Ganguly’s conspiracy?

 

Somehow two days before Saturday’s crucial match against Sri Lanka, I had guessed that Saurav Ganguly wouldn’t score more than 10. It wasn’t a premonition but something about his batting in the last few matches made me make some interesting observations.

The media has been hailing Ganguly’s great return to form and the team. He has been scoring runs no doubt. But what the media saw was how many runs he made and not how the runs came. Against Bangladesh he took 129 balls for the meager 66 he made. And against Bermuda, when all the other batsmen ensured that their strike rates were well over 100, Saurav made his 89 off 114 balls. What was apparent in both these innings was that in some stages of the innings he was making no attempt to push along the run-rate. He was contented by staying at the wicket for whatever time he wished, thus the momentum of run-scoring usually got affected.

His running between the wickets was something even 50-year-olds could have easily bettered. In the both the above mentioned innings in which he scored half-centuries, India easily lost around 15-20 runs only due to Saurav’s lethargic running between the wickets.

As the big game against Sri Lanka approached, I began thinking of what all could happen if India lost the match. The first thing that obviously would be done is sacking of Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappel. And people back home had begun comparing Dravid and Ganguly’s style of captaincy after India’s loss to Bangladesh. If India lost to Sri Lanka and Dravid had been sacked, who else would be the next captain? Obviously the first name that comes to everybody’s mind is Saurav Ganguly. Dada reinstated. For that to have happened India obviously had to lose and get out of the world cup. The way Ganguly got out in the match against Sri Lanka- what did it look like? For me it was nothing but ‘intentional throwing away of his wicket’. My worst fears had come true.

Was India’s loss Ganguly’s secret desire? Not just the way he got out. The way he turned down calls from his partners to convert 1s to 2s and 2s to 3s raised my eyebrows too. Well, I have tremendous respect for Ganguly and I was a big fan of Dada when he was at his prime. I vehemently hope that Ganguly was just trying to play his normal game and never had these things in his mind. But these human minds and desires, u see, are strange old things.

You may call this article blasphemous and uncalled for. But I dont care. Write in your comments.

A scary situation

The Jamaican police revelation that Bob Woolmer’s death was not due to natural causes as previously believed but due to strangulation, is absolutely shocking. Just the thought, of someone sneaking into his room and managing to kill him with all the so-called security around, is scary.

Who could have done it?-Someone in the Pakistan cricket team who had a heated argument with the coach and just couldn’t control his temper?  Or someone from the underworld who just couldn’t tolerate a man who was all set to make some startling revelations on match-fixing? Or could it have been some Pakistan cricket fanatic who simply thought that Bob Woolmer was responsible for Pakistan’s upset loss to Ireland? Or could it be the handiwork of some organization which just wants to spread the fangs of terror into the cricket world? The last one looks very scary but it’s still a possibility. There could be a list of people in line- Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting etc. A killer on the prowl? Oh shit. Just the thought of it is making my hair stand.

The incident is sure to leave an indelible mark in cricket history. Nobody in the cricketing world would like West Indies 2007 to be compared to Munich 1972.  The Jamaican police have to get to the bottom of this and get the killer soon.  

Farewell Bob

    How can I forget that India’s 1999 World Cup opener against South Africa? The match is quite an infamous one in cricket history. The reason- An ear-piece candidly used by the late Hansie Cronje to enable constant communication with his coach, Bob Woolmer. The idea was later disapproved by the ICC. But it was just one among the various new innovations Bob Woolmer brought into the game. 

By bringing in the laptop into the dressing room, Woolmer revolutionized the way cricket games were analyzed. His new and creative coaching techniques saw South Africa have a dream run under his tenure during which SA won 76% of the ODIs and 10 out the 15 test series they played. The 1999 world cup which South Africa were the favourites to win- until that last ball fiasco in the semi-finals against Australia- was his last coaching stint with the Africans. Being associated with ICC’s Global Cricket Development programme after that, he was instrumental in bringing the associate members of the ICC into the main fold.

In 2005, he took over as Pakistan’s national coach from Javed Miandad after what was a tumultuous period in Pakistan cricket. As with any foreign coach in the sub-continent, he was subjected to constant pressure from the heavy-expecting and passionate Pakistani cricket fans. The friction between him and some key Pakistani players was subject to heavy media attention and skepticism. And on Saturday, the loss against Ireland was probably the biggest ever defeat in his cricketing career. But what an irony the result was! Pakistan lost to Ireland which was one of the countries coached by Woolmer during his stint at the ICCs development programme. If he hadn’t been Pakistan’s coach, he probably would have been the happiest person on earth after the Irish victory.

With his demise on Sunday, world cricket has lost a very valuable brain, which was always ahead of times. He might be no more but his ideas and innovations will always be deeply inculcated in cricket and will also be an inspiration for present and future coaches. He will always be remembered as the pioneer in revolutionizing the game.

Whats wrong with Mandira?

Something’s not quite right in the SET MAX studio. I can’t understand why Mandira Bedi is not speaking as much as she used to during the last world cup (boring the cricket fans but bringing the non-fans to the television!). I was watching yesterday’s mid-innings break show during the Canada-Kenya match. She sat quietly for most of the show and spoke only when Charu Sharma gave her a chance to say ‘take a break’. Has she finally realized her place among cricket-experts? Shall I guess something? I think she’s missing Tony Greig! During the last world cup, one thing about Extraa innings other than Mandira’s sarees that allured me was her comic and flirtatious duels with Tony Grieg.

I was wondering where exactly the present studio is located- India or somewhere in the Caribbean? I think its in India. This being the last chance for Sony to make some profits out of their 4 year deal with ICC, I am sure that they were looking to cut down costs as much as possible. And are we going to see only Dean Jones and Simon Hughes all through the tournament? That will be very disappointing. The claustrophobic studio setting also does not impress me much. Just compare it to the studio they had in Cape Town with the serene Table Mountain as the backdrop with guests (read as commentators) changing after every break. The chance of Extraa innings topping TRP charts this time looks very bleak.

Well, the next two world cups and champion’s trophies will be on ESPN-Star network. And that’s great news for all of us. I hope this is last time I ever blog about Mandira.

PS: hey, where are her noodle straps?

You will seldom see such a photo..

Federer was stunned by Guerllimo Canas in the second round at Indian Wells. He lost 7-5 6-2 to the Argentine. Fed was just 6 wins away from the record of 46 consecutive victories. Well, you wont get to see a photo of someone consoling Federer for a long time.

Naayi neralu

I never used to be so afraid of street dogs before. The canine-related incidents over the last week have ensured that my heart doubles its beat-rate every time I see a stray dog. A couple of days ago as I was walking home from the bus-stop, a dog began staring at me and suddenly let out a bark. I thought- this is it. This bloody dog is going to maul me. But nothing happened. The dog got interested in something else.

The fear of dogs is now looming over Bangalore after numerous incidents of dog bites which were preceded by the death of a child. So, what is the cause of this series of unexpected behaviors from dogs? Nobody’s yet to make a study of it. But NGOs argue that the illegal mushrooming of meat shops all over the city should be blamed for this problem. The BBMP’s decision of catching 100s of dogs each day has drawn lot of flak. I recently read in a blog that the gory videos of inexperienced-men catching dogs and pulling them into the vans are being shown to shocked viewers in other countries like Australia, US and France. I saw it on TV too. It was a horrible sight. Bangalore’s international reputation has been put at stake.

There are numerous solutions to this problem. Firstly implement the ABC program efficiently. Secondly, identify the killer dogs and cull only them. Thirdly identify all illegal meat shops and impose strict penalties on violators. Fourthly increase the fundings to NGOs involved in animal welfare. We need to get rid of this problem as soon as possible. We want the Bangalore streets to safe for playing toddlers. And we don’t want Bangalore to be tagged as a dog-killing city too.

 

Depleted excitement

Just after the 2003 world cup, people were talking about the 2007 world cup being shifted out of the West Indies to Australia or India. I don’t know where these rumours began but it did reach the ears of Mr.Ehsan Mani, the then president of the ICC. He had to issue an official statement to the press officially denying it and also added that such thoughts were not coming out of the ICC stables but from somewhere in the sub-continent.

The reason for the shift, we were told by the believing news channels, was the odd timing of the cricket matches in India when they are played in the Windies. A large chunk of ICC’s moolah came from Indian sponsors and companies. And it was said that these companies feared huge losses in revenue and hence had influenced the ICC to shift the world cup to any place from which the telecast would reach India in the hours that we are awake.

Looking at the pre-world cup excitement present in the country at the moment (on the day of the opening ceremony), its nowhere to what was here just before the last 3 world cups. There are not many cheer songs on MTV nor there are advertisements featuring cricketers with the exciting ‘to be continued’ tags. And how many people are ready to pack their bags and leave for the Caribbean to watch cricket? According to SOTC, the official ICC tour provider only 800 world cup visas have been issued this time as against over-3000 for the last world cup in South Africa. The reason for this: a round trip to Barbados for a week can cost anywhere between 4 and 5 lakh Indian rupees!

The timings of matches in India has become a huge concern for business establishments like pubs, hotels etc who were hoping to cash in on the world cup melee. Matches begin at 7pm and go on till 2am-3am while the hooter for closure of pubs in cities like Bangalore goes off at 11:30pm. With exams coming up in schools and colleges all over India, lots of fans are sure to miss the action.

While the men in blue fight for the World Cup, only a handful of US-based NRIs and the 800 odd lucky-people from India might be cheering them on the ground. Some of us- crazy cricket fans- back home might just stay up till 3am to egg them on but majority of us- I am sure- will go to bed not wanting to be late to office or college the next day.

In a world obsessed with Britney

Britney Spears is now single! Britney Spears is now hair-less! Britney Spears in rehab! Britney found in lesbian parties! And as if we weren’t tired of it all- Britney tries to commit suicide! Oh my god! Why are we so bothered about celebrities’ lives?

Kate Middleton is all set to derive the fame and affection hitherto reserved by Britons for a certain lady called Princess Diana. And its not only fame or whatever that’s behind her now. At any given time, one can find hundreds of paparazzi lurking in front of her door waiting to click a picture of her, each worth tens of pounds in the ‘media-market’.  Hmmm. I am not sure if I can use the proverb about counting chickens before they have hatched. But its looking more like that.

Anna Nicole Smith, who probably had more plastic in her body than calcium, has America and the world obsessed with her even after her death. Last week, according to a survey, Americans wanted to know who Smith’s child’s father was than watch the news of US soldiers killed in suicide bombings in Baghdad.

And going just some months back, Michael Jackson’s trial hogged more TV space than the crisis in Darfur because of the high TRPs got by any programme featuring Jackson’s tryst with a child. The trial even eclipsed the Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib controversies.

Well, its not just Britney that we are after. Something about these celebs’ life captivates us. We seem to be behind everybody following every f-ing celebrity out there. I don’t want to see a paparazzi-chased celebrity die in a car crash in a tunnel ever again!       

 

If men could menstruate..

Thinking about it? Go on.. Myriad possibilities.. Funny eventualities..

Read this article.. its brilliantly written.. I enjoyed every word of it..

Read it here..

Black and White

I don’t know why I did it. But it will stay for sometime. Something about this hue-less page appeals to me. Black and White will be the flavour of this blog for a few days. Bear with me- kindly.