Panic button in the times of Knee Jerks !

England on the verge of thrashing India 4-0 in the Test series. There are reactions galore. One of my friends said, "What happened all of a sudden that the batsmen, bowlers and fielders; all have failed except for one".

Geoffrey Boycott  declared, "India look like a pale shadow of an ordinary team". There are a lot of reactions, over-reactions and knee-jerk reaction with doomsayers abundant.

In spite of a lot of criticism, Dhoni declared, "No need to press the panic button". Sreesanth said, "This is not the toughest series we have played". Not much has been heard from the likes of Laxman, Sachin, Sehwag and of course Gambhir.

Facebook, Twitter and all social networking sites are overflowing with snide remarks, tweets and offensive comments about the greed of our players. It hurts to see a team lose like this. I don't remember Team India playing such spineless Cricket since the 2003 New Zealand series.

For one who predicted a 2-1 or 1-2 or 2-2 result for the series, I too am taken aback. So I decided to sit back and doing a postmortem of the series. Keeping the knee-jerk out, here is what I feel about the series.

What went right for England

England were playing full strength with very few carrying injuries. Playing at home, they had abundant supply of replacements. They had walloped Australia in Australia and were very very eager for the No. 1 spot. They played ruthless, efficient and Champion brand of Cricket, no doubts. They deserve to be No. 1 now and no contesting that either. But if we look closer, so many things went in favor of England. Almost all things.

Home conditions, swinging pitches with bounce and carry.
All top order batters in form and even one who was out of form came out on top as the series progressed.
Their bowlers were definitely in supreme control and never allowed Indian batsmen to relax.
Every Umpiring and UDRS decisions went in favor of England. They got the Bell run-out reversed and sent Dravid packing when there was no clear evidence.
Overall they were fantastic on field and absolutely ruthless in every aspect including gamesmanship.

What went wrong for India

Sehwag and Gambhir in full form and fitness have terrorized best of the bowling attacks over the past 4 years. Both of them were coming back from long lay off and lack of match fitness showed.
Laxman and Tendulkar have done fabulously well for 4 years since 2007, the last time India toured England. Every time there was a crisis, one of these two had stepped in to lift the team. It was just the law of averages perhaps. Both failed in tandem.
During the series, India never completed test without someone breaking down.
Losing 2 out of 11 players on a tour can be tough. Then how about entire half of the team ? Gambhir, Zaheer, Harbhajan, Sehwag, Yuveraj, Sachin and then Praveen Kumar were hampered by injuries at one time or the other. Three of them were completely sidelined.
Umpires were reasonably kind to India but UDRS was not.

I have no complaint about the Cricket India played. The best of the teams can lose. But the way they capitulated to the pressure mounted by England to call back Bell was deplorable. For me, that was the defining moment in the series. If India had stood the ground, it would not have escalated into World war-3. But it definitely would have sent a message across. It was all downhill from there. The tough have thumped the soft-bellied meek.

This piece should not be dismissed as rantings of a disgruntled Indian fan. Just remember how England bumbled through World Cup 2011 and then kept complaining about everything including the size of the shrimps served for dinner.

Before we castigate this team for this series, let us not forget they had 'Won' the World Cup less than four months ago and had not lost a Test series since 2008. This just was one really sad series where nothing went right for India and everything worked perfectly for England. That will not happen all the times. India will bounce back and we have enough talent to sustain us in the Top-3 if not the top spot.

So, cheer up guys and gals and relax. Tomorrow is another day and Poms will fall sooner than later !





SPun Doctor Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

2 April 2011; A Victory Constructed and Deconstructed !

Attention Please: I am not responsible for the length of this post; the 28 years wait is. That is exactly 70% of the time I have spent on this planet. So those who wish to embark upon this journey are advised to exercise enormous patience. I sincerely believe it is a journey worth and would love it if some of you think so too. Kindly express your reaction. Like it or not, let me know it. Thanks for taking the plunge !

Most of us Indians, especially those who have seen and lived 25 June 1983 have been living to see, savor and attain salvation with an encore ! I can't talk about those who have only heard of this day. Because 2 April 2011 must be a 'This is it' for them like 25 June 1983 was for us.

And then it happened !

DLF-IPL has come too soon for the 'Real Thing' to sink in. But it has finally sunk in. Having been negative throughout Team India's campaign, I am the happiest earthling today. So happy, I have even decided to spend my hard-earned money to watch Sreesanth play for Kochi Tuskers. Why, I have decided to tolerate Sidhu and forgive Dean Jones. Winners have Responsibility !

Looking back at the victory celebrations and the players reactions, I caught hold of a small piece of statement by Viru Sehwag. He said, "We have been planning about how to play the final ever since we played a final in Sri Lanka about a year ago".

Perhaps the journey started a lot earlier in 2008. Perhaps it was the Sydney Test that gave us the momentum and then this moment. But like Viru said, the actual preparation began in Sri Lanka.

Let me deconstruct the journey in a lazy manner. Chronology is not one of my strengths. So if it looks haphazard, it should be forgiven. Because this is one journey and one destination we will savor all our breathing moments.

The Road to Victory; How was it Constructed !

Summer of 2010: Yuveraj Singh loses Punjab Captaincy to Sangakkara and goes into sulking. His runs recede but the waist-line doesn't.

July 2010: Suresh Raina makes a fabulous Test Debut and nudges Yuveraj Singh out of the Test Team.

November 2010: Yuveraj's place in ODI Team too is jeopardized. Yuveraj Singh written off !

All through 2010: Virat Kohli almost seals the No. 3 / 4 position with very mature performances and centuries during one chase after another.

Throughout 2010: Gautam Gambhir struggles with niggles and then wriggles out at the fag end with a Captain's show against Kiwis.

Most Important: Selectors finally decide to 'rest' His Highness Ravindra Jadeja and bring in Yusuf Pathan. We will know why the story would not have been so big without the big man !

Second half of 2010: Sachin Tendulkar, Virendar Sehwag, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh and Ashish Nehra take turns to get injured and be rested.

November 2010: Dhoni has taken enough battering in his hands and decides to rest and lets Gambhir make a come-back.

December 2010: Yusuf Pathan wins a match that was almost lost before the rains intervened. His hitting was so sensational, the seventh batsman theory was refurbished and buttressed.

January 2011: Suresh Raina progressively develops feet of clay and an acute shortness against short balls. He loses his Test spot to Che and ODI spot to Virat / Yusuf.

January 2011: Yuveraj struggles but does better than Raina and Gambhir's Test form saves him for the big show.

January 2011: Munaf Patel snatches 4 wickets and a Man of the Match award from nowhere and elbows Sreesanth from contention.

January 2011: Rohit Sharma and Murali Vijay disqualify themselves from World Cup berths even as Yusuf comes into the BIG picture.

17 January 2011: Indian Team declared. Sreesanth out and Piyush Chawla in. I was vociferous in criticizing this. Sachin, Sehwag, Gambhir, Zaheer, Bhajji, Praveen Kumar, Yuveraj and Nehra selected but still in different wards in different hospitals.

23 January 2011: Yusuf Pathan blasts a match winning 60 and then an incredible Century against South Africa even though India fail to win the ODI series. He then goes on to declare, "I can win matches from any position".

February 2011: Noise worth 2389 Billion GB created over the World Wide Web debating the Raina vs Yusuf vs Gambhir vs Virat. My contribution: 3.4 GB.

February 2011: Everyone is fit for the Cup except 'Pehelwan'. Praveen Kumar calls Dhoni the 'Obama of Cricket' [How Prophetic !] and then picks up what turned out to be the costliest injury in the history of Cricket. Hence Sreesanth makes a back door entry. Dhoni declares Sreesanth has to irritate opponents and not his own team-mates.

13 February 2011: Piyush Chawla replaces Jadeja as the 'Latest Blue Eyed Boy' of Indian Cricket. Dhoni roots for 'The Leg Spinner' who brings in the variety. He has quite a lot of variety. The full toss, the long hop, the short one, the sitting duck and the dead duck balls. Chawla ambushes Australia in a low scoring match on a lower bouncing pitch at Bengaluru during warm up game.

16 February 2011: India warm up further and thrash New Zealand at Chennai as Dhoni cuts loose.

17 February 2011: Sehwag declares 'War' and wants to draw first blood against Bangladesh. He also wants to bat all 50 overs.

19 February 2011: Tiger Tamed: Sehwagging continues till the 48th over as India manage to extract revenge. Sreesanth slaughtered for pace and Munaf cons with his lack of that.

27 February 2011: Poms Tied: After loitering around for over a week, India cross the Poms. Each team plays worse than the other and they are tied ! Chawla goes for plenty and Dhoni defends him. Sachin fires and Munaf misfires. Zaheer Khan unveils the knuckle ball.

6 March 2011: Irish Delight: India play like MINNOWS against minnows and beat Ireland without hurting them. Chawla again goes for runs in his last spell. Yuveraj Singh gaining in confidence.

9 March 2011: Go Dutch with Dignity: Netherlands too treated with extreme respect as India first create mayhem and then a mini panic and then allow Yuveraj Singh to regain form, fitness and faith. Pathan promoted by Dhoni and demoted by himself.

12 March 2011: Spring of the Springboks: India blast Saffers for the 40 overs then Smith uses Steyn remover to wipe the rest of the batting. Sachin fires again and this time, Nehra misfires. Saffers canter home by 3 wickets.

20 March 2011: Yuvi Revival in Caribbean Carnival: Ravi Rampaul gets Sachin early but the rejuvenation of Yuveraj Singh is complete. Zaheer knuckles another left-hander and the West Indies tail outdoes Indian tail in the business of collapsing. India through to knock outs and the mighty Bangladesh knocked out.

Throughout March 2011: From Dean Jones to sundries to Spun Doctor have written Team India off. Everyone has their reasons and Munaf Patel, Ashish Nehra and Piyush Chawla were in everyone's lest.

Knock Outs and the 3 M Connection !

One of my superstitious friends had told me 'B' for Bengaluru wasn't all that lucky for India. 'N' for Nagpur too was not. But 'M' was going to be the lucky letter. Starting the journey at Mirpur, he predicted Matera, Mohali and Mumbai would win India the Cup. I scoffed at this. This was one more addition to many of those coincidence based predictions of fellow Blogger Shridhar Jaju.

24 March 2011: Matera Matters: Yuvi again showed he means business with the ball. In front of an appreciative Narendra Modi, Sachin began the chase well. Gambhir cemented and then ran out of ideas. Yuvi and Raina proved their mettle in a tense chase and Raina exorcised the 'Short Ball Ghost' with a massive one of Lee. Lee injured himself and Yuvi celebrated the most pent up celebration witnessed in our lifetime. And Ponting still being Ponting, walked into World Cup Sunset with a Century !

30 March 2011: Diwali in Mohali: Viru began with fireworks on Gul and won the first round of nerves. Sachin has never been dropped as many times in a 5 Test Series. He showed how the 'Ghost of Saqlain Mushtaq' still haunts him with his vulnerability against 'Doosra'. India started as if they'd score 400. Then looked as if they'd not even reach 250 and then Raina plays another cameo to take them to 260.

Hafeez thought they could overhaul it. Umar Akmal wanted to finish it before 40 overs. But Bhajji accounted for him and Afridi's last wicket in this Cup was that of Afridi himself. Munaf Patel bowled his best ball of the Cup to Razack and Ashish Nehra salvaged himself with his last spell of 2-0-3-2. India cantered home in spite of late assault by Misbah which turned out to be too late !

1 April 2011: 6 World Cup winning Captains together; What an Idea Sirji: Lloyd believed Dhoni the Captain was too good. Kapil Dev said the team that played well would win, so did Ranatunga; Politically correct chaps. Border believed India will be easy meat for Lankan Lions. Waugh too felt Lanka would win. Imran Khan thought with the win against Australia and Pakistan, India would be the team to beat. All fools day, who would be a fool and who would be cool the next evening ? Suspense !

2 April 2011: Mumbai Meri Jaan: Sreesanth playing ahead of Ashwin left every Indian dumb. Sanga won a cunning toss and was smarter only till the first ball bowled by Zaheer Khan. The first spell by Zaheer was one of the finest and was ably supported by Munaf. Indian fielding was at its best as even Sreesanth hurled himself in the deep to save 2 runs. Sri Lanka scored big in the slog and left India with the highest total to be chased in a World Cup Final.

Slinga was point blank with Viru and Sachin was snared in no time and a lot of TV sets in India were switched off and there was a late rush for movie tickets. Gambhir and Virat played some of the most sensible Cricket seen in this cup. Virat fell for a Dilshan blinder. Stage set for Yuveraj, the man of the season for India to come and save India. As India waited with bated breath in walked the hitherto out of form Captain.

What happened from here is part of modern day Folklore and Legend. We don't have to repeat it here. It will be visited, revisited, collected, recollected, lived and relived millions of times in our life time !

This ends the Story: The Road to Victory; How was it Constructed ! Everyone knows this. It ain't big deal telling what happened only 2 weeks ago. That wasn't my endeavor. The story had to be told because our job is to deconstruct the story. And that is what we are going to unfurl from here.

Everything was planned; Road to Victory Deconstructed !

When Viru said the planning began one year ago in Sri Lanka, they had expected the Lankans to be there in the finals. And thus the planning began there.

Even as every Arm-chair Critic, self-proclaimed expert and International Stars went on denouncing Team India and their chances, Dhoni and his men went about their business as if they had heard nothing. There was something almost obstinate about them. It only unfolds now: Everything was planned, EVERYTHING !

They played so much Cricket with the Lions, almost everyone got sick of it, including the Lankans. This exactly is what they wanted.

India gave wickets to Suraj Randiv and shared the ODI series Finals with the Lions. India wanted him in Mumbai / Mohali / Matera ahead of Mendes.

Yuvi dropped and humiliated. India knew well, after what he did to England after Flintoff in 2007 T-20 World Cup; no opposition would dare to arouse the sleep-walking Giant. To get him fired and pumped up, we had to do the due !

Raina short-listed and then short-charged. It was all a ploy again. A ploy to confuse opposition bowlers. They fell hook, line and length to bowl short at him when it mattered. In the interim, he had 'pulled' new trick out of the hat.

Sehwag threatened to bat all 50 overs and almost did against Bangladesh. Every opponent concentrated on Viru and actually allowed Virat, Gautam and Yuvi to relax.

Sachin could not be planned unless you have a genuine 'Doosra'. He played along merrily.

India gave so much respect to the minnows, everyone believed this team can be beaten easily. Fool them all !

India shared honors with England just to keep the Poms happy. And also to introduce the 'knuckle ball'. Zaheer created the fear in the minds of left hand batters.

Indian middle order collapsed and collapsed and the tail never wagged. Get Viru and Sachin and they will collapse is what the opponents thought. Again misleading. Virat batted as if he never existed. Gambhir batted without anyone noticing till he ran himself out. Yuvi made chasing under pressure his forte.

Pathan wasn't winning matches from any positions. He bowled more during slog overs than bat. He was then dropped to bring in Raina during knock outs. It worked like dream for India.

Bhajji looked so tame all through first round and Munaf Patel never once threatened to take an important wicket. Against Pakistan, as they concentrated on Zaheer, Bhajji knocked Uakmal with a beauty and Munaf unleashed a beast to snare Razack.

Sreesanth and Chawla made Indian bowling look so ordinary that even Boycott's mother wanted to play for England. At the rate their players were getting injured, she had some realistic chances.

Somehow history shows us that India have to lose once to an Opponent to win a Final against them. If you win a group match, you get knocked out in knock outs. Else you have to tie to win. So they tied against Poms and lost to Saffers, their realistic Semi Final or Final opponents from their own group. Very smart. But we only know it now.

Ashish Nehra created enormous over-confidence in the minds of Pakistan batsmen with his last over against South Africa. This too was planned. 2 birds with one over. Saffers sorted out and Pakistan lulled into complacency. We now know how he did them in at Mohali.

Ashwin is the only player who has 100% win record in this team. He was kept for West Indies and Australia. India didn't waste him against Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Both teams had their own "Doosras". So India preferred to play the 'Pehla' and he did it with his 'Teesra' !

India then fooled Sri Lanka with their orchestrated ineptness against Saeed Ajmal and Hafeez. They played well against Afridi denying him any wicket in the Semi-final. This turned out to be a master stroke as the Lankans kept Mendes out and played with 2 Off spinners.

One move after another had left opponents dumb. But still they fell for more. All though the cup, India fielded ordinary. Dhoni kept telling there is very little we can do about our fielding. Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka believed this and we know how they suffered when it mattered.

All the while Dhoni kept himself out of form. He preferred to face flak for everything he did and didn't than face bowlers at the crease. All the opponents were gleefully anticipating to bowl at him, a Captain under duress and a batsman out of form.

With India 2 down for 31 in the Final, he fooled Lankans again. Expecting Yuvi to come in and crowd him with spin, Lankans lost the plot when Dhoni walked in and kept walking singles without any fuss. Before they realized it, he had shifted gears in spite of the mandatory harakiri committed by Gambhir. But even this was planned. India wanted 2 of the most important players of this generation to be around to win it.

Sachin and Viru did the early guiding. Virat chipped in frequently. Raina rained when it got too hot. Yuvi marshaled through troubled waters and Dhoni finished with flourish !

Another important thing had happened during all this. They had even coached players to come out with quotable quotes. So Virat said, "He has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. The least we could do was to carry him".

We have said, everything was planned. Yusuf Pathan was selected, designated, trained and ordained to carry 'the burden of the man who carried the burden of the nation' through the Victory Lap ! Who else but the strongest man in India ? Fittingly, the young tyros Raina and Virat were assigned to assist the mighty Pathan !

The Atlas !

And the Assistants !

I thank profusely, all those who have completed this journey. I also thank those who left halfway like many of those Indian fans who left early through Indian chase in the Final. Because this is 'Our Victory'. The Victory of a nation starved of ODI World Cup Glory for too long. So let me be magnanimous too.

If you liked the post, well and good. Even if you didn't like this, I am sure you are rejoicing the Indian win like me. And if anyone other than Indians is reading this by chance, "Come, join us. We deserved to win this. Sachin deserved to win. Dhoni deserved to win. Yuveraj deserved to win and all of India deserved to win. So come join us !"



SPun Doctor
Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

Mahi Way: Rear-view Vision of a Victorious Journey !

Feels like it was a dream and then feels like it has come true. No need to pinch oneself. That six was as Dhoni as Dhoni ever was. 

Mahi Way !

Ever since Praveen 'Pehelwan' Kumar got injured and India went in with Piyush, Sreesanth, Munaf and Nehra, I have been vocal in my criticism of selection and the way Team India played. I never gave them a chance of winning actually till the last 2 overs.

Spare a thought for me and many like me. Why did I do what I did ? Very simple. I have said it before. My love, admiration and adulation for Team India is boundless. It is just that it hurts badly when they lose. Even though they have won more often than not in recent years, it still hurts when they lose. Especially so if that happens in the Finals. And India had lost 7 out of the 9 Finals they have played against Sri Lanka before this one.

So if you keep criticizing and finding faults, you have better chances of absorbing the shock of a defeat. And a Win will be that much sweeter. So for all those negatives I spewed about Dhoni and his Blue Blooded Brethren, I am not going to eat crow because I am a vegetarian.

I loved them after they lost 2003 World Cup Finals. I defended them after those two T-20 World Cup disasters. I almost assassinated Greg Chappell after the 2007 World Cup first round exit. And today, I am ecstatic and over the Moon like all fellow Indians.

Turning back, let us take a look at some interesting subplots through the journey that was. 

The Journey that was

For India, the journey began with 'Taming the Bengal Tiger' at Mirpur. On the way they scratched past the minnows, tied the Poms and stumbled but once against Springboks. Then they regrouped to knock the Kangaroos out. There came the Mother of all matches and the arch enemy was vanquished at Mohali. The road show came to a grand finale in Mumbai where they signed off "Slaying the Lions" ! 

Current Affairs

Dean Jones said, "Dhoni is dreaming if he thinks India can win". Border thought Sri Lanka will be too strong for India and Steve Waugh rated Sri Lanka as favorites. Mark Taylor declared after India's win against Pakistan that Pakistan had better chances of beating Sri Lanka but India would be easy meat for the Lankan Lions. Only Ricky Ponting declared after his team's quarterfinal debacle that India will not only beat Pakistan in Semifinals but will also go onto win the World Cup. It was 4 former Australian Stars vs 1 Current Captain.

Moral of the Story: Current Opinion matters because you've seen the balls on ground, not on LCD TV ! 

Toss ka Boss : Caught Cheating ?

Sanga: Tails I Win, Heads I win Too !

Sanga perhaps cheated,

Pushpakumara bleated.

All the others Tweeted,

And Dhoni just Batted !

Okay, You take the Toss,

That'll be the only Loss,

For me, nothing is gross. 

In the end, I am the Boss !

And the Spirit of Cricket literally went for a 'Toss' once again in an India - Sri Lanka match after la affaire Randiv !

Sehwagging: 175 - 0 in Six weeks

Viru 'Revenge' Sehwag started the proceedings with such a flourish against Bangladesh that all our middle order batsmen became complacent. His 175 curtain raiser spoiled them and there were too many collapses. So Viru decided enough is enough and went downhill. He creamed Gul in the semi-final before Riaz fixed him and Indian batting crippled after that. So Viru opened with a 'duck' in the Finals and Gautam and Mahi came to party !

Awful Taufel

This man must be rated the best Umpire of all times. In an era when the job is coming under increasing scrutiny, this man stands 'tall and handsome'. He had 11 Challenges against his on field calls. 10 were correct and the eleventh was inconclusive. The benefit of doubt always goes to batsmen. Not very fair ! Aleem Dar too was fabulous.

Day of Poonam Pandey

India did win. We all know that and Rajnikant has confirmed that what we saw on Saturday actually was a full length highlight of the match he watched on Friday the First of April. So where is Poonam Pandey ? We are waiting for the date and the day !

Best Team need not Win 

South Africa by far were the best team this time around. They had the fabulous top-4 and Duminy at 5 and a cool Du Plessis. Their fielding has always been class act. Nothing special about it. Most importantly they had the finest variety of bowling attack. Two world class quickies. One classic leg spinner. One nice left arm spinner and then Botha. How on earth can one team be so unlucky in knock out stages ?

The Series of the Man 

Thousands of short messages and emails did the rounds questioning his fitness, flair and form. Runs were hard to come. In spite of making fun of his fitness, I had predicted before the Cup that India's fortunes will rest on the fitness and form of 'One Man'. 4 Man of the matches. Runs in crunch moments. 2 successful chases under lights and tremendous stress. Wickets whenever his Captain asked him to bowl. What more can a man do ? This world cup was about 2 Individuals. Shahid Khan Afridi went out due to his batting follies. Yuveraj Singh made this World Cup his own with a magnificent All Round show ! Take a Bow Yuvi, you deserve all the accolades !

About Pakistan and Shahid Afridi

Pakistan played very good Cricket. They came across a well knit bunch who played for their Talisman like Captain Shahid Khan Afridi. I would have loved to see them in final. Alas ! They had just 2 bad days. Given some kind of support, they will go a long way. And please throw Senator Rehaman Malik into dungeons along with Ijaz Butt.

About Minnows 

All about Ryan ten Doeschate, Ireland, 2 successful 300+ chases, Kevin O'Brien, fastest World Cup Century, George Dockrell, Paul Stirling and too many useless matches. Give Ireland more exposure and perhaps a Test Status by 2015 should be theirs.

About some Great Men

Some really great men have played their last world cup matches. Ricky Ponting left a heart broken man with his winning streak broken. Murali left without much of an impact when it mattered. Sachin had his moments and charmed lives. He fell at the doorstep of history. But his team didn't let him down for once. He will walk away a contented man.

At another level, Sehwag, Brett Lee, Kallis, Peitersen, Strauss, Collingwood, Dilshan, Mahela, Sanga, Zaheer Khan, Shoaib Akhtar, Younis Khan and Hussey too might have played their last world cup matches. Malinga has declared he might not play another world cup.

Cricket will find new Stars and Brand Ambassadors for the Future. Virat Kohli, Umar Akmal, Tharanga, ABDV and many more will come. But we will miss the 'Greats' mentioned above. Especially 2015 World Cup might open as the first World Cup in 23 years not to feature a certain Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar !

And a Solemn Wish 

Let us all make a solemn wish that Pakistan will find a genuine Wicket Keeper before the 2015 World Cup !

SPun Doctor
Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

Operation Blue Star !

As much as I admire Yuveraj Singh and his match-winning exploits in the past; I am really depressed by his lack of fitness now.

If anyone doubts this fact, this picture down here should create alarms.

What am I trying to convey ?

Just take a look...

Gautam Gambhir batted all the 43 overs and ran so many incredible singles with Virat. Look at his shirt, it is Sky-blue.

And then take a look at Yuvi's shirt. It is Deep-blue soaked in sweat.

Yuvi was there for such a short period, and hardly ran any runs because both he and Gautam dealt in boundaries.

Even if someone wants to defend Yuvi by saying Gautam changed his shirt in between, it couldn't be after Yuvi came to bat.

And Yuvi's paunch looks awful in side views. At 40, I can claim to be in a little better shape. And I don't even play Gully-Cricket with Mandira.

Let us not forget Yuvi isn't all that older compared to Gautam.

Let us also not forget he was our best fielder by light years until two years ago.

India can't really win the World Cup without the Prince being at his best.

Not many Match-winners can Match Yuvi when he is at his best.

We still have time. So Gary and Team, please bring Yuvi back to his best

Let us call this 'Operation Blue-Star !



S-Pun Doctor