Thursday, December 20, 2007

VERBAL BOUNCERS

Harbhajan Singh is not too worried over the inclusion of Brad Hogg in the Australian squad. The statement of Harbhajan does not make much sense since the off-spinner does not have any record of repute bowling away from India. Even in the recent series at home in India against Pakistan, Harbhajan looked anything but threatening. Looks like he relishes the idea of ‘mental disintegration’ rather than do his bowling do the talking.

Even the normally sensible Kumble also seems to have taken up the challenge of speaking out his mind. Shane Warne did not have much success against India and the leg spinner was the first to admit his inability while bowling to the likes of Sachin, Rahul and Laxman. So Kumble’s assertion that the home team would miss Warne is not on the mark.

Not to be left behind in the statement race, Shoaib Akhtar took time out from his search to find any takers for his Mumbai film career to give some valuable advice to the Aussies. Shoaib wants the home team to include Shaun Tait just to scare the Indians away. Is Tim Nielsen listening?

The coach of Pakistan Geoff Lawson (an Australian) feels that Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke are capable of taking the responsibility of the spin department. Wonder why Lawson did not think of any such innovative ideas whilst in India! The Pakistan team did not feel the need to field a specialist left arm spinner when the faster bowlers were not able to make any impact on the Indian batting.

Cricket is slowly degenerating into slanging matches that are a regular feature of boxing contests.

Monday, December 17, 2007

THEIR WAY, OUR WAY!



England failed to qualify for the forthcoming edition of Euro and so on expected lines, the coach Steve McClaren was fired. The failure came even when the English team boasted the likes of Beckham, Gerrard and Lampard in the line-up. The Football Association was under pressure to find a replacement and a number of names were mentioned. But the FA offered the top job to Italian Fabio Cappello.

India failed to get past the first round of the cricket World Cup losing to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The solitary win came against Bermuda who can’t claim to have any kind of cricketing pedigree. The team had the presence of players like Sachin, Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. As expected, the high profile coach Greg Chappell quit the job. After a lot of near misses, the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri decided to entrust the coaching job to Gary Kirsten.

The English FA did not have the reason to feel embarrassed like the way the BCCI did when Graham Ford decided to let go the job after expressing interest. Of course, Scolari turned down an earlier offer, something that can comfort the coach hunters of the Indian cricket team. The choice of Gary Kirsten was surprising to say the least. Kirsten was a tough opener with a more than a decent record, but he has no previous coaching experience. It was strange when the well-respected Dav Whatmore was not even called for an interview. It was pretty clear that the choice of Kirsten was largely the handiwork of Sunil Gavaskar.

Cappello has won major trophies with all the clubs that he has managed across Europe. There is no doubt over the credentials of the Italian. The only problem that the new England coach might face is the English language.

The shock elimination of England at the qualifying stage made the FA look for a genuine coach and not someone who appealed to the personal biases and prejudices of a few individuals. There is a lesson here for the BCCI.

WHY RAHUL DRAVID?

The recent form of Yuvraj Singh has compelled the selectors to include the left-hander in the test squad on the tour of Australia. With Sachin, Saurav, Laxman, Dravid and Jaffer being certainties, a spot for Yuvraj calls for a bold choice or a gamble. Many wise people have voiced the view that Yuvraj can be accommodated in the middle order only if Dravid is asked to give company to Jaffer at the start of the innings. Even the great Sunil Gavaskar has endorsed this view.

The idea that Dravid should open stems from the fact that the Karnataka batsman is the most competent when it comes to facing fast bowling on bouncy pitches. More importantly, Dravid opened the innings once before in Pakistan. So that makes Dravid a sort of a ‘natural choice’ for the role of the opener.

If Dravid is indeed compelled by the team management to open the innings, things could take a turn for the worst for the Indian team. If one cares to remember the last tour to down under, it was Dravid who was a crucial factor behind the team’s good show batting at one drop. With his confidence low, not only the team but also the batting of Dravid could suffer.

Why Dravid? The answer is pretty simple and straightforward. Dravid does not have many powerful backers among the former players and the media. In fact, Dravid is someone who can be dispensed with ostensibly in the name of larger interests.

The success or the failure of the team in the batting department depends mostly on the performance of Dravid.

CHEQUERED FLAG

What a splendid day with Narain Karthikeyan finishing at the top in the Chinese edition of the A1 Grand Prix.

Karthikeyan did not have a time to remember during the one season in Formula 1. He managed to earn some points in the infamous race at Indianapolis where only four cars participated in the race. His contract was not renewed after the season and suddenly the media started to write about other Indian drivers.

Karthikeyan is right to say that he still has age on his side as far as Formula 1 is concerned.

May this win be the first of many.

CAN THEY DELIVER?

Coming after the wins at home against Pakistan, hopes are high as the Indian team travels down under. The last series between the India and Australia resulted in victory for Ponting and company. Of course, the last visit by the Indians resulted in a series where the honours were shared.

The batting of the Indian team looks stronger. Sachin can be expected to add considerably to his tally. Laxman is always a good bet against his favourite opposition. Ganguly’s show against Pakistan is going to cheer up his fans. Yuvraj is in great form. Sehwag is back in the team. Jaffer appears sound at the top of the order. But the biggest worry comes in the shape of Dravid. The Karnataka batsman did not appear his usual self in the recent series. The run-ins with the selection panel chief seem to have had the impact on the batsman.

Apart from Zaheer Khan and Kumble, the bowling department does not inspire any confidence. The selectors have done the right thing in letting Agarkar sit at home but have erred in picking Harbhajan Singh. Pathan has lost the pace and his swing is only a thing of the past. Ishant Sharma is a dubious choice and even more surprising is the case of the inclusion of Pankaj Singh.

The choice of two specialist wicket keepers in the touring party is a bit of a gamble. If that were a necessity, then is it right to pick Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik?

It remains to be seen if some of the greats of Indian cricket deliver where it matters most.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

WELL DESIGNED TROPHY

The Australians led by Ricky Ponting won the test series against the Sri Lankans with the score line of 2-0 in the two test series. With this, the home team captured the Warne-Muralitharan trophy in its inaugural series.

The Australians compete for the Border-Gavaskar trophy for test matches involving India. The Warne-Muralitharan trophy looks nice in comparison to the Border-Gavaskar trophy. The trophy named after the two spinners features the bowling hands whilst the Border-Gavaskar trophy features some circular objects place upon one another.

Even as Muralitharan would be disappointed with his bowling efforts, he at least would be happy with the design of the trophy.

MISPLACED CONCERNS

I was reading a news report where it was mentioned that Shane Warne conveyed his thanks to the members of the Australian team. The leg spinner expressed his gratitude since Muralitharan was denied the opportunity to go to the top of the wicket takers list in test matches.

Was Warne really worried about Muralitharan? It is a known fact that the off spinner from Sri Lanka has never done well on Australian soil. So the concerns of Warne were really misplaced.

I believe Warne just wants to maintain relations with the Australian team.

HOME ADVANTAGE!

Sreesanth and R.P.Singh shall miss the first test at Delhi due to injuries. This is not the news. The news concerns the drafting of Ishant Sharma into the playing eleven. Munaf Patel is also called as a replacement.

Ishant Sharma made his debut in the test series in Bangladesh when the Indian team was on a mission to avenge the defeat in the World Cup. By all accounts, Sharma is someone who didn’t look like a bowler suited the highest level of the game. Even when faced with the prospect of bowling at the Bangladesh batsmen, there were few deliveries that looked threatening leave alone wickettaking ones.

So what has made Sharma the chosen one? The reason is far simpler and obvious. Sharma happens to play for Delhi at the domestic level. Let the BCCI make it a policy to include at least one player from the local team in case of matches played in India.

Irfan Pathan has the experience and he is definitely the better choice. But at the present point of time, Pathan is unable to convince the selectors.

Munaf Patel has only played a handful of tests and he looks and bowls like a veteran bowler of more than 100 tests. The pace has dropped alarmingly and the body language does not speak well. Of course, Pathan’s pace also is something that cannot worry any batsman of some class. But then Sharma looked pedestrian even in his debut test.

Monday, November 19, 2007

WHO WILL PLAY AND WHO SHALL TAKE THE REST?

It is going to be a difficult choice as far as the playing eleven for the first test is concerned.

It is certain that three spinners will be fielded with the hope that the result goes India’s way. It is also not misplaced considering Pakistan batsmen could not handle the spin of the South African. If the think-tank decides to have two faster bowlers in the eleven, problems would arise.

Wasim Jaffer is a certainty since he is the only specialist opener in the side. Dinesh Karthik performed admirably in England at the top of the order and so he might get another opportunity. The problem is with the fact that the team has another keeper in Dhoni. Even as the test credentials of Dhoni are not proven, the selectors would not like to invite hostile public reaction. Let us not forget that Dhoni is the current favourite of the nation, even without the long hair.

It is a no-brainer as far as Sachin and Rahul Dravid are concerned. These two are a must for the playing eleven. That leaves only one more slot to be filled and there are three contenders in the form of Saurav Ganguly, V.V.S. Laxman and Yuvraj Singh. Of these three the claims of Ganguly are the weakest. I am a great supporter of the left-hander from Kolkata, but he does not inspire much confidence. Laxman is too good a batsman to be left out while Yuvraj is in the form of his life brimming with confidence. It would be unjust not to give him an opportunity.

I have a solution. Since Dinesh Karthik is a wicketkeeper who also opens the innings, it would not be unwise to drop Dhoni. That would give the selectors the choice to pick Yuvraj and Laxman. If dropping Dhoni is not an option, as it seems, then a rethink should be made about the idea of playing three spinners.

Of course, the selectors can always spring a choice like asking Dravid or Laxman or Ganguly or even Yuvraj to open the innings partnering Jaffer.

It is a million bucks question as to who is going to be ‘rested’?

Sunday, November 18, 2007

BANISHING THE GHOSTS OF A DEFEAT

I still remember that day like it was only yesterday. That was the time when my town did not have the television. To watch live cricket one had to go to friends who stayed ten kilometres away.

I and a couple of friends decided to cycle all the way to watch the 1986 finals at Sharjah featuring India and Pakistan. We chose a classmate who was having a colour television.

India batted first and made a score that was going to challenge Pakistan. Srikkanth and Gavaskar laid the platform and Dilip Vengsarkar scored a fifty. India lost wickets late in the innings and that prevented a truly big score. Pakistan’s innings mainly revolved around Javed Miandad. India was always in the match and just a couple of wickets away from a win. The last over was to be bowled by Chetan Sharma and Miandad hit the last ball-a full toss for a six to claim the win.

That one shot changed the equation between India and Pakistan on the cricket field in general and at Sharjah in particular. In most of the matches that followed, India finished on the losing side. Chetan Sharma became the villain. In those days, the issue of match fixing was not in vogue, otherwise, the public pressure would have forced the authorities to launch an investigation. Even when Chetan Sharma went on to take wickets in England helping India to win the series only for the second time, the tag stayed with him.

A couple of days ago while surfing the channels, I watched a programme titled “Remember the Titans” on ESPN or Star Sports. The programme featured Chetan Sharma’s exploits on the English tour of 1986. The tour is best known for the series win and the batting of Vengsarkar but the programme brought to the fore the invaluable contribution made by Sharma.

In a great coincidence, India secured a series win over Pakistan-the first in an ODI series on home soil in 24 years. Sharma is now an expert on Doordarshan. The win and the programme helped to banish the rather unforgettable pain of cycling all the way back home after the Miandad six when ten kilometres appeared a great distance.

Thanks a lot, Mr.Sharma for the win in England.



A NICE JINX!

In recent months Sachin Tendulkar has been getting out without making a century. In the process he has the distinction of notching up the most number of 90 plus scores in one dayers. This has led to the belief that there is jinx that prevents Sachin from having his 42nd ODI ton. It is sad that Sachin has been unable to get beyond the 90s. But that jinx has not helped Pakistan with India taking the series.

At times the talk about the jinx becomes ridiculous. We are talking about a batsman who has scored thousands of runs and a lot of hundreds. So it cannot be question of nervous nineties. It is more of a coincidence. Any lesser player would be proud to become the owner of the 90 plus scores that Sachin is accumulating these days.

There was a time when Sachin scored a 100 but India was not able to force the issue with the opposition. So it matters very little whether Sachin scores a 100 or falls in the nineties. What matters more is the win for India.

I believe Sachin also gives a greater importance to the fortunes of the team than to his own.

Saturday, November 17, 2007

PEAKS BEING CONQUERED?

Sachin Tendulkar has been getting out in the 90s. He is unable to add to his tally of international hundreds. At the rate of the matches played by him and the 90 plus scores, there is little wonder that Sachin has the maximum. Fans and the commentators alike are anguished over the ‘failure’ of Sachin.

Roger Federer lost to Nalbandian and then to Gonzalez. In the season ending Master’s event at Shanghai where the top eight players compete, Federer lost to Gonzalez after taking the first set. His long time rival Andy Roddick was demolishing his opponents in the round robin event. Suddenly, there were some questions asked about Federer. Even if the Swiss master made it to the last four, there he had to go past his other great rival Nadal.

The failures of Sachin and the losses of Federer grabbed attention. There was a talk of the peaks being conquered.

Sachin has the maximum number of 90 plus scores in one dayers and he also owns the record for the largest number of tons. Any batsman would be proud to own the 90 plus scores and be called a good player. Similarly, there are very few players who can boast of a credible head-to-head record against Federer. Any player, who can match the accomplishments of Federer over the last two seasons in his entire career, would surely be considered as a good player. Such is the phenomenal record of the Swiss maestro.

In the fourth one dayer at Gwalior, Sachin looked at his best toying with the bowlers of Pakistan. Any doubts over the form of Federer were brushed off with disdain as was evident in the wins over Roddick and Nadal. As the clichéd saying goes “form is temporary, class is permanent”.

Sachin is in the final legs of a great career while Federer is someone who is till far away from the mid-life crisis of tennis professionals. There will always be moments when some opponent can score a point but there can no doubt over the greatness of these two players.

Mount Everest has been conquered many times since the day Hillary and Norgay set their foot on the tallest peak in the world. Flags of many nations have been planted at the top but Everest stands where it is. Sachin and Federer are setting the benchmarks for other players. Their achievements cannot be conquered while their records may be broken some day.

Monday, November 12, 2007

HOMING ON THE FACTS

South Africa won their test match at the Wanderers in Johannesburg by taking advantage of the home conditions. The pace and the bounce proved too much for the visiting Kiwis. Home conditions played a role too in the win of Australia over Sri Lanka in Brisbane. The bowlers and the batsmen of the home team deserve all the appreciation.

England managed to beat the Aussies in the Ashes of 2005 and it was the English bowlers who proved to be the decisive factor. Call it reverse swing or not, the swing generated by the likes of Simon Jones proved to be the undoing of the Aussies.

New Zealand is always a tough proposition when it comes to playing them at home. Teams from the subcontinent are often at sea when it comes to the rising ball.

In their pomp, the West Indies bowlers succeeded everywhere and at home they were truly devastating. It is an entirely different story now.

But it is altogether different when it comes to the teams from the subcontinent in general and India in particular. The wins are never attributed to the skills of the players. The pitches are given all the dubious credit. Cricket analysts who are otherwise balanced seem to lose their judgment once the results go in the direction of the home team. Seemingly, it gives more delight to watch a batsman duck to a bouncer than be fooled by the spinning ball.

What is appalling is the fact that the local media also takes jibes at the pitches. The statisticians take delight in calling batsmen ‘fat track bullies’. It is quite another thing when batsmen from teams outside of the subcontinent fail to tackle the spin. The pitch is blamed. The spin bowlers are not at all given the credit. Of course, even a mediocre spinner like Ashley Giles is praised for his acumen when bowling on the wickets of the subcontinent.

Things have gone to such a pass that the cricket administration has appointed a committee to look after the pitches and produce wickets that are more suitable to the visiting teams!

Home teams have always taken the advantage of the conditions and this is something that is not peculiar to cricket alone. Of course, to be fair, good teams possess the talent and the skill to beat any opponent anywhere, be it at home or away.

A WIN FOR SOUTH AFRICA

South Africa used the home conditions to their advantage and had a crushing win over New Zealand. The wicket at the Wanderers in Johannesburg offered pace and bounce and that did the Kiwis in. Dale Steyn took 10 wickets in the match.

It looked like a good test match when the hosts were dismissed for a small total in the first innings. But when the New Zealand batsmen found the home bowlers too hot to handle. In the second innings, Kallis scored big in the company of Amla. Kallis went past the 9000 run mark in test matches. Kallis had scored heavily during the test matches in Pakistan and the good form continues. Wonder how Kallis has not been a matchwinner for the Proteas in the one-dayers.

The Kiwis have been inflicted with a major blow for the rest of their tour. Their premier pace bowler, Shane Bond has suffered an injury that forces him out of the tour. This is not the first time that Bond has suffered an injury. I wonder if certain bowlers do not have the physical characteristics to protect themselves from injury.

South Africa decided to leave out Shaun Pollock out of the playing eleven. This is a continuation of the strategy employed earlier when Pollock played in the one-dayers during the tour to Pakistan. Pollock is the top wicket taker for South Africa in tests and at the Wanderers he has taken more than 50 wickets in 13 matches. I don’t know the reactions of the press and the fans in South Africa, but I am sure it wouldn’t have come anyway near the one triggered off by the ‘resting’ of Rahul Dravid in India.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

A NEW COLOUR OF SYCOPHANCY!

The third one dayer between India and Pakistan is to be played at Kanpur. That is not the news. A news channel reported that the UPCA (Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association) is likely to apply blue colour to the ground. It has nothing to do with the colour of the Indian team dress. The colour blue is associated with the ruling party in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

If this is true, then it gives a whole new dimension to the game of cricket. Instead of talking about the green of the ground, everyone shall be wondering about the blues! A real precedent is likely to be set. The different political parties ruling the states in India will surely want their party colours to be used for painting the cricket grounds.

With the state cricket associations dominated by politicians and shady characters and also government officials, it is no wonder that everyone wants to be in the good books of the party in power.

It is further reported that the UPCA has asked the BCCI not to give an invite to Shah Rukh Khan to watch the match at Kanpur. The official view is not to create any crowd trouble at the Green Park. I have an entirely different take on this. The authorities know very well that Khan’s presence could simply overshadow the presence of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister.

Is this sycophancy at its best or at its worst?

SAME OLD STORY

Sri Lanka made all the right noises about how to handle the Aussie might. But when it came to the actual cricket, the same old story continued.

Never did the batsman of the home team appear in trouble. There were three centurions. Phil Jacques scored his first test century while replacing Justin Langer at the top of the batting line-up. Ponting scored a fluent half-century and Andrew Symonds rounded off the innings with some scorching drives and cuts. In between Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey added to the total with their tons. It is only Matthew Hayden who failed to cash in on the insipid bowling of the Lankans.

Ponting wishes to deny Muralitharan the opportunity of going past the wickets tally of Shane Warne on Australian soil. Murali had the better of Ponting. Batsmen found Murali tough only in the early stages, but as the innings progressed, the off spinner could not exert any pressure.

While batting, the Lankans had nothing to offer with the pace of Australia being too hot. Marvan Atapattu laboured to a 50. I am of the view that Marvan is someone who feasts on lesser bowling attacks and that he reserves his best for home conditions. The absence of Kumara Sangakkara is a big setback in the batting department.
It is a foregone conclusion that the Aussies make a winning start to their summer

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

WHY SACHIN?

Sachin Tendulkar ended all the speculation about the captaincy. Sachin does not want to lead the test team for a third time. The refusal set off in motion all the rumour mills. It was alleged that Sachin was miffed over the ‘treatment’ meted out to the ‘senior’ players and as a protest did not accept the captaincy. As it is the habit, the BCCI came out with the denial of such an occurrences.

Ever since Rahul Dravid decided to give up the captaincy, there was a suspicion that the Mumbai lobby led by the likes of Sharad Pawar and Dilip Vengsarkar was behind the moves to make Sachin the captain. I wonder whether Sachin did not want these allegations to stick and hence decided to stay away from the controversy. It is hard to believe that Sachin decided not to just because the selectors were not treating the seniors fairly.

Whatever the case is, there is one thing that makes the whole thing appear wishy-washy. Rahul Dravid decided to give up the captaincy and informed Sharad Pawar about it. Now, Sachin has also followed the same route. The selection committee led by Vengsarkar was not in the know of the things. Earlier, it was Pawar who had talks with Ganguly when the Kolkata left-hander was dropped out of the team.

What makes Pawar a favourite and Vengsarkar a hated figure for the senior players? It is evident that Vengsarkar is someone who doesn’t believe in operating behind the scenes. He is proactive to the point of taking the attention away from the players. Pawar, on the other hand, is a politician who in the true Indian style is good at making compromises even at the cost of merit.

In the fitness of things, it would be better to hand over formally the powers of the selection committee to Pawar.


Monday, November 05, 2007

INDIA TAKES THE FIRST MATCH

The first one-dayer of the Indian Oil Cup went India’s way. There were no big scores and batsmen had difficulty hitting the ball over the boundaries. It was not a match expected on the wickets of the subcontinent.

A score of 240 was never expected to trouble the Indians. With the bowling of Pakistan unable to exert any pressure, things became a lot easier for the Indians, despite the failure of Sachin. It was Shoaib Akhtar who took the wicket of Sachin.

Gambhir and Ganguly put a decent partnership where good shots were interspersed with streaky shots. Ganguly is simply not the batsman he used to be in the limited overs variety. Gambhir is simply playing in the way he is known to be.

Dhoni and Yuvraj strung a match winning partnership. There were few big shots from the bat of Yuvraj. Dhoni also played in a sensible manner. There was a mild excitement in the dying stages with the dismissals of these two.

Salman Butt started off nicely and his run out seemed to take the fizz out of Pakistan innings. Younis Khan and Mohammed Yousuf batted in the test match style and the total could not become a challenging one. Misbah and Afridi hit some lusty blows but by then the Indians began to feel comfortable about the chase.

The toss was the only thing that ought to have made Shoaib Malik happy after this match.

Sunday, November 04, 2007

A COUP OF SORTS!

The Australians and the Sri Lankans will fight it out for the Warne-Murali trophy starting with the first test on the 8th of this month. With this, a new trend has been set. This is the first time that a trophy bears the name of a current player.

The Sri Lankan cricket authorities have pulled off a coup of sorts. I use the term ‘coup’ deliberately. It is a well-known fact that the Aussie spectators do not like Muralitharan. A former captain of Sri Lanka Arjuna Ranatunga even advised the off spinner to give the tour to down under a miss. With the naming of the trophy, the authorities hope to take attention away from the disputed bowling action of Murali.

Is the naming of the trophy going to put all doubts over the action of Murali to rest once-and-for all? It was in Australia where Murali was first no-balled for ‘illegal’ action.

THE ACTION STARTS

The first one-dayer between India and Pakistan kicks off in the northeastern city of Guwahati on Monday.

The press and the players want us to believe that a series between the traditional rivals has the potential to overtake even the Ashes. In many ways that is true. Given the rancour between the two countries, a victory in the cricket field is seen as a victory for the winning nation.

Players have made their reputation or have theirs marred in the past encounters between the two teams. Traditionally, it is Pakistan players who always seem to reserve their best for the Indo-Pak encounters.

Shoaib Akhtar has a lot to prove and that is certainly not good news for the Indians. On the Indian side, Sachin and Saurav have a lot on their hands after the ‘rest’ given to Rahul Dravid. The two captains also have a lot to prove. Shoaib Malik has to cement his captaincy after the losses to South Africa at home. Dhoni has to make his mark in the larger versions of the game.

I am a little unhappy over the timing of the series. With most of the matches on working days, there is little chance of following them. Of course, I am hopeful of my students giving the classes a miss.

Friday, November 02, 2007

ANOTHER LOSS FOR FEDERER!

For a second time within a month, David Nalbandian has defeated Roger Federer. The Argentine was the winner in the Master’s event at Madrid. Now Federer has lost to Nalbandian in the Paris Master’s. Fans surely remember the win by the Argentine over the world’s best player at Shanghai last year.

It is three times that Nalbandian has beaten Federer in the Master’s series. This is an achievement that not many players in the ATP tour have.

I have a suspicion that Federer switches off when it comes to the season ending events and that he reserves the best for the Grand Slams. In the recent seasons, it is only Nadal and Safin who have stopped the Swiss master at the big events.

Despite the defeat, Federer is truly one of the all time greats. I take this opportunity to share with my fellow bloggers the comments of an Australian gentleman named Rod Laver. By the way, Laver is the only player to have won all the four tennis majors in the same year, twice.

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST?

Martina Hingis a former world no.1 and winner of 5 Grand Slam singles titles and 9 double titles announced her retirement at the age of 27. This is the second time that Hingis has called it quits from competitive tennis.

The retirement does not come as a surprise except for the stunning and shocking incident that prompted Hingis to make the announcement. She tested positive for cocaine during a drug test conducted at Wimbledon of this year.

Cocaine is not a performance enhancing substance. It is only used for ‘recreational’ purposes. Even then the consumption of cocaine is illegal.

Hingis denies the charges but does not intend to continue with the game and fight the allegation.

It is not the first time that a top tennis player is under the cloud of drugs. Petr Korda received a ban and a certain J.P.McEnroe confessed to the use of substances like cocaine.

Whatever is the truth, this is a sad end to a fine career.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

IN BAD TASTE

Navjot Singh Sidhu is the acknowledged master of gibberish. There are times when he exceeds all norms of decency. It is a wonder how a news channel that prides itself as ‘the best’ has made the worst choice. Are we getting the channels and the experts that we deserve?

Last night there was a discussion on NDTV over the Pakistan and India series that is scheduled to commence from the 5th of November. The issue of Younus Khan becoming the Vice-captain of Pakistan came up. The presenter of the show remarked about the number of players being made the Vice-captains since Shoaib Malik became the Captain.

This led Sidhu to declare that the culture of Pakistan was different from the Indian culture. Sidhu added rather sagely that since Pakistani culture permitted a man to have many wives, it was natural for the Pakistan cricket team to chop and change Vice-captains.

This remark is something that deserves to be condemned. It is time for NDTV to make a rethink. Such dirty and cheap remarks have no place at least as far as the game of cricket is concerned.

Sidhu always talks about things like commitment and loyalty. What was the case with him when he left the Indian team on tour to England?

A REAL JOLT

The Pakistan cricket team has received a jolt even before a ball has been bowled in the series in India. Just as the team management appeared to rejoice over the return of Shoaib Akhtar, another pace bowler, Mohammed Asif has pulled out of the tour with an elbow injury.

Ever since Asif started with a bang against the touring Indians, he has been the bowler who looked most likely to take wickets. The Indians were ambushed by the swing and control of Asif and the hosts won the series

But in the short career so far, Asif has been dogged by injuries. The ban for the alleged doping offence also did not help the matters.

It is not Akhtar who is to be feared since it is not the nature of the bowler to be consistent for an entire series. Moreover, Akhtar is only moments away from a new brawl and injury. Umar Gul can be a handful on helpful wickets, but he is not in the same class as Mohd.Asif.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

IS THIS NECESSARY?

Predictably, the non-inclusion of Dravid in the squad for the first and second one-dayers against Pakistan has evoked a strong response. Every supporter of Dravid is now able to find a personal enemy in the Chief of the Selection Committee, Dilip Vengsarkar. This is similar to the situation when Saurav Ganguly was axed during the tenure of Kiran More.

The news channels have gone to great lengths to explain the possibility of a conspiracy theory. Polls have been conducted to show that Dravid should have been included in the squad. Former players and cricket administrators have joined the bandwagon. In short, the decision of the selectors has not been received too well.

It is true that Dravid was totally out of sorts in the six matches against Australia. But that does not give the selectors any licence to make Dravid sit at home considering his past record. In both cases, statistics have been bandied about.

In the midst of all this shouting and chest beating, we have to remember that this squad is to play only the first two matches. A different squad is to be selected for the other matches. That may bring Dravid into the squad after all.

There is of course, very little logic in bringing Virender Sehwag to the team. Sehwag scored only one 50 in the Challenger trophy and he is no youngster as well. Sehwag’s record in the limited overs game is not impressive while his test record is excellent, especially, in the context of Pakistan.

When everyone talks about the Australian methods, it is time for the selectors to think about the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Ganguly. Both have stellar achievements as far as one-dayers are concerned, but their match winning ability is suspect. The Aussies dropped the Waugh twins when they could have easily walked into any of the international teams. Vengsarkar needs to apply the same principles to everyone.

I am still not sure whether Dravid has been dropped or rested.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

HAYDEN'S REVELATIONS

In the midst of all the shouting and the allegations, Matthew Hayden has come up with a stunning revelation. Hayden feels that beating India gives the Aussies the ultimate satisfaction. He even went on to suggest that the duels with India rank higher than those involving England.

The supporters of Indian cricket should take this positively. This also explains why the Aussies were so focused during the seven match one-day series in India. That in a way explains why the Aussies took offence to the verbals dished out by the Indian players and spectators alike.

In the test series of 2001, India managed to win the series 2-1 after trailing 1-0. In the series, Hayden was by far the best batsman on show with over 500 runs. That series marked the emergence of Hayden as a great player who could adapt to different conditions successfully. In the end, that was not enough and Steve Waugh’s dream of conquering the ‘last frontier’ remained unfulfilled.

The loss to India in the T20 made the Aussies look beatable and they were determined to settle the scores. England won the Ashes in 2005 and the Aussies returned the compliment by scoring a 5-0 whitewash during the last summer down under.

The Indian team can expect a less-than friendly atmosphere when they tour Australia later this year. But the Indians should not lose heart in the wake of the statement of Hayden.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF FEDERER'S LOSSES

Roger Federer lost to David Nalbandian in the Madrid Masters. It was a rare event. Then Federer struggled to get past Michael Berrer in the first round at Basel.

Federer is expected to win all his matches. There are very few answers to the spectacular success of the Swiss, except may be on the red clay of the French Open. Now with these two losses, there are questions asked. Rightfully, the master fends them off as laughable.

The two losses just show that everyone including the truly great can have off days and there are times when the opponents can raise their game to great levels

PLAYING FIRE WITH FIRE?

During the series against Australia and also during the T20 World Cup, the Indian players displayed aggression in the form of shouting at the opponents and showing unnecessary emotions. For a long time, the average Indian fan felt unhappy because the Indian players were at the receiving end of verbal bashing from the opponents, especially the Aussies. Any gesture or a verbal was misconstrued as an insult to India and Indians. So the newfound aggression got a lot of support. The win in South Africa added to the tall tale. It is not for nothing that George Orwell called sport ‘war minus the shooting’.

The Australians are past masters in the game of verbal volleys. Ponting and his team have taken the art of ‘mental disintegration’ to a new level. The Aussies do not like to lose and the loss in South Africa only added to the decibels.

With cameras everywhere, players like Sreesanth and Harbhajan did their best to keep the spectators interested. Even Robin Uthappa talked about ‘playing fire with fire’. Sreesanth’s behaviour was boorish. The Aussies succeeded in their ploy and the Indians concentrated more on verbal aggression and lost the one-day series.

The media that projected the new found show of aggression with a lot of enthusiasm suddenly did a volte-face after the racist allegations leveled by Symonds. Suddenly, the Indian players were advised to show restraint.

A win in the T20 World Cup is not sufficient to give bragging rights forever. The Indian team surely deserves the adulation since it is in a long while that the Aussies have ended up on the losing side four times in a space of two months to India.

IS IT RACIAL ABUSE?

The racial allegations leveled by Andrew Symonds have opened the proverbial can of worms.

Initially, there was the disbelief that Indian spectators could subject white coloured foreigners to any kind of racial abuse. I use the word disbelief deliberately since even in the context of Indians, the colour of the skin has a very important bearing. There are ‘fairness creams’ which promise to make the dark coloured girl fair much to the relief of her father and family who find it difficult to find a groom. The creams also promise to make the wearer shine on the career path as well. It is no secret that most of the mothers want fair skinned daughters-in-law.

The Indians always hold white foreigners in awe and no wonder even the advertisements for underwears feature a white male or female. Indians attach great prestige to the recognition given by people of the Western world. An Indian novelist or a poet or for that matter anyone from any walk of life is not considered good enough unless there is an approval from a foreigner, especially one with a white skin. The Indian cricket fan is also not different. Giving something back to the Aussie players is not an option since the retribution is feared.

The win in the T20 World Cup where the Aussies were one of the victims of Dhoni and company, emboldened the Indian fans. Suddenly, the fans realized the prospect of the Aussies looking beatable. This added to the noise and Symonds might have misconstrued this as racial abuse.

The Aussies have the right to be aggrieved if the Indian spectators hurled racial abuse. But in the event of no such evidence, there is no way the Aussies should complain for their fans are notorious for their hostility towards players from other countries.

With the allegations, the media made Indians feel ashamed over the racial slurs. Some cricket writers also joined in castigating the behaviour of the Indian spectators.

The reaction of Sharad Pawar in the whole episode was typical of a politician. He argued that the whole issue was due to the inability of the Aussies to decipher the Indian languages. Pawar himself expressed his inability to understand many of the Indian languages. No wonder, the farmers are committing suicides since their pleas cannot be understood by Pawar who is also the Minister for Agriculture in India.


There is no place for racism but it cannot be removed.

Monday, September 17, 2007

STRIKING PARALLELS!

With the resignation of Dravid, the hunt for a new captain has begun. Predictably, no new names except that of Dhoni are doing the rounds. Dhoni, of course, has very little chance to become the Captain. The other two contenders are Ganguly and Sachin.

The Mumbai lobby will never want to make Gaguly take charge of the team for a second time. So Pawar and his cohorts have been busy in propping up Sachin. Even in the past, there was no dearth of people in favour of Sachin.

The news channels have found a new topic that is far less tricky in relation to the issue of Ram or the Sethusamudram. Polls via SMS have been conducted and Ganguly has become the preferred choice of the average cricket fan. But in the ultimate analysis, it is Sachin who is most likely to be made the Captain.

In this context, I cannot desist myself from reminding everyone about the Presidential elections that took place a couple of months ago. APJ Abdul Kalam was the choice as far as the people were concerned but that did not stop Pratibha Patil from claiming the occupancy rights to the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Similarly, none seems to have the power to prevent Sachin from becoming the Captain for a third time, despite a poor record in the Captaincy department.

Of course, Sachin has the ability and the experience. But the plot is similar.

A COUP?

The resignation of Rahul Dravid looks like a coup of some sorts. This conspiracy theory of mine may not stick but Indian cricket has always had the reputation of being in the hands of the worst script writer that Bombay films ever had.

The appointment of Sachin Tendulkar as the Vice-captain before the World Cup in the Caribbean was something that was touted as a masterstroke by the selectors. Sachin, it was argued, would provide valuable inputs to the team think-tank and also would play more ‘responsibly’. We all know what happened in the World Cup. Sachin himself put on highly forgettable displays against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It was only against Bermuda that the bat of the great man talked.

In the tour to England, Sachin played with a rare freedom especially in the one-dayers. The test series was won and the one-day series was lost in the last match. But the success of the tour has soured now with the dramatic announcement made by Dravid.

One has to take the appointment of Dhoni as the captain of the team for the T20 World Cup in the right perspective. As is the case now, the likelihood of Dhoni taking the mantle from Dravid appears remote with Sachin being the clear frontrunner. The Mumbai lobby led ably by Sharad Pawar has been very efficient plotting the downfall of Dravid. Various satraps connected to the ruling body of cricket in India have made noises over the strategy of Dravid. The Chairman of the selection committee, Dilip Vengsarkar was, reportedly unhappy over the defensive approach of Dravid.

It is true that in some instances, the strategy of Dravid appeared to be less than sound. The decision of not enforcing the follow on in the third test when England was on the mat baffled everyone. Dravid defended himself on the ground of giving the bowlers time for recuperation. But then every captain has his own way of making decisions.

Now the decks are cleared for the anointment of Sachin to the top job. There is a report in the media about an interview given by Sachin during the tour to England. All these, only add to the rumors and the innuendoes that very much characterize Indian cricket.

I hope to be proved wrong.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

BORN TO RUN?

(BUDDHIA ON HIS 70 KM RUN)
(BUDDHIA AND BIRANCHI)
He was just 4 years old. His mother contemplated selling the kid for a sum of less than Rs.1000. Such was the poverty. The kid was in hospital where the doctors wanted to amputate one of his legs. In came a gentleman who took care of the kid and nursed him. The same kid displayed a talent for running great distances. No scriptwriter could have done better. The kid is Buddhia Singh and the gentleman is Biranchi Das.

For a state starved of sporting heroes, the emergence of Buddhia was something of a revelation. Biranchi, a Judoka coach made tall claims about the prowess of his prodigy. The boy was made to run nearly 70 kms in oppressive heat. The run nearly caused Buddhia to collapse after 65 kms and he was taken to a hospital.

The Government of Orissa stepped in to prevent the cruel exploitation of the little boy. Buddhia was subject to a number of medical tests and the doctors seemed unhappy over the stresses the frail body was asked to take. Immediately, the Government decided to stop the 500 kms race that Buddhia was to undertake.

The mother of the boy, the boy and the coach were not happy with the development. Even the little boy was ‘made’ to speak before the television cameras about the support provided by Biranchi to his family. The mother of Buddhia went so far as to question the right of the state to take such steps.

This made news and many news channels stepped in to present their side of the story. In the meantime, the boy and his coach went places and a number of ‘philanthropists’ assured financial support. A trust fund was to be set up for the upbringing and the training of the little boy.

Then a couple of weeks ago, the coach and the guardian angel of Buddhia was arrested on grounds of ‘torturing’ Buddhia in the name of training. After the arrest of Biranchi, his mother took the boy to home. Now Buddhia lives with his mother and two elder sisters in a Bhubaneswar slum.

This latest event again sparked off a fresh round of allegations and counter allegations. The same Buddhia who was so loyal to Biranchi now speaks in a different tone. Buddhia’s mother does not mince any words when she castigates Biranchi. Biranchi on his part blames some of the slum people for misleading the boy and his mother.

At the root of the matter is the money that was supposedly received by Biranchi on behalf of Buddhia. People who are close to the family allege that the coach siphoned off all of it, while Biranchi points out that all promises of financial assistance were mere promises. He also alleges that the self-styled elders of the slum want to earn from the talents of Buddhia. This may not be entirely untrue.

What is the wrong if Biranchi took some money? He was the person who provided help to the family and the boy in their time of distress.

What moral authority does the Government have to prevent such exploitation when child labour is rampant? Does the Government not have any other worthwhile things to do?

What about the news channels who took up cudgels on behalf of the boy and his coach?

One thing is pretty clear. Buddhia may not run again. In a few months, all of us will forget about a little boy who could run. In time, Buddhia may be lost in the slums working in some wayside teashop or an automobile workshop.

Sporting history is replete with stories of talented and promising athletes being exploited by family members or manipulative coaches and managers.

In any event, Buddhia is born to run.

Sunday, August 26, 2007

WHEN 99 IS BIGGER THAN A 100

Every time Sachin Tendulkar steps on to the field nowadays with a bat in his hand, there is bound to be a debate. There are supporters who feel that Sachin can still play the kind of cricket that made him great in the first place. There are detractors who argue that Sachin should step down.

In the second one dayer at Bristol, India needed to put a good total on the board after Rahul Dravid won the toss and elected to bat. That decision presupposed a good knock from Sachin at the top of the order.

For a while, Sachin missed a number of balls but as the innings progressed, there were some of the trademark drives. He played well enough to get a 100 but was dismissed for 99. That sparked off a debate.

It is pointed out that Sachin lost his ability to score a 100. Some expressed their anguish over the fact that Sachin missed the opportunity to add to his tally of international tons. Evidence is gleaned from the near misses on this tour so far. Does a 100 from Sachin matter so much for the fan? Sachin himself would be the first to say that the team win was more satisfactory than another 100.

Even Donald Bradman could not score the four runs that would have taken his average to a perfect 100. That is the mystique of cricket.

For the numerically obsessed fan, it is worth a lot to keep in mind that statistics or more correctly put, the average is a bikini that covers less than what it reveals.

PARITY RESTORED

At Bristol, the Indians managed to beat to home team despite having the luxury of putting up a score of 329 runs on the board. The small ground makes it possible for shots to go over the boundary. But more importantly, the Indian bowling was not adequate. The woes of the team were compounded by the atrocious fielding.

Speaking about bowling, it is a mystery that Ajit Agarkar continues to have the support of the selectors and the team management even after proven inability. The same logic does not apply to Gambhir who was dropped from the playing eleven after the first match. Munaf Patel is not looking to bowl fast. He is looking like a veteran of over 300 matches. R.P.Singh produced some good balls. It is a pity that Sreesanth was not picked for the limited overs contests. In the third test, Dravid did not enforce the follow on ostensibly to give a breather to the bowlers. Of the bowlers, Kumble, Zaheer and Sreesanth are not playing the one dayers and the others barring R.P.Singh, did not play in the test matches.

In the batting department, Sachin and Dravid were simply outstanding. Sachin has, in his career, played many better knocks. But in the context of the series, this was worth its weight in gold. Sachin played and missed a number of times, but he hung in there to score 99. Ganguly was not fluent but the opening partnership was worth more than 100. Yuvraj scored 49 runs and looked good for a lot more.

It was Dravid who was a complete revelation. The man, who struggled in the first match, suddenly carted all the bowlers to all parts of the ground. He could not score a 100 as the overs ran out. But the knock was crucial to the final outcome of the match. Great batsmen like W.G.Grace, Wally Hammond and Zaheer Abbas who played for Gloucestershire at Bristol would have been proud of the way Dravid stroked the ball.

The parity has been restored and now the teams have to start from scratch.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

A BAD START

By any standard, the Indians played bad cricket and deserved to lose the first one dayer at Southampton. After a long time, England looked good in the limited over format.

The change of captaincy has injected some kind of dynamism into the English time that was sorely lacking during the time of Michael Vaughan. Vaughan has an extremely poor record as a batsman in the one dayers and this got reflected in his captaincy as well. Of course, Duncan Fletcher had certain strange ideas about the shorter format of the game.

The Indians failed miserably in the departments of the game. If the batting was sub-standard, the bowling was ragged, the fielding was miserable. With specialist coaches in the side, it makes difficult to find no improvement. Dravid cannot defend the fielding lapses on the fact that the match was played on a relatively large ground.

India is not yet out of the series with six more matches to be played. If the showing is the same as yesterday, the series loss cannot be ruled out.

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

WHO IS RANCOROUS?

England have not taken the defeat at the hands of India in the second test in the sporting sense. It is one thing to be trashed by Australia down under. It is quite another thing for the English team to be beaten at home by India.

First there were assertions by players and also the coach of the England cricket team over the sledging accusations. Even a player of the stature of Matt Prior doesn’t feel bad about the sledging. The coach Peter Moores dismisses such allegations. Collingwood is not ashamed at the jellybeans thrown by some his teammates at the Indian players.

But the cake should go to Mike Atherton, the former captain of the England team and now a media professional. It is right for Atherton to go hammer and tongs at Sreesanth for his boorish behaviour during the test. Sreesanth bowled a beamer at Kevin Pietersen and then shoulder barged Michael Vaughan. Such behaviour should not be condoned by any means. Atherton is not happy with the punishment meted out to Sreesanth. The former skipper wants Sreesanth to be dropped from the third test. Sreesanth looks most likely to be dropped given his shoddy efforts in the match. It is true that the match referee Ranjan Madugalle took a rather lenient view of the whole Sreesanth. But what authority does Atherton have to talk about a tougher punishment?

Atherton himself is someone who does not have the moral authority to sermonize. This same gentleman was once caught by cameras taking sand from his trouser pocket and applying the same to a ball during the course of a test. Then the punishment was not severe, by today’s standards. Probably that is the reason for the present outburst. If Sreesanth’s bowling a beamer was ‘rancorous’, then what should we call Atherton’s behaviour? Sreesanth can walk away from the controversy on the pretext of an accidental act, while Atherton does not have that kind of a luxury.

In a one dayer prior to the Ashes of 2005, Simon Jones hurled the ball at Matthew Hayden when the batsman was not even attempting a run. The ball hit the shoulder of Hayden. The whole of the English media praised this incident as the ‘aggression’ of the English team.

Clearly, it is a case of different strokes for different people.

Don't brand me a racist, just yet.

GIVE CREDIT WHERE IT IS DUE

Peter Roebuck writes in The Hindu (Saturday 04 August, 2007) about the stellar roles played by Saurav Ganguly and Zaheer Khan in the famous test win over England at Trent Bridge.

Not long ago, both Saurav and Zaheer were out in the dumps. Ganguly was stripped of his captaincy and then lost his place in the team. Clearly, the lefthander was sitting on his achievements as a player and as a captain as well. The writing was on the wall, as the cliché goes.
Zaheer was not bowling his best and worse, there were reports of indiscipline. Zaheer was perceived to be someone who was not really playing for the team.

Now, both of these fallen heroes have to use another oft-used cliché, risen from the ashes. In a way the credit for the turnaround should go to Greg Chappell. It was during the reign of Chappell as the coach of the Indian team that these two players were shown the exit.

Chappell could not achieve much given his propensity to talk hours about the ‘processes’ and ‘experiments’. But if a small kick in the backs could achieve some tangible benefits, then it is a success. The much-maligned coach could now bask in this glory.

Let us give credit where it is due.

Sunday, August 05, 2007

PROFESSIONALISM IS ALSO IMPORTANT

Last week there was a discussion on the Indian Cricket League (ICL) aired on CNN-IBN. Two former Indian cricketers K.Srikkanth and Javagal Srinath presented their views.

Both of them argued against the current generation of players joining the rival league. They asserted that while former players would be attracted by big bucks, the current players would lose an opportunity to play for the country at the highest level. They pointed out that and quite rightly also the fact that playing for the country involves patriotism and pride.

That brings the key question. Is there not something called professionalism that drives players as much as people involved in other professions? It is right that players pride themselves to wear the national colours and also at the same time display professionalism when playing for teams other than the national team.

If the players were only interested in their bank balances, then most cricket players would not venture into areas like County cricket or even club cricket. Shane Warne is busy slogging it out in County cricket and by all means he is an extremely rich man. It is not just the money; it is also the love for the game. The professionalism drives the players to give their best even when the honour of the country is not at stake. Interestingly, Srinath also had a stint with an English County. Did he not put his best foot forward when playing for the team?

It is naïve to argue that the ICL would be a failure just because the players won’t be representing their countries. In this context, it is time to remember the success achieved by the World Series of Cricket where countries were not involved.

Friday, August 03, 2007

STRANGE BEDFELLOWS

India and Pakistan have a history of animosity. The politicians on both sides have failed to settle the differences. But the cricket administrators of the countries have, mostly, been friendly with each other. There have been instances where they have taken a common stand.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has come up with a warning to players, former or present. The PCB has threatened action against players going with the Indian Cricket League (ICL). It is the BCCI, which should be worried over the ICL. So far only talks have been held between players and the representatives of the ICL. Shoaib Malik will never give up the captaincy just for the sake of a few easy dollars. Even the out of favour Inzamam-ul-Haq might not want to end his desire to play for the national team again.

The ICL has not taken off. It is only in the media that announcements are made and also refuted about the signing of players. So it is a bit premature for the PCB to come up with the warning. Either the PCB is genuinely worried or the PCB is simply expressing solidarity with BCCI.

It is not politics alone where there are strange bedfellows. Cricket too can be a very strong force.

Thursday, August 02, 2007

WHY AFRAID OF MONTY?

It is true that Indian batsmen are short of the ability and technique needed to handle faster bowlers, especially on foreign soil. But over the last few years, Indian batsmen have not shone the confidence that was the hallmark of their predecessors when it came to the spinners.

The latest show was put up the Indian batsmen while facing the English left-armer Monty Panesar. In the first test at Lords’, the wickets of Panesar included Sachin Tendulkar. The batsman played with the pad and not with the bat and to a straighter one, it was judged out by the Umpire. In the second test, the Indian openers put up a solid start. One delivery to Karthick looked like crashing into the wickets, but the batsmen was saved by the Umpire. Rahul Dravid played a Panesar delivery straight into the hands of one of the short extra covers.

In all these deliveries, there was nothing extraordinary despite the observations of the commentators. It was the batsmen who became so circumspect that the bowler had an easy job. There are many left-arm spinners in the domestic scene in India who are better than Panesar. Things are a bit off the mark when even Sunil Gavaskar heaps praise on the showing of Panesar. Give a wicket similar to the one at Bangalore where Gavaskar played his last innings of a test and scored 96. Surely none of the present day Indian batsmen appear capable of scoring a total of 96.

Sachin Tendulkar has taken on a rampaging Shane Warne and the Aussie confessed of having nightmares over the assault. Laxman can dismantle the best spinners on his day. But suddenly, those appear things of the distant past. Sachin looked a batsman with unsure footwork in the first test. Dravid was once a bunny of Warne while Ganguly and Laxman made it a point not to take on Panesar. A big hitter like Dhoni also preferred to go on the defensive against Panesar.

The lack of quality spinners on the domestic circuit and the top players not taking interest in domestic cricket seems the most likely cause of the difficulties facing the spinners. Most of the present day Indian batsman do not rely on footwork but merely thrust their pads to the spinners. The replay of Dravid’s dismissal in the second test is ample proof.

Panesar is a good bowler from the point of view of the supporters of English cricket. But why should Indians be so prolific in their appreciation of the bowler? So much so that an Indian news channel has engaged Panesar to talk about cricket at the end of the play each day.


Tuesday, July 31, 2007

ATROCIOUS AND OBNOXIOUS

In the second test at Trent Bridge, India is on the verge of registering only a fifth victory on English soil. Good batting by most of the batsmen and excellent bowling from Zaheer Khan has helped the visitors. But the bowling of Sreesanth was nothing short of atrocious.

The bowler from Kerala has been fined 50% of his match fee for shoulder barging the English captain Michael Vaughan. In South Africa Sreesanth waved the bat and showed some fancy dance steps in response to Andre Nel. That was something, which amused everyone. But the latest incident is obnoxious. This is similar to Roger Telemachus shoulder barging Rahul Dravid many seasons ago. In both the cases it was not an accident but deliberate.

On the first day, the bowling of Sreesanth was a parody. In his first over itself, he tried many variations. There were instances when the deliveries went so far as the third slip. Instead of concentrating on the bowling, Sreesanth took the path of a street bully.

I would have thanked the match referee Ranjan Maduagalle if Sreesanth were banned for the next test. That would have given another bowler a chance.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

ANOTHER LASHINGS IN THE MAKING?

When Subash Chandra (the promoter of Zee TV) announced the formation of the Indian Cricket League (ICL), there were many eyebrows raised. It was inevitable that Chandra would be compared with the audacious venture started by Kerry Packer (World Series) many years ago in Australia. By the way, it was a Packer innovation that has resulted in the use of coloured clothing and white balls in the one-dayers. It was also a Packer channel-Channel 9 that has since stayed at the forefront of live cricket telecasts.

Packer started the World Series as a response to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation(ABC) getting the exclusive rights to broadcast cricket down under. This was, despite Packer putting forward a better deal. The Indian scenario was no different. Subash Chandra could not bag the telecast rights. Matters went to the court and there was no relief to Chandra.

Packer roped in the likes of Tony Greig to persuade other players. Players all over the cricketing nations jumped in the bandwagon. There was, of course, no representation from India. The teams were nothing but test teams. The ICC was not willing to recognize this breakaway tour and so the players were promptly banned from international cricket. The records are still not included in the official first class records.

Kapil Dev has been the most visible face of ICL till today. Chandra hopes to do what Packer achieved through Greig. But there is a difference. Current players have not jumped at the idea and neither there is any chance of them doing so in the future as well. It is only a few retired greats like Brian Lara and Glenn McGrath who are supposed to have given their nods. Cricketers of today are paid handsomely and to a certain extent, the present players are not as rebellious as those who took part in the World Series. Will Ponting be like Ian Chappell or does any present West Indian player command the respect of Viv Richards.

The World Series made the cricket authorities in Australia to end the dispute and since then Channel 9 has had the telecast rights. This was mostly because the official test teams were being beaten and partly because the paying public was more eager to watch cricket played by stars in a different way. There is no possibility of it happening in case of ICL.
At least the formation of a parallel cricket body was expected to bring some sanity to the working of the BCCI. Going by the response of the players, it also seems farfetched.

The ICL may end up like another Lashings that ropes in famous cricket players of the past and the present for large payments. The only aim is to provide some entertainment and occasionally, contribute to charity. Lashings is no serious cricket club; it is like a cricketing version of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Subash Chandra is no Kerry Packer and it would be great if he were able to repeat the achievements of David Folb (the promoter of Lashings).


TOUR DE FRANCE:A DOWNWARD CYCLE

It is not my intention to degrade the premier cycling event of the world. The controversy over who is caught for doping and who is not and what substances are used for the abuse is really taking the attention away from the cycling.

There was a cloud over whether Lance Armstrong used any performance boosting substances to win the Tour five times in a row. The German Uhlrich who was one rider to challenge Armstrong was found guilty. Then there was the Italian who admitted to doping offences and died very prematurely of side-effects.

The American Floyd Landis won the Tour in 2006 and was immediately touted as the natural successor to Armstrong. Landis is now spending most of his time in courts in the United States trying to clear himself from doping charges.

Most of the big names were absent from the Tour of 2007. Aleksandar Vinokurov of Kazakhstan was expected to be the winner. But it is the Kazakh who has been found guilty of ‘blood doping’ and his entire team has been pulled out of the race.

The current leader of the Tour and the holder of the yellow jersey, Rasmussen of Denmark is accused of not turning up for out of event drug testing on more than one occasion. There are bound to be doubts over his credibility if he manages to win the event.

An event that is supposed to be one of the ultimate challenges for a sportsman is now under a huge shadow.

Is the great Tour on the verge of becoming a farce?

THE HEAT IS ON

Sachin Tendulkar was expected to score a 100 at Lords’. The second innings provided the perfect setting. India was chasing a big score and Sachin has never scored a century at the most famous cricket ground in the world.

But to the disappointment of all, Sachin fell early. The latest failure of the batsman from Mumbai has set the tone for a fresh round of debates and arguments. Kapil Dev has the view that Sachin has never done well in pressure situations. Sehwag feels that his one time teammate is not playing ‘explosive’ cricket these days. For a good measure, Sehwag argues for his style of play.

For a man who has played so many matches, it is difficult to turn in match winning performances in all. Cricket is a team game and only on rare occasions that one player is able to take his team to a win. There have been many occasions in the past when Sachin alone could not make India win.

But for the first time, things are real hot for Sachin Tendulkar.

This is what Glenn Frey sang

The heat is on, on the street
Inside your head, on every beat
And the beat's so loud, deep inside
The pressure's high, just to stay alive
'Cause the heat is on

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

KEVIN PIETERSEN-THE BATSMAN

Kevin Pietersen evokes strong feelings. His decision to play for England instead of his native South Africa led to shouts of ‘traitor’ from many of his countrymen. The tattoo of ‘three lions’ looked like an attempt to please the people of England. His coloured hair attracted a fair bit of curiosity as well as astonishment.

His recent autobiography was anything but appreciated. Peter Oborne calls it a “premature autobiography” and states, “this book is a study in narcissism, and should be avoided at all costs by people who care about the game of cricket”(Cricinfo Magazine, June 2007).

KP was roundly criticized for his recent utterances on ‘mental fatigue’. For someone who played little cricket, the talk of fatigue was really, surprising. Some critics point a finger at a model with whom Pietersen has a relation.

Mockery was made after KP claimed his mastery over Warne. In the worst Ashes in a long time, Warne proved to be the better player like the other Aussies.

But in the midst of all these events, Pietersen has performed magnificently. He has accepted the challenges thrown by all kinds of bowlers. Only Bradman had a better average in his first 25 test matches. The hundred in the first test at Lords’ was almost good enough to give his team a win over India. The series has only begun and things look ominous from India’s point of view.

KP makes a mockery of the opposition attacks, until something silly happens. Time and again, Pietersen tries an outrageous shot to be dismissed. This is a particular occurrence in the one-dayers and that is one reason why England does so badly in the limited overs contests. The confidence and the swagger come from the undoubted talent that the man possesses. He gives the impression of someone who gets bored very easily. That is something that does not make someone look cool.

Let us salute Kevin Pietersen the batsman, if not the man.






TWO MANY WICKETKEEPERS?

The first test was saved thanks to the rain and some gutsy display from two wicket keepers, Karthick and Dhoni. But did the team management err in packing the side with so many batsmen?

Dinesh Karthick has put up a commendable show in the opening slot. Dhoni looked out of place in the first innings when he guided a ball into the hands of a fielder. In the second innings also, Dhoni did not inspire much confidence with the paddle sweeps and streaky shots past the slips. But he did stay at the wicket long enough to help India’s cause.

It can be argued that Dhoni and Karthick were crucial to India’s chances in the test match at Lords’. But one of them needs to be dropped to make way for an additional bowler. It is of course, difficult to dislodge a batsman of the class of Kevin Pietersen when in full flow. It helps to have another option when one bowler is out of depths. In the second innings, Sreesanth did not cover himself in any glory.

I am of the firm belief that Dhoni should be picked only for the one-dayers and for the test matches Karthick is the first choice. If the test matches are played on home wickets with no bounce or seam movement, then it is wise to have Dhoni in the playing eleven.

A GREAT ACHIEVEMENT

Sanath Jayasuriya was the Man of the Match in the third one-dayer against Bangladesh. It is no big deal since the left-hander from Sri Lanka has demolished far better attacks and won many matches for his team.

During the course of the match, Jayasuriya accounted for his 300th wicket. This is in addition to his 12,000 plus runs. He has been an asset to the team for many years. Jayasuriya made his entry into the team as a bowler who could strike hefty blows in the late middle order. He has always been a safe fielder with a good throw from the distant parts of the ground.

A year and half ago, Jayasuriya was ‘dropped’ or rather ‘rested’ from the squad. This made his announce his retirement. It took the intervention of the Sri Lankan President to change the plans of Jayasuriya.

Over the years, the batting of Jayasuriya has always brought joy to the fans. But as a fan of Indian cricket, I never relished the sight of bowlers being carted all over the park by the left-hander.

NO REPEAT OF 1990

Andrew Strauss was hopelessly out of form until the Indians paid a visit. He came good in the tour match and nearly scored a ton in the test at Lords’. It is always surprising that batsmen in general and left-handers in particular relish the Indian bowling when suffering from bad form.

Dinesh Karthick grassed a simple chance given by Strauss on the first day and the carnage of 1990 was on the cards. In that test match, Azharuddin won the toss and put the home team in. Kiran More dropped a sitter and the beneficiary was Graham Gooch. The English opener went on to score 333 in the first innings and also managed a hundred in the second innings. Till today, the combined score of Gooch remains the highest ever in a test match. India lost the test by a mile despite the efforts of Azharuddin and Kapil Dev.

But this time round, Strauss could only score 96 and India was left off the hook.

THE LORDS' JINX CONTINUES

Sachin has scored a lot of hundreds and in different venues against all kinds of opposition. But a hundred has eluded him at Lords’. The master looked good in the first innings but a small score was the outcome. The second innings was expected to provide a special innings from Sachin.

India was chasing a rather tall order and Sachin was, on all counts playing his last test innings at Lords’. A well driven four on the off-side was followed by a defensive prod and the next ball Monty Panesar had him leg before the wicket in the second innings.

The latest dismissal is again going to spark a debate over the ability of Sachin to play left arm spinners. It is interesting to note that Sachin was also the first test match victim for Panesar.

Sunil Gavaskar could not score a test match at Lords’. It was only in 1988 that the Little Master scored 188 in the Bicentennial test between MCC XI and World XI. Now Sachin has to wait for a similar chance to correct the record.

RAIN IS THE SAVIOUR

The test match at Lords’ was expected to give India a good chance in view of the absence of key bowlers in the England line up. The ‘experienced’ Indian batsmen were expected to pile up a big score and put the home team on the defensive.

The Indian bowlers were impressive except for the first day. They managed to restrict the English totals to manageable proportions but for the shoddy display by the Indian batsmen. The first innings lead proved to be decisive with only the rain putting a spanner into the efforts of Vaughn and his men.

Rain has in the past, put paid to the efforts of India. In the last home series against Australia, rain in Chennai led to a draw with Sehwag in great touch. That win would have leveled the series. In 2002, a test match in the West Indies could have been saved if only the Indians managed to stay at the wicket for a few more overs. This time Dhoni and Sreesanth stayed long enough to let the weather goods shower some blessings.

The rain has reversed a trend that has hurt India in the past. The team has survived the first test jinx. Of course, in South Africa, the team won the first test only to lose the next two and the series.

It is time for the big guns to fire may be for the last time on English soil.

Monday, July 16, 2007

HAPPY TO BE PROVED WRONG

It is not a pleasant experience to be proved wrong. I take all the blame and happily too.

In the 42nd edition of the Copa America, Argentina looked the firm favourite, going into the finals against Brazil. The Argentines were unbeaten and all of their top stars were firing. On the other hand, Brazil was defeated in the first match itself. Besides, they did not have any marquee players in their ranks, except for the precocious Robinho. The absence of Kaka and Ronaldinho was expected to hurt the Samba Boys.

But the team coached by the ‘hard tackling’ midfielder Dunga delivered when it mattered most. Dunga was the captain when Brazil won the World Cup in 1994 after a gap of 24 years.

The football displayed by the Brazilians was not something that was pleasing to the eye, but it was effective. The change in the style and approach of Dunga was reflected in a statistic that is highly unlike of the past superteams of Brazil. In contrast to two yellow cards for the Argentines, the Brazilians got five.

The playmakers from Argentina hardly got the space and that ball to make the mark. To make things worse, Ayala pushed the ball into his own net.

Sport is a great leveler and many a prediction has been proved wrong.

I would be very happy if my predictions on the Indian cricket team are also proved wrong!

Sunday, July 15, 2007

ARGENTINA LOOKS THE FAVOURITE

It is being billed as the dream final with Argentina and Brazil set to renew their rivalry. On form, Argentina looks the favourite, but sentiments root for Brazil.

With the stars striking form, Argentina are well set to avenge their defeat suffered at the hands of the Samba boys in the last edition of the Copa America. But Brazil has not displayed the kind of fluid football that we all expected. Brazil started the tournament with a loss and then slowly edged past the opponents to reach the finals. Dunga’s men have not been impressive.

With the lack of striking firepower, Brazil has to do a lot different to break the defence of Argentina. The likes of Riquelme and Messi can play havoc with the defence of Brazil. Defence was not the best even when Brazilian teams were in their pomp.

The Argentines don’t hesitate to play rough when things are tough, and this can only make it difficult for the likes of Robinho.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

WILL LAXMAN MAKE THE CUT?

This tour of England is going to be remembered for a long time in the history of Indian cricket. It is not because of the possibility of India emerging winners; it is because a number of greats are surely on their last tour of the Old Blighty.

Sachin Tendulkar made his mark and his first century in test matches in the course of a match saving innings in the company of Manoj Prabhakar. In the subsequent tours too, Sachin made runs at the most critical of moments.

Saurav Ganguly set the cat among the pigeons by scoring a hundred on debut at Lord’s. It was a knock that surprised all. The present Chairman of selectors was extremely critical of the then selectors picking the left-hander from Kolkata for the tour. Even in the last tour, Ganguly contributed significantly to the team cause. The hundred at Leeds after electing to bat on a seaming wicket was a truly captain’s knock. Even in the Natwest finals, Ganguly opened the innings in the company of Sehwag and set the ball rolling for a famous victory. However, in both instances, Saurav was overshadowed by his teammates.

It is difficult to speak on the achievements of Rahul Dravid. In his debut test, Dravid scored only 95. Those were the days when Dravid seemingly was unable to convert fifties into hundreds. But the last tour, Dravid made all the difference between the two teams as far as the test matches were concerned. The English bowlers could not breach the wall. The one-dayers also showcased the talents of Dravid.

V.V.S. Laxman has taken on the best of the bowlers with ease. But he missed out on the runs in the last tour. In between Laxman was not included in the squads for two World Cups and was ‘rested’ for some test matches. Never has been Laxman given the merit that he richly deserves.

In the match versus Sussex, Laxman made a half-century but there was disappointment in the first innings against England A. With Yuvraj and Karthick in the reckoning for a middle order slot, things are not rosy for Laxman.

It would be great for Laxman and for his fans like me if he makes the cut and scores runs. A failure would put a big question mark on his future in international cricket despite his enviable record.

SAME OLD FAILINGS

The first day of India’s tour match versus England A was not something that offers joy to the fans in India. The home batsmen put up a good score and as usual the Indian bowlers were unable to take wickets. In the last match also Sussex players defended bravely to deny the Indians.

These kinds of bowling displays are not going to win test matches. Cricket, especially, the longer variety involves both the bat and the ball. In the past also, lower order batsmen of opposition teams could keep the Indian bowlers at bay and the matches that should have been won were on a number of occasions lost.

The continuing misery of Wasim Jaffer is sure to put the team management in a bother. Gambhir with the wishy-washy ways is not going to survive the swinging ball.

Thursday, July 05, 2007

CARRY ON SACHIN

In the recently concluded Future Cup in Belfast, India managed to beat South Africa. It was a creditable performance after the loss in the first encounter. Sachin was adjudged the Man of the Series.

Sachin scored runs in the first two matches and in the process went past the 15,000 mark as far as runs in one-dayers are concerned. Sachin was rather subdued in the first match but in the second match, it was the batsman we all loved to watch in the past. The two knocks came after the failure in the match against Ireland.

There was one noticeable thing about Sachin. After a long time, the master freed himself from shackles and that made all the difference. Sachin seemed to enjoy his cricket. The body language was there for all to see. The reaction after the umpire rejected a catch surely tells the story. Of course, it may appear ridiculous for an ordinary mortal like me to make such judgements.

It is too early to predict the performance of India in general and the success of Sachin in particular, as far as the tougher test against England. But with the evidence from Belfast, things are looking bright.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

SOUTH AFRICA WIN

India lost to South Africa by four wickets. The match ended with only a few balls of the 50th over of the South African innings. Some good slow bowling on part of Piyush Chawla and typical South African style ensured a tight finish.

Kallis played a captain’s innings and stayed till the end. There were small but valuable contributions from the others. Since the target was not big, things did not appear to be complicated. Kallis got the Man of the Match for he also got two wickets.

The Indians did well to post a total of 242 with both the openers returning without making much contribution to the team total. Gambhir is not someone who can be trusted to face the new ball on helpful pitches. Ganguly is past his best like many of his teammates.

After a long time Sachin made a good score against a good bowling attack. The pace of the innings was slow. Some of the typical Sachin shots-the off drive was there. But at no time, Sachin looked to collar the bowling. At the other hand, Rahul made a score at a good rate. At the end, it was Dinesh Karthik who played some unorthodox shots to swell the total.

The bowling did not trouble the South Africans since many of the regulars were out on the sick list. Sometimes, the fielding appeared ragged to say the least.

The Indians have to improve on all the fronts to make the most of the rest of the matches.

WIMBLEDON 2007 DAY TWO

SANIA AND HENMAN ADVANCE
Tim Henman took more than four hours and five sets to thwart the challenge of Carlos Moya. The first round match was spread over two days because of the rain. The final set alone lasted more than two hours. Henman used all his experience to advance to the second round. In his prime, he would have dispatched Moya in straight sets without breaking any sweat.

Sania Mirza scored a straight sets win over her Russian opponent only to face another Russian in the form of Nadia Petrova. In the only encounter between the two, Sania was the winner. But Wimbledon is a bigger event and Petrova is a far superior player.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

TOO COLD FOR COMFORT

Just ahead of the one-dayer between India and South Africa, there is news that at least 8 players of India are down with virus. Of these eight, five are definitely bound to miss the match. With the weather conditions in Ireland predicted to be cold and cloudy, the South African pacers are going to have the clear edge.

The Proteas are going to be tough opponents unlike the Irish. South Africa has in the recent past been a team that has mostly beat the challenges of India. So a win for India is highly unlikely.

THE BIG GUN LEAVES THE GUNNERS

The transfer of Thierry Henry from Arsenal to Barcelona is a great loss for the Gunners. The French striker has played in the English Premier League for a long time. The lack of success in European competitions is said to be the motivating factor. Also, with the possibility of the coach Arsene Wenger set not to renew his contract after the next season, Henry decided to ply his trade with one of the most glamorous clubs of Europe.

Time and again Henry came to the rescue of Arsenal when nothing seemed to go right. His goals were simply outstanding and the angles conjured by the Frenchman defied the laws of physics.

Though Henry might one day win the top prize in European club football, the Gunners are likely to face a tough transition without their star striker.

For a while the guns will not sound right at the Emirates stadium.

WIMBLEDON 2007 DAY ONE

ANOTHER STEP FOR FEDERER
It was a rain-curtailed day at Wimbledon. The rains are part of the tradition at the famous grass courts. In the midst of all the rain delays and interruptions, one man took another step towards tennis immortality.

Roger Federer the reigning champion easily overcame the Russian, Gabashvili in straight sets. The champion needs to win another six matches to win a fifth straight trophy to equal the record of Bjorn Borg.

Andy Roddick has lost the last two finals to Federer and the American scored a straight sets win over his countryman. A former ladies champion. Martina Hingis also advanced to the third round, with a three set victory.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

A WIN IS A WIN

India won the one-dayer against Ireland by nine wickets. Saurav Ganguly and Gautam Gambhir scored unbeaten half centuries to steer the team home after the target was revised under the Duckworth-Lewis system following a rain interruption after the lunch break.

But the easy victory does not tell the full story. The bowlers were not able to bowl out the home team for a lower score. The unheralded batsmen of Ireland were given enough bad balls to put up a decent score.

The top run maker in the history of one dayers was not able to show his class. Ganguly and Gambhir played scratchily with the timing going awry a number of times for both the left-handers.

A team that is supposedly in the revival mode on the road to greatness, this is not the best of starts. Perhaps, the low temperature could not warm up the Indians to the task.

Maybe, there is no room for any complaints because Ireland finished in the top eight at the World Cup. It is the win that counts, not the opponent.

WIMBLEDON 2007

FEDERER IS THE FAVOURITE

The 2007 edition of Wimbledon is less than 24 hours away. The most intriguing question is regarding the fifth crown for the reigning champion, Roger Federer. If the Swiss manages to do it, he will equal the record of Bjorn Borg. Borg won the top prize in tennis for five years in a row. It is a special record, which eluded even the great Pete Sampras. With the French Open record of Borg matched by Nadal, and with the grass court ability of Federer, there is little to bet against the top seed.

However, Nadal advanced to the final in 2006, only to lose to Federer. That is not impossible and Federer has the clear edge on a surface that is not favoured by the Spaniard.

Justine Henin is given the top billing in the women’s side and she just won the Eastbourne event beating Amelie Mauresmo. Both are contenders and strong challenges are expected from the likes of Sharapova and Serena Williams.

Indian fans would like to see Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi do well but with different partners. Bhupathi is to team up with Sania Mirza for the mixed doubles event.
Speaking about Sania, the Hyderabadi is to partner Sahar Peer from Israel in the women’s doubles. Will this partnership elicit reactions from the moral police?

Sunday, June 17, 2007

NEW TECHNOLOGY AT WIMBLEDON

The AELTC (All England Lawn Tennis Club) has decided to introduce ‘hawk-eye’ in order to remove errors on part of the people who judge the lines. With this measure, players can now challenge the calls. After the US Open and the Australian Open, it is the turn of Wimbledon to accept the new technology.

Purists may not be too pleased with the advent of this technology. From the viewpoint of the viewers, there might not also be players to question any bad calls. Of course, the game does not have characters like John McEnroe now.

It is not the first time that new technology has been tried out at the famed grass courts of SW19. Since 1980 a machine called ‘Cyclops’ is being used to judge serves.

But technology cannot be completely relied upon. There have been instances of hawk-eye giving wring calls. Cyclops also beeps even when the serve has not taken place.

LAST ROUND OF HENMANIA?

I was browsing through http://www.wimbledon.org/ the official website for the premier grass court tennis event and for many, the greatest tennis tournament. I found a link about Tim Henman, the perennial British favourite at SW19.

Henman is now past his prime and despite his confidence, few would give the Brit a chance at this year’s championships. Henman had all the tools that one needs to have to win on grass. The serve though not big, still was good. The volleying was crisp. But time and again, Henman could not hold the famous trophy.

This, I believe, was due to the presence of a certain player named Pete Sampras. Henman was at his best when the American was also at his best. It is sad that Henman had to contend with arguably one of the best grass court players of all time. In another era, Henman and the British could have celebrated a victory.

This may be the last year of the Henmania.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

WHAT PRIORITIES!

The IOA (Indian Olympic Association) has provided a list of 8 athletes who were found guilty of using banned substances. The offences were detected during the National Games held at Guwahati in the month of February. It took almost four months to make this announcement. The IOA defended itself on the ground that the samples were sent abroad in order to eliminate any suspicions.

We have to understand the pressures that the likes of Suresh Kalmadi have faced in the last couple of months. The IOA put a lot at stake to secure the right to host the Asian Games. Of course, Incheon city of South Korea put up a superior display to emerge the winner.

Kalmadi was also busy talking with the organizers of Formula 1 to get a race in New Delhi.

These are the priorities of our sports administrators and no wonder the sports scene is so dismal.

Friday, June 15, 2007

FORMULA ONE

The IOA (Indian Olympic Association) is said to have inked a deal with FIA to bring F1 to India. The news channels are reporting the likely staging a race in New Delhi by 2009. For this purpose, a new stadium is to be constructed.

This is where things are likely to be messy and true to Indian style, full of politics. Mani Shankar Iyer, the Union Minster in charge of Youth Affairs and Sports is at loggerheads with Suresh Kalmadi, the man who controls the Olympic movement in India. Reportedly, Iyer is not in favour of staging costly sporting ‘spectacles’ when at the grassroots there is no support to sports and sportspersons, in terms of facilities. To a large extent, this is the truth.

About 600 acres of land is needed to construct the race course and the Indian promoters have to pay an annual licence fee of $30 million US.

But unless Kalmadi and company stage and host events, they are not going to make the money. It is only through such events that bosses of sports bodies in the country like to show their gratitude to the supporters. Not to mention the reaping from the spurt in the real estate prices.

So a race is likely to take place for the actual race.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

BORDE SPEAK

Chandu Borde has dismissed the talk of ‘generation gap’ when asked about cricket of his day and the cricket of today. Further, Borde has been emphatic to assert that the Indian cricketers don’t require a coach.

The statement on the irrelevance of a coach for the likes of Sachin, Dravid, Ganguly and Dhoni needs a closer look. There are two ways of looking at it. First, it is clear that the ‘superstars’ need no advice and it is they who advise the BCCI and others.

Secondly, does Borde feel that no coach can do any wonders with these players?

Does Borde intend to endear himself with the likes of Sachin so that his tenure becomes successful and non-controversial?

Without realizing, Borde has stepped into a controversy and that is not a good start to his new innings.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

MORE SURPRISES

Indian cricket never is short of surprises. The refusal of Graham Ford to take up the coaching job was a surprise, to say the least. This made the BCCI to appoint Chandu Borde as the Manager for the tours of Ireland and England.

But the biggest surprise was reserved for the teams that were selected for the one-dayers and the test matches. It was a surprise to find the names of Sehwag and Harbhajan missing from the lists. Sehwag should have been included in the longer version of the game for he performed rather well on the last tour. There is not much surprise in the omission of Harbhajan. On cricketing reasons it is justified, given the often-poor showing on away conditions, i.e., outside the sub-continent.

Munaf Patel was pronounced fit by the team physio John Gloster. But the selectors are reportedly unhappy over the fitness or the lack of it. In the same way, there are enough doubts over the fitness of Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth as well.

Akash Chopra could have been taken to the tests as a specialist opener in place of Karthik and Gambhir, Karthik is a makeshift opener and Gambhir is simply not up to test standard.

The selectors and the BCCI made a lot of noise before the Bangladesh tour about the ‘fresh’ and ‘bold’ initiatives. They made Sachin and Sourav take ‘rest’ during the one-dayers. But for these tours, both of them have been included in the tests as well as for the one-dayers.

The bowling looks the weak link with people short of experience and ability. The batting is with experienced but people well past their best.

It is the opportunity for England to win comprehensively.