already the darling of the normal Indian cricket fan. Or at least for me, he was! He was yet to hit a century in ODI, but had started showing promise, and prowess in the longer format. One could almost smell the fragrance of greatness written all over him. He was destined. Destined to excel. To break records (almost every single one in the book!) To be the best in the business. But more importantly, destined to entertain close to a billion, leaving them, at times, gasping for breath!

In the 90s, he was the only one they could rely on. “If Sachin plays, we would win!” became an irritating truth. It was no secret that his dismissal meant many houses saving on their electricity bill. Televisions, coloured or black-and-white, went off. At the Varghese residence, the radio commentary wouldn’t sound more boring.

Then came that famous Desert Storm! Pictures of Shane Warne with his mouth open swatting a fly was recently brought back to my memory by a colleague. That picture told a few thousand stories. Not a single one of clarity within Shane Warne’s head. The late Tony Grieg’s “What a Playaa! What a wonderful playa!” would play in our ears repeatedly. In his dressing room, he would sit with his helmet on during the literal desert storm. Superstitious or otherwise, we didn’t care. He got us over the line. The Aussies were stunned. The Tendulkar madness had risen to another level. That season (98-99), arguably his best, made sure comparisons with Sir Don Bradman would rise to a higher decibel.

A few years later, he would get used to the sound of massive ovation every time he stepped on to the field. India would lose its second wicket in a test match. The crowd would erupt. It didn’t make sense. India was playing in its home territory. Going by how we Indians usually behave as a cricket audience, there should be a deathly silence. For them, that wicket meant their hero was walking out to entertain. Television producers, at least towards the end of his career, ensured that they caught him entering right from the time he was descending the stairs of his dressing room. Commentators would go quiet. The cameras would roll with sound of the audience giving him that ovation he so richly deserved. At times, even the air-time for advertisements would wait. Or the producers would just be kind enough to show a replay. Not of the previous dismissal, but of Sachin’s entrance. Pictures that would remain etched in our memories for ages. An image (or countless ones) of Sachin walking out to do what he does best. Bat tucked beneath his arms. Handle usually pointing in the direction of the ground. Donning his gloves. Looking skywards. It was almost gladiator-like.

His wicket meanwhile brought out the other extreme. Heads in hands. Faces covered. Pin-drop silence. Almost a scary one. If I was the batsman coming before or after Sachin, I would be one depressed soul.

I had the privilege of seeing his only T20 century Live! From listening to a running commentary description on radio of Sachin’s straight drive to seeing that magical moment right in front of my eyes – the wait to see the man in action was worth every second. We got our monies worth when we saw that trademark straight drive! It was something that I could take and store in my museum if I could. That was my ‘gasping-for-breath’ moment. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, he also played a helicopter shot. And finally the 100! Mumbai lost the game, but we didn’t care. “We saw a Sachin 100!”

Much like how my office canteen reacted when Hashim Amla saved a certain boundary of Dhoni’s bat of the last over against South Africa. They stood up and applauded Amla’s effort who kept it to a single. Never before and never after will we see an opposition fielder being appreciated so much for saving a boundary. Sachin was on 199. We wanted him to get to that double, a milestone that no man had reached before. The “superman” obliged. Offices across the country had low productivity that day.  

At a high-level senior management conference where incidentally Rahul Dravid was our guest speaker, a top-executive of the company proudly announced that Tendulkar has finally reached the 100^th 100 landmark. India lost that match.

And that was the story of countless Indians. Many didn’t seem to care whether India performed. For them, Sachin was India. India was Sachin.

Even before his retirement, he was the headline for many editions. The primetime for many news channels! He was the “happy news” that Indian Cricket was desperate for. He was the ‘positive story’ for the media. He was their TRP! People loved to watch him play. They loved to watch (and read) anything about him.

The sad smileys and depressing status messages on his retirement were a testament to the man Sachin is. A true ‘People’s Champion’, with due apologies to Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. My co-commuters in train did not want to read the newspapers this morning. “It’s way too depressing!” they said. For me, I will have a few cut-outs preserved for my grandchildren. I saw this man bat.

Thank You Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. 

Sreesanth: Enigma Personified

Interestingly, this post comes exactly a year after I’d written ‘An open letter to whomsoever it may concern with cricket.’ I am still a cricket fan. I still like the IPL. But sadly, very sadly, nothing much seems to have changed. Déjà vu! Read on…

A couple of years back, I remember watching a Malayalam movie which had a character named Sreenath, who was a flamboyant Indian cricketer. Although he is not central to the movie, a sub-plot to the movie is about the betting and match-fixing scandals. In the movie, a ‘clean’ Sreenath helps the cops in investigating and busting the syndicate of thugs that run the business. The actor, although not a look-alike, played a character that closely resembled a certain Santhakumaran Sreesanth. Two years can be a really long time in life, let alone in a small world of cricket.

Malayalees always shared a love-hate relationship with Sreesanth. They loved him because he was the first real Mallu to make it big in the international cricketing circuit (Abey Kuruvilla, Tinu Yohannan and Sunil Valson came and went, largely unnoticed). They hated him because of his antics. One can just glance through some public forums to see the amount of venom spewed on him, some of them funny, some downright ugly. But then, Mallus, by nature, are not known for their politeness.

I wasn’t his biggest fan, but I didn’t hate him either. The ‘Santh’ (quietness) began and ended in his name. But despite all his antics on and off the field, some of which I secretly enjoyed, he came across to me as someone who’d wear his heart on his sleeve when he had the ball in his hands. Take for instance, when he did a mid-pitch jig after smashing Andre Nel over his head. Or after making the pitch a pair of African drums when he knocked over Mathew Hayden in the World T20 semi-finals! But then there were some, where I felt like doing a Bhajji on him. Like when he bowled a beamer to Kevin Pietersen in England, or when he was giving an unwanted send-off to Andrew Symonds after the latter had already gone hammer and tongs on him. Or yesterday!

As the news about his arrest by Delhi Police trickled in, through Twitter of course, my first reaction was that of disbelief. I was led to believe that it was a massive frame up. It began to sink in. Slowly. If Hansie Cronje, believed to be an epitome of honesty, could succumb, Sree was like the hungry lonely fish in a drying pond. Easy picking!

How could a man who seemingly is from a well-to-do family, earning probably to the count of millions of dollars through his contracts, and well on his way back to the Indian team be so stupid? Surely, money can’t be the lure in this case, although it might have been for Ajith Chandila and Ankeet Chavan! Was it his friendship with his “distant relative” Jiju Janardhan? It probably was, but only Sree can answer that. 

I am being told by reliable sources that he was quite a loner in the team. But in Rahul Dravid, he had the best leader possible to get his career back on track. He was back bowling, and bowling well. And the more heartening part - behaving better! He was largely credited for being an inspiration to another probable future Indian player from Kerala - Sanju Samson and also to a talented Sachin Baby. One can only wonder what’s going through them after their ‘etan’ (big brother in Malayalam) is now probably behind bars now for selling himself off.

Santhakumaran Sreesanth was always an enigma. He remains one. Sadly, not just for his former fans, but even for his own family! 

When Mumbai called Virat a 'Cheater!'

Mumbai is selfish. Very selfish. The culture of 'Yeh mera hai. Tujhe isme kya lena dena' (roughly summarized and translated to 'Mind Your Own Business') is very much imbibed, if not already born with, into every second Mumbaikar's genes. That is seen everyday in our fight for a breathing space in a local train or on the roads, when we don't wait for a signal to go green. Or worse still, it is seen from the 'Priest and Levi'  (from Jesus' parable of Good Samaritan) attitude while someone's bleeding to death.

That probably explains why some section didn't care whether Virat Kohli was an Indian. For them, he had 'cheated' against their city's team, owned by India's wealthiest guy. Much like how Kohli himself didn't care when he took up a verbal fight, which almost went from mouth to fist, with a senior Indian cricketer from his own state just a couple of weeks back.

Kohli wanted the crowd to treat it as just another sport. He probably should have done the same when he reciprocated with a middle finger when the Aussie crowd gave him an earful. Or when he mouths a few 'non-airable' words almost every time he hits a century.

Coming to Wankhede's reaction, the fact that it is one of the most hostile crowds cannot be lost on anyone. 'Monkey-scandal' (not calling it 'Monkeygate!') had its genesis here, only for their target to play for their team a couple of seasons later. They booed their very own - a man who gets a standing ovation even in Rawalpindi. A kind-hearted like Harsha Bhogle may say these are a few 100! But when it happens with such alarming regularity, you got to question a city's attitude. And this comes from a hardcore Mumbaikar, who has no second favourites! I love it, still.

The other aspect that largely went unnoticed was the incident itself. Rather, the attitude surrounding the incident. Yes, the bowler didn't do it intentionally. Yes, it was all fair-and-square and Virat was well within his rights not to withdraw the appeal. Ambati Rayudu was unlucky. But he was out. Period. However...

Let me just draw a parallel between this dismissal and Ashwin's infamous attempt at Mankading Sri Lanka's Thirimanne. Here (Rayudu), it was pure bad luck! There, the non-striker was careless and stupid to venture out of his crease. Here, the bowler's leg accidentally came en-route the batsman's outstretched bat; there, the bowler's situational awareness caught the non-striker napping. Yet, our experts and media called this decision fair; but when it comes to Mankading, they'd go head-over-heels in saying how "unsporting and unfair" the bowler and his skipper are, to appeal (even if it is well within their rights). Playing within the rule book, I am still not convinced how one can be called fair and the other one not! I suppose, just like in real life, some laws are more equal than the others.

I guess, that is probably why many call Cricket a complicated game. We all love it, still.

An open letter to whomsoever it may concern with cricket

Dear to whomsoever it may concern with Cricket,

I am a cricket fan like countless other Indians & I've been one even before I could get my vocabulory in order. My mom often recalls the time when I was just 1 and a half (Yes, 1&a half), with a small wooden bat in hand, and a left-handers stance, I used to call on to my brother, "aee aee! (bowl bowl!)"

Over the years, the fascination for the game headed north when I saw real 'men' playing in whites, and at times, in my favourite blue. Then along came a certain Sachin Tendulkar. He was just 18 at the time. It was 1991 (a couple of years after his debut). While he was a star in the making, he hadn't attained the demi-god status that he's been unfairly given now. But something about him made me seriously pick up the game, even though I could hardly pick up a 'season' bat.

No matter what, I was there to support you guys. Tigers at home and cats abroad, we were tagged. I didn't care. I was an eternal optimist. We were often embarassed and laid low by our opponents. For me though, they were just because of poor umpiring, or unfair treatment, or just pure bad luck. We lost because we lost the toss, I told myself, and others. Yes, I did criticize when we were sloppy, which was more often than not, but that was more often than not, just to join the popular voice.

I joined Venky in giving Aamir Sohail a farewell he deserved in that famous QF at Bangalore in 1996. I rejoiced when we thrashed the 'Pakis' yet again. I cried with Kambli when he walked out of Eden in the Semis. For I 'agreed' with him that we could somehow pull this one off. For the next couple of years, I looked at Sri Lanka and Clive Lloyd as ‘cheaters.’ I saw red when Bishop's no-ball went unnoticed and India eventually succumbed chasing 120 at Barbados.

I hated the Delhi Police when they supposedly caught Hansie Cronje on tape. I disbelieved their talks about involvement of Indian cricketers. Then Cronje opened up. Skeletons fells out in South Africa. I felt betrayed. Yet, when he walked out of the press conference crying, I was one of the rare folks who felt pity! I wondered why! If anyone, I was to feel pity on myself for watching game(s) that was/were supposedly pre-decided! Then they found evidences against some of our own. And I still refused to believe, so what if our Board agreed with the CBI!

Then came the turn around. I was down on my knees with Sameer Dighe after Bhajji hit the winning runs to kill the Aussie winning streak! I leaped in the air when skipper Saurav went parallel to the ground after his 100 at Brisbane. I pumped my fist with Dravid after that famous victory at Adelaide. And I sledged Steve Waugh with Parthiv Patel when he saved them the blushes at Sydney.

I almost did a bare-chested dance with Sourav at the Lords Pavilion. I knocked out Kaif with Sourav. The emergence of youth and re-emergence of Indian cricket gave me goose-bumps. The poster of ‘Brave New India’ adorned my bedroom wall. India was winning again. Abroad. We were shedding our cat spots abroad, and putting on the tiger’s attire! We were no longer lambs for slaughter.

Along came the World Cup. Sachin’s square cut over point of Shoaib brought out a “Take that loser!” We rolled over every team, barring those men in yellow. But a final after 20 years was not a bad bargain!

I stood by you when you went back down. I thought, against hope that Greg and Sourav can work together. They didn’t. India suffered. A first round exit in the Caribbean and he was kicked out for good. When all hopes were dashed, you guys got home the T20 World Cup! I was that fan who stayed to my seat unmoved till Sree held onto that catch.

I cried foul when Steve Bucknor got it all wrong at Sydney, when the Aussies ‘cheated’ their way to victory. I was there to support Bhajji as he defended some serious racism allegations. And when we slammed the Aussies in the CB series tri-series final, it was the revenge that I was looking for.

I supported when Lalit Modi brought out IPL. I felt the purists were being unreasonable. So what if every six and catch were sponsored? So what if they showed firangs dancing after every wicket or boundary? For me, it was all about cricket! I saluted the legend from the third tier at Wankhede when he hit his first T20 century last year. Talks of malpractices in funding, bidding etc didn’t bother me. I was enjoying the cricket.

When the world around bitched about BCCI, I supported you. I thought we deserved the high-handedness we showed. We gave ‘them’ (ICC) money.

Then came the moment we all waited for throughout our lifetime. The fact that I high-fived my dad for the first ever time in life says a lot about that victory at Wankhede. Thank you MSD and Co! You did it for Sachin? I didn’t care! You did it for me!

Farewells along the way for legends like Anil Kumble, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, gave me a tear or two. Yes, we got humiliated in England and Australia. Like a typical Indian fan, I reacted too! The guy who coolly rotated his bat after slamming Kulasekara over long-on was now no longer of being the skipper. Yet, I loved MSD!

I was not entirely angry when Pakistani cricketers were caught red-handed while spot-fixing. As long as they were not Indians, I was fine with it. We were too clean. Well, till recently. Cricketers caught on tape. Indian cricketers! Talking about spot-fixing, under-the-table black money, using women for luring etc. Barely did the investigation begin, you guys gave us more. Manhandling, abusing, sexual assault, and what not.

I am disappointed. IPL V gave me some awesome cricket, close matches, heart-breaks on the field. But it’s slowly meandering towards a dangerous territory. A territory that has got everything, but cricket! And rest assured, I won’t be a citizen there. Can some sense prevail and parity be restored? Waiting.

Sincerely,

With Love,
An Indian Cricket Fan (Still)

Playing Fair v/s Spirit Of Cricket?

Just four months after India got its historic independence in 1947, India’s Vinoo Mankad created a history of a different sort when he ran out Aussie opener Bill Brown at the bowler’s end for backing up too far before the ball was delivered. The incident was the first of its kind in Cricket, and soon the type of dismissal was referred to as ‘Mankaded’. The ‘historicity’ of the incident could not be missed.



A newspaper report of where it all began
(Source: Wikipedia)



In 1992, South Africa was making a return to mainstream international cricket after the apartheid era led to the Proteas getting banned from cricket. India was playing South Africa in a series billed as the ‘Friendship Series’… till Kapil Dev removed the bails at the non-striker’s end after Peter Kirsten to spark off a round of debate on ‘Spirit of Cricket’. According to the Indian team (and judging by Kapil’s reaction in this video), Kirsten was already warned at least twice before Kapil decided to take what people call as an ‘extreme’ step to get somebody out. Friendship Series turned into an ugly spat when Kepler Wessels allegedly hit Kapil with his bat and Dave Callaghan using some choicest words. The irony of the incident could not be lost.

Yesterday, as yet another ‘mankading’ incident opened up this age old debate on Spirit of Cricket, couldn’t help but wondering who was actually following the ‘true spirit of cricket’? When Ashwin, rightfully, appealed against Sri Lanka’s Thirimanne after the latter ventured out for a stroll before the ball was delivered, surprisingly, umpires decided to enquire with the fielding skipper on whether he needs to withdraw the appeal. Sehwag obliged. Appeal was withdrawn. Batsman continued to bat, and also stroll out with no remorse or respect shown to a lawful appeal. If anyone, it was Thirimanne who was acting against the Spirit of Cricket.

As per the rule change (or re-change) implemented last year, a bowler is ‘permitted, before releasing the ball and provided he has not completed his usual delivery swing, to attempt to run out the non-striker.’ Going by that, I’m not convinced how ‘spirit of Cricket’ is applicable if a non-striker, purely because of his own carelessness decides to back-up too far before the bowler releases the ball. If at all, Indians were silly to have withdrawn the appeal for a wrong-doing of a batsman, and more so, the umpires in asking the Indians to re-consider. Legally, that was out, just like a caught-behind or LBW. Imagine an umpire asking the fielding team to re-consider an appeal for a caught-behind, because the batsman chased a delivery that was too wide. A bowler doesn’t warn the batsman then either to not do that again! According to me, what is ‘more unfair’ is when a non-striker gets run out after a batsman hits a beautiful straight drive, which clips the bowler’s finger and hits the stump with the non-striker out of his ground, or when a runner bumps into a fielder/bowler and is run out because of that.

I remember watching this year’s Celebrity Cricket League (yes, I was watching CCL!) and the finals between Chennai and Karnataka had its moments. Two runs were needed of one delivery when the bowler decided to run the non-striker out before completing his delivery action. The ball, of course, wasn’t counted, but the wicket given! And because he did that, the legal delivery that he bowled yielded no run resulting in his team’s victory. The new batsman at the non-striker end couldn’t back-up before the ball was released and hence, couldn’t reach the striker’s end before the wicket-keeper threw the bails down. Yes, it may seem like a trivial cricket tournament, but there was a lesson to be learnt here. Follow the rules. Win it fair-and-square.

I remember a game which a team lost because the non-striker was almost half-way down the pitch by the time the ball reached the batsman, that he could easily come back for the second beating a throw that came from long-on. Wasn’t that unfair? I’m sure countless other moments have happened in the cricket field where a batting side got undue advantage (and even won games) because of the earlier rule, which allowed the runner to take off as soon as the bowler was in his delivery stride.

If it’s in the rule-book, I don’t see any reason why that should cause any disturbance to this ‘Spirit of Cricket’ that people drum-beat about so much. It is not ‘win at any cost’, it’s ‘win within the rules.’ Ironic it is, as one would think ‘breaking the rule’ goes against the ‘spirit’ of anything, and not following it!

First ever IPL State Derby: Another Pictorial

I’d thought the 15^th May 2011 experience at the stadium with my office colleagues could possibly be my last LIVE match for a long time to come, when my church friend Binoy messaged me on 19^th May and asked if I could be free to watch the game the next day. At that time, I didn’t even know who the Mumbai Indians were going to play. His sister Benzy had some free tickets and I was invited. There was no way that I was going to let go off this opportunity. 

This time, we were at the Garware Stand, Gate No. 2. This time, however, it would be all church friends together. We reached the game about a couple of overs late because of some miscommunication. We hadn’t missed much of the action though. Just as we entered, Sachin Tendulkar was taking a catch to send Pune Warriors’ Jesse Ryder back to the dug-out. 

Before we could even settle down, PWI had lost four. One of them being Tim Paine, seen here getting his bails knocked off by Munaf Patel. I consider this one a priceless shot, and to think that it was purely by chance. I’d thought the batsman was given out caught behind! But a careful look at the picture and you’d see that the bail is disturbed. 

Soon, skipper Yuvraj Singh was making his way back for a duck. Amidst the Mumbai Indians’ flags fluttering, he walked back dejectedly to the dug-out, seeing a defeat within the first six overs of the game. The bunch who’d got the free tickets, meanwhile, feared that the game might be over too soon for our liking.

The Pune dug-out wasn’t too far away from where we sat. And we were of course, the privileged few to have high-end tickets free to ourselves!

Robin Uthappa tried to resurrect the Pune inning, but found little support at the other end, as edges flew often from the bat, most of them, luckily in no man’s land.

Lasith Malinga could easily be the second most popular cricketer in Mumbai Indians. And with him standing at long-off, shouts of ‘Maa-lin-ga Maa-lin-ga’ echoed from our stands. When you’re in the crowd, you could say the most ridiculous things, like when I shouted something to the effect of – “Malinga, apna baal dikha na!” (Malinga, show us your hair!). And very soon, he was removing his hat. Of course, only to wipe the sweat I believe. 

Soon, Malinga was bowling and that slinging action just cannot be missed – no matter which part of the stand you are in!

When you’re this close to the ground and dug-out, you’re never too far away from the TV guys either. Shibani Dandekar was seen here interviewing Pune’s Fergusson. 

It’s fun to watch a player’s antics at the ground, something that you could miss while watching on TV. Malinga was seen adjusting his socks, even as the bowler was beginning his run-up. “Idhar catch aayega toh majaa aayega!” (Would be fun if they hit one here)

Strategic Time-out is one of the most irritating things while on TV, but to people at the stadium, it’s time to grab a bite, see what the players do etc. Pune didn’t have much to discuss with them tottering with more than half of their side back in the hut. Wonder what Geoff Marsh and Yuvi told the batsmen in the middle.

And for people like Binoy, Sajan and me, it was time to carry some memories home to show off. For me, this was coming here on my blog! The three of us look more tired than the players on the field though.

Pune soon folded out for 118. Time for interviews. Andrew Symonds with Brad Hodge. Shibani and Sameer Kochar (who looked bigger than he does on TV) seen here awaiting their turn.

And when you’re in a stand that’s on the higher side, you could bump into a few celebrities too like Sachin Khedekar, popular Marathi actor. Music Director Anu Malik also was around, but too quick for me to click a snap.

Wankhede looks awesome under floodlights. And they were just taking effect, slowly.

Mumbai lost opener Franklin early, but chasing 118 was never going to be difficult. Uthappa fielding at long-on seemed quite lonely.

Sachin and Rayudu were playing at a pace that was below-par for a T20 game, but on par for the current match. Binoy wanted the match to go to the last ball. Seemed highly unlikely. 

I seemed to be the only guy in that stand who knew Tommo’s real name – Alfonso Thomas. A ball before this snap, Tommo jumped high to save a certain six to restrict Rayudu to just one. Soon, Sachin went after the bowler, but the ball was safe in Tommo’s lap!

Sachin departed. In walked Rohit Sharma. Mumbai Indians’ batsmen hadn’t had much of a hit in the middle with Sachin and Rayudu doing most of the work in the previous games. Perfect time for Rohit to get some batting practice. 

Binoy desperately wanted a photograph with Sachin. He got his moment! 

Some tight bowling and some average batting by Mumbai meant that the game could well go to the last over. We never thought we would be seeing the flood-lights taking full-effect like it did.

The match was getting too close for my liking. My mom had already asked me the day before – “Are you going there to defeat Mumbai? Last time, you did so!”

With Symonds coming out to bat for the first time in the game, and Rohit Sharma playing it easy, this game would go to the final over!

Binoy got his second wish fulfilled. The match going to the last ball.

Murali Karthik, who had bowled a good over till that point, pitched his last one slightly short and outside the off, and Rohit quickly pounced on it and cleared it over the sweeper-cover boundary for MI’s first six, thus handing his team a seven-wicket win.

MI came out victorious in the first-ever state derby of IPL. I have a good feeling about this rivalry. Could well turn out to be a ‘match to watch out for’ in the future. As for me, I had witnessed another first at Wankhede!

Another perk that came with the free ticket, apart from some yummy free food, was that we were pretty close to the dressing room. And two of my favourite former South African players were within shouting distance here – Shaun Pollock and Jonty Rhodes. (So much so that my nephew is named after the latter)

The presentation ceremony was about to start, but to those close to the dressing room, that hardly mattered. We were calling out to any and every player. And Malinga obliged. Unfortunately, as Malinga chose and pick, I wasn’t the fortunate enough to get his autograph.

For some strange reason, I had a feeling, I could get Robin Uthappa’s attention. He was down in the ground getting his ‘Maximum Sixes Award’. On his way back, we had our moment when Robin responded with a smile when we shouted out ‘Praise the Lord, Robbie!’ Soon, he was kind enough to take the Mumbai Indians flag and sign on it. My day was made!

My first ever stadium experience: A Photo Story!

It was one of those ‘ideas’ that you just blurt out at the spur of the moment. So, as I was on a walk with my office friends- all of us still discussing the World Cup victory, sudden thought, which was perhaps a little too loud – “Why don’t we go for a game?” It didn’t take too long for the bunch to come back at their desk and book IPL tickets for the Mumbai Indians – Kochi Tuskers Kerala game.

Come 15th May 2011, we were on our way to the famous Wankhede Stadium, which a couple of weeks back had witnessed one of the most historic moments in Indian cricket. For us, we knew the Mumbai Indians was walking home easily with their easy wins in their first two matches, and Kochi’s below-par show in their first two. Before I bore you to death with this boring textual experience of the match, let these few pictures tell the tale.

Not surprisingly, the line to gate no. 4 was long, what with the six of us reaching past 7, yet well before the game.

I’ve never seen Wankhede in such close proximity. And after renovation, I am told that it had started looking even more gorgeous.

Did someone say IPL was losing out because of its proximity to the World Cup? Wankhede had other stories. And as we made past the 3-4 layers of security, to add a cliché, the decibels sure gave testimony to the excitement in the air.

What really got us going was the view we were going to get. At the second ‘cheapest’ available seats, this was possibly the best seats available. 

The ‘screaming’ was purely for the excitement of the seats that we got, which I must add, was purely by chance. I don't think we shouted any louder during the game. Few empty seats in the stand adjacent were soon going to be filled to capacity. What surprised me was the availability of MI flags on every seat.

Kochi, after winning the toss, asked Mumbai to bat. The decibels went a lot of notches higher when Sachin Tendulkar and Davy Jacobs walked out to the middle. For three of us in the group, we were seeing the legend for the first-ever time in person.

There’s no better sight in world cricket than a Tendulkar straight-drive and when he obliged in the very first over as he drove RP Singh past mid-off. The few Rupees that we had spent were now worth it. Soon though, there was a close shout for LBW. “Not out. Not out!” I declared. Umpire agreed. Seemed we both were wrong. I, of course, didn’t know about this till after the game.

As the game progressed, the stadium was in full capacity, cheering each of Sachin’s runs. One required to score of the last ball of the MI inning to reach his first ever century, Sachin calmly knocks it to long-off for a single, thus hitting his first ever 100 in a T20 game! The crowd just witnessed history and we already had a nice story to tell our children.

I might be a mallu, but I am a Mumbaikar first. And the way Kochi chased MI’s 182 down with Mahela Jayawardane’s silky smooth batting and Brendon McCullum’s blitzkrieg, we were left to be satisfied with Sachin’s master-class.

Yet, there were a lot of take-aways from what was my first-ever Stadium Experience. For one, seeing Sachin’s straight drive, followed by an array of shots, including his first ever helicopter shot, on his way to the first-ever T20 100. For another, Mahela’s inning made us feel that cricket is a very simple game. Very! And finally, this was also Kochi Tuskers Kerala’s first ever victory in the IPL. 

PS: Not much of KTK's inning was captured on camera, for much of the time, we were just too stunned with the shots and ease with which Mahela and McCullum took the game away from us!

9 ‘takeaways’ from World Cup 2011

As the dust settles on what has been a ‘living the dream’ moment for many Indian cricket buffs, life would slowly trudge back, until at least IPL-4 begins. Meanwhile, here are a few moments that caught my attention (as if it matters) from a World Cup, that many calls the best ever!

Sree’s ‘almost breakdown’: In WC’s opening match against Bangladesh, it wasn’t as much Sehwag’s inning that I remember than the hammering that Sreesanth got. In fact, more so, his reaction after the five wides that he gave away in an over that cost India 24 runs, which till half-way through the tournament was the most expensive over of the World Cup. He almost broke down while going back to his mark and did a good job at holding it back by wiping his face with his elbow. Guess, he reserved some of those for the Finals!

Hot n’ Cold Minnows: While the minnows in Group B gave the big teams, especially England, a good-scare, the ones in Group A seemed to justify ICC’s decision not to have them in the next World Cup. A few players from these lesser equals made a good name for themselves a la Ryan Ten Doeschate and Kevin O’Brien. While fans are still trying to get the pronunciation right for the former, the latter with his ‘I-care-a-hoot’ innings against England earned himself a nick name ‘The Big Kev’! That fearless performance by the Irish, leading them to create the record of the highest-ever chase in a World Cup, stood out for ICC to take note.

Consistently Inconsistent England: Undoubtedly, the team that provided the most exciting moments in the World Cup had to be England. A tie against India after almost successfully pulling up an impossible run-chase, closely-fought defeats against Ireland and Bangladesh and edge-of-the-seat-wins against Netherlands, South Africa and West Indies, all of their first round matches had their fans pulse-rate racing ahead to weird proportions. Their campaign ended with an anti-climax of sorts when Sri Lanka thrashed them in the Quarter Finals. This tournament owes much to England for all that excitement!

The Kiwi Blitzkrieg: Pakistan must have been looking forward to chasing a target of not more than 240 in their league match against the Kiwis when they were struck by the ‘Ross Storm’. Read this – 175/5 in 42 overs; and 210/6 in 46 overs. You’d have virtually missed the whole match (I did) if you missed the four overs that came after! Shoaib concedes 28 off one over, making it the most expensive over of the World Cup. That record doesn’t stand long. An over later, Abdul Razzaq concedes 30. And he does a Sree, and does well not to break down! 92 runs in 25 balls. Carnage! This game, unfortunately though, would be remembered more for Kamran Akmal’s skills or the lack of it behind the wicket than for Ross Taylor’s explosion. Akmal became the latest topic for SMS jokes!

India Dropped: Pakistan’s generosity in the field didn’t end with the New Zealand game. Not once, not twice, but four times was Sachin dropped enroute to his 85 during the much hyped Semi Final between the two arch-rivals. Fielding turned out to be the difference between the two sides as Pakistan lost way during the chase. Afridi’s post-match comments got him a lot of Indian fans, only for him to have thrown it all away in his sore interview to a Pakistani channel.

Slow Seniors: Apart from the Little Master and the Lankans, no senior batsman really got going. Especially noteworthy were the performances by the West Indians Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnaraine Chanderpaul and Pakistanis Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq. These otherwise-talented batsmen just couldn’t get the ball off the square when it mattered and turned out to be liability for their teams.

Chokers Choked Again: New World Cup. New Knock-out. Same old story. South Africans, before the start of the world cup, tried hard vocally to shed the age-old ‘tag’ that they carry with them. Skipper Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis were particularly vocal about this. But sadly, they couldn’t manage to translate that on to the field, as twice, we saw the famous South African collapse – against England and New Zealand – the latter knocking them off the tournament yet again in the knock-out stage.

Sidhu Never Stops: Every analyst who sat opposite Navjot Singh Sidhu must be commended. All of them kept their emotions under check, at least on air! One look at the likes of Sourav Ganguly, who turned out to be a brilliant analyst, and you won’t be faulted for thinking that he might swing his arm across the table in the direction of Sidhu. Simon Hughes, an Englishman, was relieved that Semi Final was his last working day with ESPN-Star (read Sidhu). When someone says, “Look at your hair man. You have gone bald. You have lost your hair!” on your face, it ain’t funny. Not one bit. The sweet victories by India against Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka were made sour by watching this gentleman. He would have been bearable if he at least stood by what he said. His opinions about the Indian team and certain matters kept changing match-by-match. Watching him is a lesson in patience. Sitting next to him is an entire education in that.

Captain Cool: This guy goes by instinct. Be it picking Chawla and Sreesanth ahead of Ashwin, which backfired every time or sending himself ahead of in-form Yuvraj in the final. MSD just backs himself. And it paid off in the final. That six to seal India’s World Cup win after 28 years will remain etched in the minds of all Indian cricket fans. But the moment that was worth watching was when Dhoni let emotions overtake him finally after the victory! Scenes of India’s ‘strong men’ a la Yuvraj, Bhajji and Sachin in tears won’t be forgotten too quickly.


PS: Sure, there were many more moments, but then, not everyone would read even to this point! :)

Newspapers after the euphoria…

It is indeed slowly sinking in… even for a normal Indian cricket fan, if I may call myself one! I expected the hype and hoopla to carry forward occupying TV space through the week, and the media, so far, has not disappointed. And to be honest, I don’t mind. We’ve had enough of 2Gs, Rajas, Radias, Kalmadis Wikileaks, etc. For a country that was craving for some bit of positive news after all of the above, a bunch of 15 men and their support staff couldn’t have timed it better!

The day after India won the first ever World T20 in South Africa defeating Pakistan, I was so excited that I bought almost all English Newspapers home. Read it here.

And I wasn’t going to miss doing that after India went one ahead and brought home (or kept home) the ‘original World Cup’ after 28 years. After all, the next generation has already missed history and I can proudly tell them – “I was there!”

Here are the headlines and my thoughts (purely from a reader’s and a fake-journo’s perspective) of leading Mumbai dailies that came out the following morning:

THE WORLD AT OUR FEET

- The Sunday Times of India

Although I am not a big fan of the ToI’s reporting, their headlines have often impressed me. And this one’s no different. Compared to some of the others, this one’s more creative.

CHAMPIONS

- The Hindustan Times

The HT overlaid this headline on a half-page photograph of the jubilant Indian team after receiving the trophy. Although the headline in itself isn’t creative, the layout (I believe this is HT’s forte) makes it exciting and thus, to the point! HT, however, has done a brilliant job in getting columns out of Ian Chappell and Pradeep Magazine – something that they can claim exclusivity for!

WINDIA
World Champions, 2011

- The Indian Express

IE has carried a full page photograph with no report. However, this daily is the only newspaper to carry two mast heads and two front pages, with the second ‘front page’ carrying the headline – ‘The World in a Cup’. According to me, both headlines lack imagination, yet the full page photograph captures the moment well!

WE RULE

- DNA

Three-fourth of the page is occupied by a photograph of Sachin being carried on Yusuf Pathan’s shoulder. Somehow, both the heading and the photograph didn’t quite create the same kind of impact in me.

A CUP FOR THE MASTER

- The Free Press Journal

Layout was never FPJ’s strength and that remains a constant. Although the headline is in a font that’s hard to read, it still is ‘out-of-the-box’!

Sare Jahan Se Acha

- The Asian Age

The headline and layout lacks the kind of punch that would be desired of the morning after a World Cup win. The Asian Age carries the same photograph of Sachin on his team-mate’s shoulder.

THANK YOU!
- The Mumbai Mirror

Although Mumbai Mirror wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) fall under the category of a morning newspaper, the broadloid needs a mention for what it brought out post the victory. Kunal Pradhan’s article is brilliant. And the headline ‘Thank you!’ with the victorious Indian team’s photograph, according to me, was the best coverage of the lot!

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Having said all that, my thoughts with the journalists who actually sat down post the victory after watching the game - some of them in the stadium, some of them at their office desks- having to type away when the world outside was making merry in the streets. For them, it was a race to finish an error-free copy before the dreaded deadline. Their celebrations had to wait. Readers, like me, were waiting for them. 

A challenge...

“Take this challenge, Bless. The boundary is 80 yards to your leg-side. Clear it!”

“Ok.”

It took a few wickets for him to hold the bat. Somehow the burden seemed lighter to him. Not of the bat. But within his head.

Few moments ago, when he had nothing to achieve, he made efforts to play himself in, and try out some technically correct shots. Apparently, when a left-handed cover-drives, it’s pure bliss to those watching minus the bowler. But now, it was no longer a normal ‘number-number-12-balls-a-batsman’ format. It was what everyone in Mumbai calls ‘touch-n-go.’ So, the moment, the ball hits the bat, you gotta run. Putting both you and more so, your non-striker at risk of running out.

Yet, to ‘touch and go’ seemed to be the last minute on his mind. Before he took guard, he eyed the leg side. Saw the fielders. He had to clear them. By a long margin. “Remember the challenge, Bless?” Vijesh made it a point to remind him. He just nodded.

Very unlike him, he charged at the very first delivery he got. Connected it beautifully. On the off-side. What would be a beautifully timed boundary didn’t please him. His challenge was still incomplete.

A full toss outside the off stump. He stretched to swing, but nowhere close to the ball! He looked at Vijesh. Both exchange a smile. The latter’s smile had a question. “You’re going for it, aren’t you?”

A short delivery. Thumped. In the air for a fair while, but bounces well short of the eighty yards, as it hit the concrete steps.

Low full-toss. This time on the leg-stump. It’s slammed with disdain. Vijesh had already gone to retrieve the previous ball, when this one was coming straight at him. But much to the batsman’s relief, he doesn’t pick up the shout by the fielders. The ball bounces in front and over him. Another boundary.

Again he comes charging. Plays the ball on the full. Smashes it again. That’s towards the long-on fielder. He judges it. Absolutely imperfectly. He survives. Ball crosses the boundary bouncing a few times over.

Again a short ball. Asking to be hit. He does. Vijesh has placed himself deep. But this goes over his head. Again, poorly judged. The ball bounces in front of the concrete steps. The challenge stays.

Half-volley. Thonked straight down over the head of the bowler. Beats everyone. “Well-played!” says the ‘keeper. Four again. Challenge stays.

On the off. Thumps this one to point for four. Challenge begins to fade.

Meanwhile, at the other end, his partners are running out. Including Vijesh. For all it’s worth, he might end up not achieving the target, without getting out.

Another delivery on the legs. Gives himself a little bit of room and smashes it out of his sight. This one seems to be soaring. “Go go go!” Vijesh looks in anticipation. The challenge might just be achieved. 80 yards! From a tennis ball.

“YES!”


“Is everything ok, Bless?” his mom asks him. He opens his eyes. Wipes them. It’s time to brush the teeth and head for another long day in office!


PS: The last three paragraphs are born out of my imagination. Neither did I achieve the challenge, nor did I dream about it. See, basically, I was bored and had nothing better to do than write this. And you obviously had nothing better to do than read this.

Why Associate Nations playing only the World Cup make no sense?

10 wickets; 210 runs; 205 runs; 175 runs; 215 runs; 9 wickets; 231 runs; 131 runs.

For those following the ICC World Cup 2011, the numbers above may not look too weird. These are the margins of defeat involving an ICC associate nation team. A few years ago, losing by such a margin was considered an absolute shame. Remember, India held the World Record for the largest margin of defeat in terms of runs (202 against England in the 1975 World Cup, thanks to Sunny Gavaskar’s famous 36 runs from 174 balls) – a record that stayed for almost 12 years!

This world cup (and the previous one) has proven that a top test playing nation can fancy breaking a few records against these hapless lesser fancied teams, unless of course, you are India or England!

I have nothing against the lesser cricketing nations playing the World Cup. My problem is the frequency at which they play. One can’t expect a Canada or a Holland to improve after playing just once in four years against the top sides. A classic example is that of the Kenyan side. World Cup semi-finalists in 2003 and now, three of the above eight numbers are against the African side. After the 2003 World Cup, Kenyans played just one quadrangular tournament and two matches in the Champions Trophy in three years! Imagine a World Cup Semi-finalist being treated like that, although the political unrest and match-fixing can be partly blamed for this! Between 2005 and 2007, the only ‘test playing nations’ that they played against was Bangladesh and Zimbabwe – definitely not the kind of teams you’d put in the top bracket. This team failed to even qualify for the World Twenty20, after nine months of absolutely no international cricket in 2008.

So here’s the point – you can’t throw an injured pigeon among the tigers, and expect it to come out unscathed! First, give them wings. Teach them to fly. (Am I sounding Siddhuish here?) For the game to develop in these regions, let these cricketers, and most of them really talented ones, meet the more fancied nations more frequently. Organise tri-nation and quadrangular events, inviting these associate nations as one of the teams. It would also do a world of good to these lesser countries if they are made to host with some financial assistance from the richer boards participating.

A case in point is Ireland hosting India and South Africa in Dublin in 2007. Although this wasn’t a triangular series, it still drew a good response from the local crowd. Irish team has won a lot of fans in the current edition of the World Cup, and was easily the best among the lesser equals. Obviously, that has something to do with their exposure to playing against the top test nations.

Sure, some of these matches in the tri-series/quadrangulars would be boring and one-sided. But then, at least, the World Cup matches won’t be! Hopefully. Besides, an upset in a tri-series/quadrangular would open the tournament wide open. Also, for players on an individual level, these would do a world of good. They can market themselves by performing against a top-side, and won’t have to wait for that once-in-four-years opportunity!

Imagine, what if the IPL world had seen a Kevin O’ Brien blitzkrieg much before the IPL-4 bidding? Imagine, what if Holland’s Pieter Seelar’s and Canada’s Hiral Patel’s skills had got noticed by the Mallyas and Ambanis? These guys would suddenly be living their dream by sharing the same dressing room with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne!

Time to re-think. Maybe.