25 NOT OUT

We don't see batsmen on the field celebrating after scoring 25 runs-not even in the condensed format of 20-20 cricket.But this 25 is something to rejoice.

Harsha Bhogle has completed 25 years as a cricket commentator.I have never heard Harsha speak on the radio. The first time I saw Harsha was on a Sunday show on sports called 'Sportsmag' on Doordarshan. If my memory is not corrupted, I can remember that his co-host was Sanjana Kapoor.

He is one commentator who I feel has the right words for the right occasion.Rarely, he goes over the top. He does not say things like ' a fine driver of the cricket ball' to desribe a shot like many of his Indian contemporaries.I remember on one occasion when Harsha wanted the use of Variance-a statistical measure to compare the averages. As a student and a teacher of Statistics, I felt very happy.

But there are two write-ups by Harsha that make me remain devoted to the game of cricket even through the lean and mean times. The two write-ups appeared in the Cricinfo Magazine(now history). The first related to his experiences of playng cricket in a locality called Angad Basti of his native city of Hyderabad. The second one was an appreciation of Anil Kumble-one of my favourite cricketer.I shall provide the dates of the issues and if the people at Cricinfo allow, I shall post them on my blog.

I have read fine books on cricket-one by Gideon Haigh and the other by Peter Roebuck. The two write-ups of Harsha Bhogle stand there at the top of my all time favourite writings on cricket.
There is one little thing of Harsha that irritates me. Normally, a very composed person behind the microphone, Harsha seems to go over the top when the Indian team is the winner.

Anyway, wishing a very happy anniversary and expecting more from the man.

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.