Cricketheses
Monday, March 15, 2004
'Tis all in the Game
What a perfect day! Scintillating shots, heart-stopping catches, a great fightback...... Cricket won the day. So did hope. Like this young man here (I suppose he is Pakistani, though I'm not sure) who has both the flags painted on his face....
Isn't this who we are? Indians and Pakistanis - Two halves that yearn to fit together. Two brothers who have long been torn apart. The scorecard may well say: India beat Pak. But the mingling of the Indian and Pak fans at the Karachi stadium has another verdict: India meet Pak
Monday, February 09, 2004
Bitter Aftertaste
A splendid Test Series and some closely fought ODI contests, and then....a plunge off the peak, over the cliff and into the waters below. That's how this VB Series has ended. While those waters must be ice cold, I think what we cricket-crazy Indians need to remember is that Team India knows to swim. They will emerge from the blue. They will be back. Let's not forget the brilliance we have witnessed.
That said, I know it's difficult to swallow this humiliating end - not one, but two mammoth defeats. After visions of sweet glory, we're left with dust in our mouths. Bitter aftertaste that. As my editor said, "It's like having a delicious meal and finishing off with a really horrible dessert."
Friday, February 06, 2004
Not Yet...
Sigh! That's how all those hopes of the Blue Brigade standing up to the Aussies ended - in a sigh. The Aussies are up there. They NEVER relent. Well, almost never - they have lost a few games this season. And Saurav's boys?
Well, they're still boys. At least in the intense abridged version of this fascinating game. They can justly claim to be a team on the rise. But they aren't up there yet, as Amit Varma puts it, they're still under construction.
Now if only the edifice would be completed before Sunday.
The Final Countdown
Bygones will be just that.
Three losses, one win. That's India's scorecard against Australia in this VB Series. They now have a chance to tip that equation in their favour. But even a die-hard fan and an eternal optimist like me is doubtful. We've been here before - playing good cricket during league matches (remember the World Cup?) and getting rooted to the ground in the finals, courtesy Nerves.
Familiar situation this. But Ganguly and Co know that they have the chance to tread foreign territory. They've shown in the past two months that they have the grit and the ability to surprise even their most ardents fans.
They've believed in themeselves more than we've believed in them. Let's hope they surpass their own beliefs. This after all, is the final countdown.
Wednesday, February 04, 2004
Don't Slip
Close contests with Zimbabwe, almost-there against Australia. The Blue Brigade seems to have loosened their grip. The league matches are done. And no loosening (or losing) is permissible now. The hard work's been done. Please, please, don't slip now...
Monday, January 19, 2004
March of the Royal Blue
Prince of Kolkota, Nizam of Hyderabad, God of Bangalore, Nawab of Najafgarh and now Pathan of Baroda. This Indian team is pulsating with royal blood. And the number of nobles joining their ranks only increases.
After a splendid Test series, in which India were the better team (even if the Aussies don't admit it), they beat Australia in Australia after 12 years. And what's better, the first India-Aussie clash in this series (when India all but won) proved this win is not flash of lightning. Nay, this is the roll of thunder.
The Aussies better guard their throne well. The Princes have arrived.
Monday, December 29, 2003
That thing called HOPE
Gritty in the first test. Aggressive in the second. Rampaging on the first day of the third. Team India had been on the rise. Now suddenly, they seem be plunging into a hungry Australia's throat.
Team A needs 95 runs. Team B need 10 wickets. Team A is the world champion, deserving every accolade it's received. Team B is known to be an underperformer. Whom would you back?
Well, if it was not for that thing called HOPE, I'd back Team A.
Wednesday, December 17, 2003
No, I won't write him a paean
Everyone here expects me to extol Dravid's deeds in my blog. True, I'm a die-hard Dravid fan. Over the years friends and colleagues have thrown me just one question:
"What is it that you like about Rahul?" And I have tried in vain to explain that it is not Rahul Dravid I admire. It's Dravid the sportsman.
Now when all the world seems to have finally noticed him, everyone seems to think I will sing his praises.
No sir, I won't. What do I need to say about a sportsman whose bat and will have crafted an eloquent speech?
