How was the 16 Year Old Jinx Broken?

India finally managed to win a Final against Sri Lanka in some format of Cricket. Asia Cup had eluded India since 1994 in spite of the presence of Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and Dravid almost throughout this period and Sehwag, Yuveraj and a decent bowling army since long.

One of the finest ODI players of his time, Saurav Ganguly never got a chance to lay his hands on this Silverware! And this time, India were not expected to do any better. At least this blogger never gave them a chance. But Team India have beaten all the odds and even broken a 16 year old jinx. How did this happen? Apart from the Lions' Top order collapse, there are five reasons again!

1] Ravindra Jadeja: Pardon me for being too judgmental. I didn't like the idea of promoting this lad ahead of Yusuf Pathan. An innings of 23 runs from 16 balls by Yusuf is considered as a flop show while Jadeja gets away with 23 runs from 35 balls.

He was slaughtered during the T-20 World Cup, but it was Yusuf who got the axe effect. To give the devil his due, Jadeja bowled well, fielded better and got a few useful runs in the final when India couldn't hit a single boundary in the last 5 overs. He was definitely a positive and the ball that got Kulasekara was a beauty!

2] Ashish Nehra / Zaheer Khan: The old warhorses are still running. Nehra took flight when the lights came on and there was something in the pitch for him. Zaheer was damn good with his line.

And the Praveen Kumar was brilliant. On another day and with a bit of luck, he would have been Man of the Match. 9-1-29-1 stats didn't do justice to his effort on that evening.

3] Dinesh Karthik: I have always felt this little chap is a much better batsman than a wicketkeeper. I also felt he is a better international batter than Rohit and M. Vijay.

A hamstrung Sehwag did a world of good to Karthik and Team India. It was a bold and timely innings by this makeshift opener. He deserves a place in Test Team ahead of Vijay and Yuveraj Singh.

I am totally dumbfounded by the Selector's decision to bring in Saha and Yuveraj into the Test team. On what basis did they make this selection? Yuveraj hasn't regained his fitness, not yet. And Saha is not Dravid, not Laxman, not even Sreesanth!

4] Kapugedara and Kandambi: Even when their 'Big Two' failed, Sri Lanka have always had some lesser mortals come and run away with matches from India. These two K's have done it before.

But this time, they were under immense pressure. Even though they built a partnership and tried to fight back, the speed at which they played initially rendered it meaningless in the end.

5] Fielding: Team India have always been blamed of below par fielding. We still have Nehra, Zaheer and PK who are confirmed sloths. But Virat is a revelation. Jadeja is very good and Rohit is not such a sloth after all. Dhoni is very efficient keeper without being brilliant. Karthik and Gambhir are good out fielders and then there is Suresh Raina. He is always a lurking danger on the field.

Compared to the sloppy fielding efforts and dropped catches by Sri Lankans on the evening, Indians looked like South Africans! This made a huge impact on the quality of bowling which I had branded as 'Popgun' the other day.

Finally Team India have won the Asia Cup and Dhoni has once again broken a barrier that has haunted India for long and even before he started playing! Good for him, some cheers in the shorter format of Cricket at last!

Now, I am waiting for the Tried and Tested Three to come good in the Test series! Hope Sehwag is fit and match-fit too! There is another barrier to be broken. It is over 15 years since India won a Test series in Sri Lanka!

5 Lesser known facts behind the Indian win today !

On any stage in Cricket, India - Pakistan rivalry is always hot. This one was 'Red Hot'. There was a lot of drama and histrionics from both sides. The usual suspects like Gambhir, Shoib Akhtar and Bhajji were back.

 It indeed was a great game of Cricket with a lots of twists and turns. But none better than the last one! Only a Sardar could have pulled of such a thing against Pakistan! Singh is King!

We know why India won. Good bowling by PK, Zaheer, Jadeja and Bhajji. Good batting by Gambhir, Dhoni, and Raina. And finally the sucker punch by Bhajji again! He was in the thick of action for all the right reasons and the wrong ones too!

But there are some lesser known facts behind this worthy Indian win today! Let us take a look...

1] Shoib Akhtar: The greatest 'Show Pony' of Pakistan Cricket is back and he did everything. He cramped Sehwag, fought with any Indian willing and then bowled those inexplicable loose balls. The no-ball and the six by Dhoni of a free-hit put India on course. He again was clobbered for maximum by Raina and Bhajji!

2] Mohammed Amer: This premature Superstar with immature head and a good bouncer did well to check Sehwag up front. He put down a sitter by Gambhir, that must be considered the turning point. India were still not half way then. Then he bowled the ball that ended it all for Pakistan in this episode of Asia Cup!

3]  Sundries: The extras donated by Pakistan bowlers and fielders did make a big difference in a match they lost by a narrow margin. Mohammad Amer was again the culprit in chief. Leg-byes did make a big difference thanks to the leg line employed by Pak bowlers.

4] Pakistan middle and lower order: Afridi and Kamran Akmal at crease with 7 overs to go and Razzack still to come! One expected Pakistan to put it beyond India by scoring 280 or more. They lost 5 wickets in 35 balls to be bowled out and thus wasting 3 balls. That perhaps was the difference in the end!

5] Ravindra Jadeja: He bowled well to concede just 43 runs from his 10 overs and claimed the dangerous Umar Akmal. But Jadeja is here for something more important. He got out at the right time. If he were to continue batting any further, Raina and Bhajji couldn't have saved India!

Million Thanks for getting out Mr. Jadeja. This victory is dedicated to you !

Why am I not watching Soccer or Cricket?

The Soccer Fever is spreading thick and fast. In fact faster than the Viral Fever all over the world. Even people with Soccer fever bluff at office and feign Viral Fever to watch the 'Cup'.

Meanwhile in the Southern part of our Subcontinent, another 'Cup' is being played. This though has much lesser takers and appears to be a damp squib. The impending monsoon might complete the dampness towards the closing stages!

But I am watching neither 'This Cup', nor 'That Cup'. I have better things to do ! Why am I not watching Soccer and Cricket?  There are as usual 5 reasons! I always love to give 5 reasons. Any lesser is a such a shame and any more can be conveniently branded as 'Sundries' !

1] To be honest, I don't understand Football. I am always surprised why whole press and generally the entire public is going gaga over someone called 'Messy' and another one called something like 'Wain Loony'. Then there are more than one Ronaldos and even Ronaldinhos! They all look the same to me. I can recognize only two footballers. Pele and Maradona, only because they are fighting like Mohammad Yusuf and Yunis Khan!

2] I can't be a 'Surrogate Fan' to some South American Team with players I can never distinguish between, howsoever distinguished they might be with their skills. In Cricket, only Zimbabwe boast of unpronounceable names. In Soccer, you'll need to sit and memorize the names of almost all the players of most of the teams. By the time you've managed to remember all names, the next World Cup will begin and you go right back to start memorizing again. Not my Cup again!

3] I am a Cricket and Tennis guy. But watching any shorter version of Cricket played in the subcontinent is quite like watching Ekta Kapoor's serials. This is especially so with India - Sri Lanka Cricket. They all have same stories, same costumes, same settings, same villains and same vamps. To top it all, just like Ekta's characters change faces with plastic surgery after every 34 episodes, there is the ball change in Cricket after 34 overs!

 4] The Neo Cricket Telecast this time is such a lousy affair. They don't have Mandira Bedi. Preity Zinta, Shilpa Shetty and Deepika are missing. Roshni Chopra is in some remote village doing Mehendi to some 'Desi Girl'. Not even a single presentable face. All we have is a grim looking Moron speculating and hissing about Bangladesh batting collapse as if the BSE Sensex has crashed. And Venkatesh Prasad looks equally sad while he bares his 'fangs' without a ball in his hand. This is not Cricket! Not at all. In fact, there should be no Cricket played at all without Mandira Bedi.

5] Will he or will he not? Like it or not, I am waiting for Roger Federer to prove doomsayers wrong and lift the Wimbledon crown again. And it will be a fitting finale if he gets the better of Rafa in the final! This is where my heart is right now, and I am waiting!

5 Reasons why India are unlikely to win Asia Cup !

India thumped a reckless Bangladesh by 6 wickets and earned a bonus point too. Well, that was expected. This Bangladesh team is immensely capable of losing any match from any stage. They play Test matches as if they were playing ODIs and ODIs as if they were in T-20 matches. No wonder they rarely manage to last an entire innings in any form of Cricket.

Team India's real challenge will be to beat Pakistan and Sri Lanka. There are chances India might just about manage to ward of Pakistan. But beating the Lankan Lions in their own den looks beyond India from what we have seen. Why? Apart from the absence of Yuveraj Singh and Sachin Tendulkar, there are 5 more reasons. 

1] Virendar Sehwag: He might have conjured up a winning act while crushing the Tigers' tail. But he is yet to reach match fitness. His body language looks as if he is still 5 - 6 matches away from Sehwagging. This series will be over by then. Best of luck for the Test series, if the Monsoon allows any play at all. 

2] Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma: Howsoever talented they might be, both these guys can't carry Indian batting on their shoulders; at least not yet. Rohit still is 'Nohit' when it comes to crunch matches. If these are the No. 3 and No. 4 batters for us, Dhoni and Raina will have a lot of work to do in this series because of Reason Number 1. 

3] Suresh Raina: For no fault of his, he will be one of the reasons for India's misery. Coming in at 6 is such a waste of talent. Ideally he should get more overs to bat. But if we send him at No. 3 and he fails, we are doomed because of Reason Numbers 1 and 2. 

4] Zaheer and Nehra: These guys had their peak days during 2003 World Cup. Don't we have good enough replacements even after 7 long years? India's pace attack looks like a Popgun attack compared to Shoib, Asif and Amer and Malinga and Co. Mashrafe looked more menacing than any of our pace bowlers. 

5] Sri Lanka: The Lions are almost always invincible in their own Den. They very rarely lose on home turf because only Lions know how to bat and bowl there! Even if their Stars fail, some unknown faces will come and take away matches from opponents. And a fit as a fiddle Malinga is on fire now!

If Dhoni's boys still manage to buck the trend and break a 15 year old jinx; I shall be the happiest. But I am prepared for the worst. Well, in reality we have got used to it. Right?

5 Point something about Yuveraj Singh !

Finally it is official and bold; Yuveraj Singh is not rested but dropped! There are some intricately woven thruths about why Yuveraj Singh finds himself in the dumps at this point in his career!

1] After calling Tendulkar Grand Father and then seeing him score an ODI 200, Yuvi has lost all the confidence in his ability to assess age, height, weight and like things. Only thing he perhaps manages to assess properly is sex. He needs all the support at this juncture in his life. He alone can't carry all those pounds he has put on.

2] Over a decade in International Cricket without a stable place in the Test-side even after Ganguly left  isn't what Yograj Singh had hoped for his hyper-talented son. But guys like Sehwag, Dhoni and Gambhir have made the top and middle order of Indian Test side a little too stuffy place. And those bloody old men Sachin, Rahul and Laxman aren't getting old at all.

3] There is no point in expecting Yuvi to prove a point or two at point when he can't point out what is the whole point about not being able to field at point. But the Selectors still expect him to throw himself around. That is tough. Fielding at Point all his life and doing things never imagined by Indians before had earned him a reputation. But the Rainas and Kohlis of the Gen-next are throwing themselves around better and better. And what the heck, they can actually adjust against the short ball and they know when it is nightfall.

4] Sulking after losing Kings 11 Punjab Captaincy and then playing as if he was in a hurry to meet Anchal Kumar every time he was out in the middle really depreciated his stock value. Even as his sex appeal went higher, his sensex on the BCCI radar collapsed to newer depths. And that is why he is in the dumps today!

5] In spite of Viru Sehwagging again, Yuvi will need more than just a miracle to be the old Prince again. Comebacks aren't rare in Cricket. But coming back to Yuvi, he never was a regular in the Test side. With ODIs and T-20 becoming more and more youth centric, he might find himself in the oldies list soon. Does anyone remember Mohammad Kaif? He too is almost of the same age. Time runs faster than Usain Bolt.. Even if you were the fastest Indian between the wickets once upon a time, you still have to run today. Only Arjuna Ranatunga was allowed to walk!

For the sake of Indian Cricket and for the sake of those gigantic sixes, we need Yuvi to come back. But for that to happen, one man has to understand what is necessary. And that is Yuveraj Singh! Will he finally grow up?

5 Reasons why BCCI should leave Lalit Modi alone !

An extremely interesting appeal was made by fellow blogger Som to Shashank Manohar to spare Lalit Modi on World Environment day. It was thought provoking and touching at once. Abhishek Bachchan would have said, "What an Idea Sirji"!

Apart from trees, environment and Junior Bachchan, there are other reasons BCCI should consider before they proceed any further with the cases against Lalit Modi. And there are at least 5 reasons!

1] Modi has asserted he is not going to leave without a fight. The way he is roaring, noise pollution has reached hitherto unheard of levels. The heat and dust has escalated beyond control. So much so, even the Monsoon got scared by the decibels emanating from India and has postponed the arrival much to the dismay of an entire country. For the sake of return of the Monsoon, please leave Modi alone!

2] Not one person inside or outside the BCCI had foreseen the growth of IPL would be so drastic. Well, except Modi; give the Devil his due. Lalit Modified the way Cricket was sold. At least for the sake of those cheer girls and beer girls; let go off!

3] Shilpa Shetty, Vijay Mallya and so many others have endorsed Modi's role in the success of IPL. Spare a thought for these Icons. This was the same guy with whom everyone wanted to be clicked only a few months ago and now you people persecute him as if he were Saddam Hussein! Think of Shilpa and forget and forgive. BCCI already has one Racism Monkey on its back! Remember Modi is black and Shilpa might cry hoarse of "Racism" again.

Modi behind the Bars ?

 4] Remember he helped you people in ousting Jagmohan Dalmia from the BCCI. You never know what the wily old fox can do. If Enemy's enemy becomes a friend for Modi, the deadly duo can wreck as much havoc as Wasim Akram and Waqar Yunis did with the old ball. And BCCI is full of old balls!

5] Most importantly Modi knows every inside information. He already has made sure Mr. Amin will not live very long as IPL Commissioner in spite of his first name 'Chirayu'! Modi's culpability is unlikely to remain an issue in a country where people forget easily and vote for Multi-Crore scam tainted Politicians and match-fixers. Before he reaches the Power center of Pawar, cry halt to Operation Modi! Else he can bring down quite a few castles!

The final word: Give him a Break or he will Break, the BCCI !

Mars Attack and the Defenders of Earth !

I am one of those millions of Indians who went ‘Cricket Crazy’ after Kapil Dev’s underdogs won over the mighty West Indians in the Prudential World Cup in 1983. Not yet a teenager on that memorable day, I remain equally enamored by this game on the verge of 40 today!

The advent of television helped to further escalate the craze. This is the silver jubilee year of little me watching live Cricket on television. I have witnessed Sunil Gavaskar’s boys conquer the Benson and Hedges World series in 1985 and then had the mortification of watching Javed Miandad re-write the course of Indo-Pak Cricket by swinging Chetan Sharma over midwicket in 1986 at Sharjah.

This game has given so many moments to cherish and so many heartbreaks; but the passion remains undiluted. So after 25 years of watching live Cricket, I have decided to form my own Team of World Cricket Greats against a hypothetical Mars Attack.

Including Don Bradman, legends of the past are just names and numbers for me and I have not included them in this team. My team includes only those whom ‘I have’ seen play! Since the Mars attack is hypothetical, the team too will look hypothetical with players from different generations.

1] Sunil Gavaskar: Any batsman who scored 10,000 runs playing against some of the best fast bowlers of all times on uncovered pitches without a helmet has to open the innings for my team. We also have to remember there was no restriction on number of bouncers when he played. We don’t know the Mars bowlers. For Sunny, fast bowlers were unknown before he made his test debut!

2] Virendar Sehwag: You simply can’t ignore his ability to destroy bowling attacks with very little movement of his feet. His tongue moves more than his feet. But he still scores against the best in the business and at a rate not really emulated by many before him and even during him. And he does it quite consistently. So he will be the right ‘attacking weapon’ with the perfect defense of Sunny at the other end.

3] Vivian Richards: I have yet to see another right handed batsman do a one-handed swat of a slow bowler over square-leg and that too with his left hand! Richards was the most destructive batsman of his times and perhaps of all times. He has to swagger in at number 3 just to show the Martians how confident and arrogant the Earth guys can be!

4] Sachin Tendulkar: No Cricketer, living or dead has achieved as much as this ‘Little Master’ has, over the past 2 decades of Cricket, whole Cricket and nothing but Cricket. The Martians should know ‘God’ plays on our team!

5] Brian Lara: In case of a rare case of ‘Top Order’ collapse, this phenomenal talent has to be there to rally the middle and lower order around him. This is one man who can score more runs than the entire opposition if he has the support from the other end. Lara would have made at least 2000 runs more if he were to play for a better team. This should be his best opportunity.

6] Jacques Kallis: The most under-rated all-rounder of any time. He will be an asset at No. 6 and his bowling can cause many a surprise. His tenacity will be an added asset. The Martians will learn for sure.

7] Adam Gilchrist: Destructive Batting at No. 7 and elegant wicket-keeping; doing both with distinction has been a hallmark of Gilly. He will remain the eternal favorite of any Captain or Coach to play for his team.

8] Wasim Akram: If God were to bowl left-hand fast-medium, he would look like Wasim Akram. Simply the most magnificent swing bowler I have even seen. Never discount his big hitting abilities. Match-fixing allegations apart, Wasim brought glory to Pakistan Cricket without any doubt.

9] Richard Hadlee: If versatility in fast-medium bowling has a benchmark, it is Richard Hadlee. Hadlee will be the perfect foil to the deadly duo of Wasim – Waqar. And like Wasim, he too can bat a bit to boost the total.

10] Shane Warne: Destiny’s favorite child, he is the bowler’s version of Sachin Tendulkar. It will take several generations for Martians to decipher Warne. He will certainly bamboozle them with the ‘Ball of the Millennium’ and more! He is my man to Captain this side. I have no doubt about Warne being the ‘Best Captain’ Australia never had!

11] Waqar Yunis: The greatest exponent of ‘reverse swing’ bowling has a place reserved in my team. Time alone will tell us if he can Coach. But we have witnessed his ability to bowl those toe-crushing Yorkers with stunning effect. Will there ever be a new ball pair as fantastic and as destructive as Wasim and Waqar?

It is unfortunate that there isn’t a single Englishman or a Sri Lankan in this team though it has 3 Indians, 2 Aussies, 2 Caribbeans, 2 Pakistanis, 1 Kiwi and a Springbok. So to complete a 15 man squad, here is the list of 4 back-up players.

12] Ian Botham: If not for Kallis, Botham would have been the choice for the All-rounder’s slot. This Talismanic Cricketer must be the unluckiest to miss a slot in the 11.

13] Muttaiah Muralidharan: If we are to play with two spinners or in case Warne is injured; Murali will be the 'Doosra' to replace Hadlee or Warne. The volume of wickets he has gathered is Tendulkarish for the records crazy Cricket followers.

14] Glen McGrath: He kept things simple which is the hardest thing to do. If consistency in line and length has to be measured in terms of units, we can name it McGrath Units. The most consistent bowler ever known to us will walk into the team in case on any injury scare.

15] Gordon Greenidge: If Sehwag wasn’t as destructive as he is, Greenidge would have been the choice to open. This hardest hitter of Cricket ball will be the perfect man to open in case of injury to any batsman in the line-up.

Mathew Hayden, Desmond Haynes, Ricky Ponting, Rahul Dravid, David Gower, Steve Waugh, Malcolm Marshall, Michel Holding, Anil Kumble, Clive Lloyd, Imran Khan, Aleck Stewart, Javed Miandad, Kapil Dev and Graham Gooch will be the other guys who will be in the list of 30 probables.

With due apologies to many of those greats who are not there in this list; I must say, “This is rather a Wish List”! But I believe in this team to win; not only against Mars, but against any alien attack!