Decoding batsmen, the Ashwin way

He has always been a fierce competitor and a great bowler, easily one of the most accomplished and consistent match-winners from his generation/era of cricketers. But what really goes behind making Ravichandran Ashwin all that and more?

I recently read his insightful and absorbing interview with one of my favorite cricket journalists, Sidharth Monga. Needless to say, this conversation is a treat for cricket lovers, especially bowlers, on how a thinking cricketer goes about his plans. The countless hours behind what seems a moment's magic, the mental/tactical preparations, the importance of self-belief, honest analysis and conversations, and the insurmountable passion which fuels the desire to rise like a phoenix after ever trough.

Research and preparation

Take, for example, this statement, which stems from his research and analysis on batsmen:

Here he is on Steve Smith, before India's tour of Australia in 2020-21:
"I made him my obsession for about six months, not just two weeks or three weeks. Just footage, just watching different matches....with Steve Smith, his batting is very momentum-driven. Most of his batting comes from his hands, so my whole idea was to disturb his hands through the series. He's got certain hand-movement patterns. You have to pick them and be able to bowl in a way that disturbs his hand pattern. So I bowled with different load-ups, different speeds, different run-ups and all that. I realised I kind of got to him."

And this is on Joe Root, just before England's India tour in February 2021:

"Joe Root will not block two balls in a row. He's got a slightly vulnerable defence. And I think he knows that. Or he's constantly on the move. So every time he defends a ball comfortably outside off, the next ball will be a sweep."

Self-awareness

"I am at that stage of my career where I have no time for external noise. I just want to play cricket. The one thing I needed to figure out was: why was my mind wanting to give up? Why did I want to quit? I was not enjoying the game. Why? Because the factors were all external. If I turned my attention inwards, I could enjoy the game. All I needed to accept was, whatever happens, if I am in the team, if I am not in the team, if I perform, if I don't perform, it will be on my terms."

Objective and honest

"...if I have to come and partake in his (Kuldeep Yadav getting a five-for) happiness, and the success of the team, I must feel like I belong there. If I feel like I am being thrown under the bus, how am I supposed to get up and come for a party to enjoy the team's or team-mate's success?"

Way to go, R Ashwin. Every time you read about him, his mental strength, passion, preparation, and intelligence always stand out. There's a lot of talk about him trying to be oversmart or unsportsmanlike but one conversation with him and you'll know why all that is all bunkum.

You are a true champion, Ashwin - may you and the likes of you keep exceling and keep prospering. PS: Likewise for writers like Sidharth. 

Can't wait to catch all the action from South Africa!

Jai Ho!

Hello, Test Cricket!

I write this at the end of the first Test match between India and New Zealand if you've seen the match, you know what an engrossing day of cricket we saw. After the T20 razzmatazz where the skill sets required succeed are entirely different, Test matches tell you just why every cricketer worth his/her salt would love to do well the most in that format. 

Sample this:

On the last day of the match, NZ began the day needing 280 more runs from 93 overs, with 9 wickets in hand.

At lunch, night watchman William Somerville and Tom Latham had remained unseparated, in a wicketless first session, leaving all 4 results open to possibility. And then the game ebbed and flowed, with India capturing 3 wickets post-lunch, and 5 in the next one. Yes, we were still agonizingly short by just one wicket in a last-wicket unbroken stand between the very impressive Rachin Ravindra and the gritty Ajaz Patel. 

Right from when they came together in the 90th over (at 89.3 overs) till the end of the day at 98 overs, their thrilling partnership during the course of those 51 balls is precisely why nothing can ever beat Test Match cricket.

Gripping, sensational and as many in NZ would call it, even an absolute heist. The duo did got the Kiwis out of jail.

I have often seen people ask in wonder, "Why is it that Test cricket has a draw? Why can't there be a result? Isn't it boring (even bad) to play for 5 days and not have a result at the end of the match?"

Well, to all those who think so, the next time your mind drifts to think along those lines, remember what happened today. It was a draw alright, but ask anyone who watched, from either side, every ball, especially the last hour and even more so, the last half-hour (the last 7-8 overs) was simply mesmerizing.

Thank you, Shreyas Iyer, Tom Latham, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Kyle Jamieson for playing your heart out in your all-round performances in each innings.

Dream debuts for Shreyas Iyer and Rachin Ravindra - well done and hopefully, this is only the beginning of many more memorable moments for both of you..

And most importantly, great advertisement for Test Cricket.

Yes, India might not have won today but that's why this sport (and even more so, this format) is a lot of like life. You might not win today but you can still salvage and walk with your head held high, and live to fight and win another day.

Can't wait for Mumbai, the next stop.

Long Live, Test Cricket, Jai Ho!

Well played, Team Green. With you, Team Blue!

If you are a cricket fan, especially from India or Pakistan, you know what an India Pakistan encounter means to the two teams and even more so, for the two countries. 

Pakistan holds the aces till now in terms of more wins than losses against India in Sharjah and overall India-Pakistan matches.

For Indian fans, the World Cups (across both ODIs and T20s) have been the lucky charm, with a record of 12-0 in India's favor.

Until of course, what happened yesterday.

After 29 long years, Pakistan finally opened their account of winning a match against India in a World Cup with a complete mauling and outplayed India in every department.

Right then, we are now at 12-1. 

First things first: Truly well played, Pakistan!!

Pakistan

The team that played better cricket on the day was clearly Pakistan and thoroughly deserved to win yesterday. As Virat Kohli rightly said, Pakistan was able to peg India back right from the start: 

1) The toss 

Of course, that's good luck to win an important toss but it was still a good, brave call for a team that has traditionally been better at defending than at chasing. Don't forget, it would have been very easy to belittle the decision, had the Indians put up a daunting total and the Pakis would have failed to chase it. 

With the benefit of hindsight, countless self-appointed experts would have chimed in with pearls of wisdom like "You won the toss and yet to put the Indian line-up in!", "We are not good chasers, bowling is our strength, still you relied on your weakness", etc. Credit to Pakistan for sticking to what they believed in, and most importantly, for executing it well enough to ensure that their performance matched their plans.

2) The bowling in Green, led by Shaheen

Pakistan has always been a paradise for bowlers. Even at their very lowest, Pakistan have never struggled to have good bowlers. So it was no surprise to see them do creditably well with the ball. But what did matter was the fact that even after Shaheen's fiery opening burst, their entire bowling unit followed one good spell after another, applying relentless pressure, and just not letting the Indian batsmen go off the hook. 

Led by Shaheen, the bowlers backed the captain's call, never let the runs flow, and always kept India's batsmen in check. One often uses the term Bravo with West Indies cricketers, referring to a Dwayne nor a Darren Bravo, but this time, it is to applaud the entire Pakistani bowling unit - top stuff, guys - Bravo!

3) Captaincy

As captain, Babar made smart bowling changes that never allowed the batsmen to settle to any particular bowler. Very intelligent and tactical captaincy by the Pakistan captain - quite astutely done, Babar!

It was also quite impressive to see that he kept his flock in check in terms of their expressiveness and emotions. While everyone seemed high on energy and intensity, no one went overboard or abusive or unusually aggressive. Most importantly, this held true even after the win, when things could have easily gone out of hand. But it seemed that Babar's overall calm persona reflected in every Pakistani's approach - when they were natural ecstatic and thrilled when taking wickets or catches and obviously after winning, but were never so jingoistic or xenophobic to be rude or too in-your-face.

4) Fielding

Another aspect that might easily get ignored from this match was Pakistan's absolutely top-class fielding. Be it their catching, commitment, energy or the ground fielding, everything was quite electric in this match.

All these are adjectives that typically do not go in the same breath while referring to Pakistan's fielding. Which is why, it makes their fielding effort all the creditable. Flawless stuff from Pakistan, and as a cricket lover, one hopes that they maintain this standard to be a better team and do not let their bowlers down as often as they normally have.

5) Babar and Rizwan (entire Pakistan batting on the day)

Talking of flawless, the way Babar and Rizwan pummeled India's bowling was perhaps the most astonishing part of the day. True, it was not the greatest-ever score from India but at the halfway stage, even the staunchest Pakistani supporter wouldn't have picked Pakistan to run away with the match the way they did, and win by 10 wickets. Extremely smart batting by pre-empting the bowlers' plans, rotating the strike constantly, running niftily between the wickets, and playing the big (but risk-free) shots when required.

Sure, the dew helped them but credit should still be given where due. Babar and Rizwan deserve a huge round of applause for the way they identified who to target and who to be watchful against and see off, if required (as with Varun and Bumrah's initial overs). And after the 10-over stage in the Pakistan innings, with no swing and more due, it was just one-way traffic from there on.

India

On India's side, it was quite a forgettable day when almost whatever that could go wrong, did go wrong.

1) Below par, all round, all day

Apart from Virat and to an extent, Rishabh, Varun and Bumrah, no one else managed even a decent outing. We were outplayed in all departments, right through the course of the match. 

Perhaps there was a flutter of hope when Virat and Rishabh were batting together but just when it was time to press the accelerator, Rishabh perished and Virat came tumbling after. Likewise for when Varun and Bumrah began applying pressure in their initial overs but then leaked runs and went wicketless.

2) Insipid bowling

Most disappointingly, our bowling was lackadaisical, toothless, too defensive too early, and bereft of plans.

Forget picking up wickets, I had a hard time even recalling when (if ever) the Pakistani batsmen (of course, we saw only two - the opening pair through the entire innings) were even beaten by any ball from anyone.

If you pitch on middle and leg line, bowl too short or too full, you are expecting only miracles or mistakes from the batsmen, you are giving yourself only two chances to get batsmen out: either by them making a mistake or through some divine miracle (like a possible six being converted to a catch). 

Our bowlers, especially Shami and Bhuvi, were too wayward in their lines and lengths. Too much on middle and leg, not enough changes in pace, the slower balls were too clear and easy to not be picked and scored off. Our bowlers are typically much, much better than that, but unfortunately, yesterday was certainly not one such day.

3) Subdued by the dew

The only hope left was of watching Pakistan self-implode. But they did not, as the imperious Babar and the sublime Rizwan steered them home with consummate ease. If that wasn't enough, midway through the Pakistan innings, it was time for the dew too.

Of course, the dew must have made matters worse but I suspect good line and length is very much a part of our "controllables". Balls pitching on or outside off stump and then changing course - coming in or going out or holding their line - were too few and far between.

4) The current, listless Bhuvi is a concern 

Despite being a Bhuvi-fan for long, it has been 3 consecutive bad days for him now. After a very average (even below-average) IPL where he got clobbered in the death overs, Bhuvi has leaked runs and has not even picked wickets in the two warm-ups and now yesterday. It's not even a matter of taking wickets or being economical. One must look like taking wickets. The form he is in, his bowling has just not been incisive enough to inspire any confidence till now.

For a player of his class and pedigree, and with swinging conditions to boot, one had hoped for him to be lethal with the ball, at least in the initial overs. Instead, he looked a pale shadow of himself and with three poor games on the trot, perhaps we might need to reassess what should be done with respect to his role and contributions.

5) Shardul for Hardik

And, speaking of pale shadows, with Hardik hurting his shoulder while batting and not taking the field, Shardul could well be in the XI soon. Lord Shardul is a no-brainer replacement for Hardik - can bat well, has become a much better bowler in recent months, and also has the happy knack of picking wickets, including those of crucial batsmen - in short, a captain's delight.

It also spoke wonderfully of Virat's sportsman spirit as well as character to see how he was so gracious, warm and effusive in praising and mingling with the Pakistani team, especially Shaheen, Babar and Rizwan). Classy stuff that, great for the sport, and long may this continue!

Whatever be the reasons for India's defeat (sorry, thrashing) at Pakistan's hands, there are still some positives from the match for India:

1) An albatross off our necks 

If Pakistan have taken the monkey off their back by finally winning a World Cup match against us, India also had the victory record of NEVER HAVING LOST in World Cups against them. This record was like an albatross, because, as MS Dhoni had stated earlier after another Indian win the last time around, it created an unnecessary pressure on Indians too. After all, who can guarantee an all-win record forever? At least, with this loss, there won't be a NEVER HAVING WON / NEVER HAVING LOST chatter anymore. Thank God for that!

2) It can only get better from here

The good thing about a comprehensive defeat is that it jolts quality players like never before. Sure, it hurts, as it should, for it galvanizes players to do that much more, going forward. 

Even from a simple law of averages perspective, a completely lopsided, off-color performance comes only once in a while. And given the fact that this is not a team that would keep getting beaten especially the way it did yesterday, bouncing back is a given, and only a matter of time. 

What is most important is to ensure that the team keeps believing in itself, gets the support from its fans (because now is the time when it needs it the most), and remains confident about delivering its best at all times. We are still THE team to beat on any day against any opposition, if our XI play to even 90% of their potential. 

Just as no team can become good overnight, the converse remains equally applicable. Biased opinions aside, everyone knows India is quality side. Most importantly, the team itself is quite mature and aware. They must know that they are a top side, so it's just about picking the lessons from this game and moving on afresh. Many more frontiers are waiting to be conquered!

3) Team bonding

If you are a top quality side like India, such a loss would always hurt. And then, if you lose against your arch-rivals, it is bound to spur you to achieve bigger glory even more. This is when the team bonds that much more and clicks as a whole. 

A lot is spoken about India's 36 all out but what happened after that in the very same series?! (I know, it's Test cricket but the point on team bonding and approach remains the same and is format-agnostic). In other words, a loss can truly bring a top team together like never before to go for greater glory. We might have lost the battle but we can still win the war!

4) Selection clarity and/or individual performances

This loss can also help individuals know where they need to pull up their socks. Get your house in order, it's not a bad house anyway! Just make sure you are on the money from here on, bring your A game to the table and it won't be long before the sun shines on you again. 

Another useful outcome of such a defeat could be clarity in selection and even in approach on what to do and what not to do as players, during similar situations or match-ups in the future. How to ensure we do not have a bad start? How to stem the rot or maintain the flow of runs if we lose wickets? How to channelize the right men for the right task as per the match situation, in the pitch and on the field? How to use the experience from this game to identify and have faith in our best XI, going forward? How to ensure that our batsmen and bowlers have the right plans, plus backup plans, to support each other in case any of them is off-color on a given day? All these lessons can prove to be of invaluable help in the future, all thanks to this loss.

5) Fans' support

As a crestfallen Indian fan, when I went to bed last night, I was wondering what must be going through the minds of our players. If I was feeling so hurt, I can trust that someone like Rohit, Rahul, Virat himself, and in fact everyone in the team must be seething from inside. Not out of revulsion or hatred for the loss but out of having not performed even half as well as what they are capable of, both individually as well as collectively. Let's spare a moment to put ourselves in their shoes and at least be civil and empathetic before pronouncing inane expert solutions.

For a team that has given us countless moments of world-beating glory, Isn't it our duty to support them when they are themselves hurting and self-aware? Mind you, while everyone had a poor outing, no one seemed irresponsible or lacking intent and effort.

They know they had a bad game. It's not as if our abusing or blaming them will add any value to their knowledge. If anything, it will only deflate their morale, which is something they do not deserve. And of course, this holds equally true for the Pakistani side too - had they lost (or like they have lost earlier in World Cups), their cricketers also never deserve(d) to face the wrath and flak of their public and fans the way subcontinental fans have often vented their emotions. 

Sure, one can be disappointed, even unhappy with team selection, approach, performance, magnitude of loss, way of playing - all that is fine but not at the expense of believing that the players could care even an iota less than they actually do.

In fact, as players, they are trying and working much more than we know, day in and day out, to give their best. It's just that we should neither take things to stratospheric proportions when our teams are on the right side of the result nor should we begin ascribing ulterior motives or become self-anointed experts to pronounce judgements on who did what wrong and why, without having done or known even a fraction about the effort and full context behind what these players put in, giving their all and more, to pursue excellence every single day - irrespective of whatever result is achieved.

Let's ensure we throw our weight behind our Boys in Blue now. This is the time when a team needs its supporters the most. We know you WILL bounce back. 

Great performance, Pakistan and totally well-deserved. You can well be a finalist in such form and who knows, we might have an India and Pakistan final too - a la CT17 with transposed results - from the results of the league stage and finals! Same teams, exchanged results!

Well played, Team Green. With you, Team Blue!!

Jai Ho!

Thankyou, IPL!

As we continue the second leg of the IPL 2021 caravan in the UAE, I thought it's time to reflect on what a spectacle it has brought to viewers consistently, year after year, ever since 2008. 

The famed Indian bench strength and fearless approach we see, has a lot to do with the confidence that the IPL gives, especially to uncapped players. Anyone who does well in the IPL is sure to feel elated and elevated in one's confidence. 

Contrary to what most people think, IPL is not just the slam bang version of cricket.

Glitzy sure, glamorous yes, but brainless - No!

Of course, not here the vagaries of a Day 5 pitch, not even half the relentless challenge that a day's toil would bring from a 90-over Test day or even a 100-over ODI.

But the pressure and intensity to deliver are much the same, if not even more.

No wonder, you can still find a Nortje bowling at full tilt for all 6 balls in an over, clocking northwards of 143 kph clicks each ball.

Or, for that matter, a rookie like Venkatesh Iyer unfurling and announcing himself on the big stage for KKR. 

It's not just about the pressure of performing. It's also about keeping one's place and reputation intact, if not enhanced. 

For every Rahul Chahar or Yuzvendra Chahal, there's a Ravi Bishnoi too.

For every Hardik Pandya or Shardul Thakur, there's a Deepak Chahar too.

Every cricketer worth his salt knows that he can ill-afford to be complacent, for there is another one lurking around the corner, to keep him on his toes all the time.

Hence, the passion and intensity never dies, hence the hunger and confidence, hence the quality.

Thank you, IPL, for every year. May you long serve Indian and world cricket by ensuring financial stability to fringe domestic players and improving the overall confidence and quality of world cricket in general, and Indian cricket in particular. 

Jai ho!

Lords of Lord's!

"If you go after one of our guys, you are going after the whole team, all XI of us will come right back.”

Some things stay etched in your memory forever and if you had to find a one-line summary of what Team India is all about, you need not go any further than this statement from KL Rahul at the end of the Lord's Test.

To win a Test match is one thing and a great joy in itself. For any team from the subcontinent, winning in one of the SENA countries is quite another. 

But to win from a precarious position when, by the end of the first hour on Day 5 as Rishabh Pant got dismissed for not very much, Indian fans would have been hoping that we do not lose the match.

From there, when a draw would have looked as if God had answered our prayers, to in fact winning the match quite dramatically and dominantly, it was just surreal, amazing, and most pleasing. 

The entire Anderson-Bumrah-Buttler episode seemed to have galvanized our tailenders, (correction: accomplished lower order batsmen) as Messrs Mohammad Shami and Jasprit Bumrah pulled off an absolute batting heist against the hapless English bowlers who had no clue what had hit them.

From defending and tuk-tukking the match, to actually getting to a position, we ended up declaring (by many accounts, even the declaration could have been timed earlier). Says a lot about how radically that partnership transformed the entire match. And then, the way we bowled our heart out to dismiss the Englishmen well within the 60 overs on the final day. If this is not awesomeness, I don't know what else is.

Well done, Team India and keep shining, always.

Jai Ho!

In defence of the defender

Just a few weeks after the disappointing end to the WTC final, Indian cricket is in the midst of some very avoidable confusion and uncertainty about a few things:

After Shubman Gill's shin injury ruled him out of the England series, the Indian squad in England asked the selectors to send two replacements for the series - one for Gill and another backup batsman - so that in the event of any first-choice batsman's injury on this long tour, calling for a replacement would be no good due to 14-day quarantine requirements. Both valid and proactive requests.

But as I write this, there has been no official response from the selectors and not even a communication to carry on with the standby players in the squad. Quite needless and avoidable. At least the team management has the right to get the team strength it is looking for. If nothing else, knowing who all are to be considered (and who not) will give them the necessary clarity on proceeding and planning accordingly.

And abhi toh I'm not even getting into why the much experienced and much more in-form Prithvi Shaw is not being preferred over Abhimanyu Easwaran for England. If the team management wants him to be in England instead of SL post-Gill, why not and why wait? You could always keep Easwaran in the standbys but fly Shaw to England well in time and prefer him over Easwaran any day. What's wrong in that? 

As for the SL team, we can have replace Shaw with Sheldon Jackson in the team for SL. Sheldon was already unlucky not to have made the cut in any of the teams, despite being a consistently heavy scorer in domestic cricket. Blessing in disguise too.

Anyway, I'm just another fan and for whatever it is worth and howsoever strongly I believe these to be the right decisions, these are after all, just my thoughts.

Onto the next and even bigger point:

It's about a certain Cheteshwar Pujara.

Now, I know human memory can be short and fickle. But to banish or overlook someone's historic performances (in general) and barely a few months ago in particular, is truly next level stuff.

Image Credit: Ashish Magotra, Scroll (https://s01.sgp1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/article/153679-ncwqqblsnv-1611228214.jpg) 

Imagine this: 

Just a few months ago, at the start of the year, he was the toast of the town, having done what very few #3 batsmen can claim to have achieved: playing (AND ARCHITECTING SERIES WINS) as #3 batsman on consecutive tours to Australia.

Beating Australia in Australia on consecutive tours.

Being the architect of both those series wins at the crucial #3 spot on both tours.

How many batsmen do you know who could achieve this?

Yet, in just a few months, he is now battling for a place in the side?!

Sure, he gets stuck and not that it is something he shouldn't work on, but it's not entirely unexpected of him either. Honestly, he just needs to get out of the belief that he needs to only defend the ball initially. And in any case, he does accelerate well after reaching 100 - but of course, that hasn't happened enough in the last few months but so what?

He was not hitting hundreds in Australia in 2020-21 but go ask any Aussie bowler whose sight repulsed them the most, and they'll name Pujara.

As with any other batsman, Pujara is also not perfect. Sure, he needs to keep the scoreboard ticking too and not play out only maidens all the time. We can ask him to avoid stonewalling and deadbatting all the time, alright. Continue with it 90% of the time but at least try 5-10% more because you know you have Puji for that role - to hold one end up, and let others play around him. And that's it.

That's Pujara's only fault - of not scoring quickly enough - but should we just drop him for that?

Why are not considering all the other qualities he brings to the table?

And by the way, if not attacking enough is a yardstick for Pujara, shouldn't the same yardstick (like not defending at all or not defending well enough) be applied to our other batsmen, including the captain?

Is it only Pujara's failure?

If not, why should only he pay the price?

His solidity, his doggedness, his resolute defence and his determination. He hardly gets out to loose shots but only to good balls. Yes, he can show more intent but that does not mean he should be dumped from the team. It's a message that can still be given more subtly without dumping a player of his stature.

The great Mr. Sunil Gavaskar also made the valid point of Kane Williamson also batting so slowly in the same match. Yes, he did accelerate too. But the point is that others around him batted well too and he also opened up later. For India, hardly anyone flowered in our innings. So defence is not the issue. It's just that he is not scoring enough, which can still be sorted out.

Facing a barrage of bouncers, short stuff, abuse/sledging/mental disintegration/call-it-what-you-will, snorting jaffas and what not, but never losing composure, and coming up trumps, time and time again. 

Eating up time and balls to tire the bowlers down and bring the opposition on its knees.

Now then, show me how many batsmen can claim to match Pujara for all such traits.

Anyway, of course, these are just my thoughts, for whatever they are worth. But for someone who has stood up for the team time and time again, been a big reason for some of our most memorable wins, and remained an unsung hero without too much fanfare. 

If nothing else, you deserve a lot of fans batting for you and defending you this time, Puji. We know that more than anyone else, you yourself are hurting from the lack of runs and want to turn the corner and improve the scoring rate too - anything that helps the team. Keep the faith, good luck, may sanity prevail and may you be back in favor and among runs soon!

Haan thoda dard hua, par chalta hai..

Yes, it is heartbreaking.

Yes, another session of batting, even another 50-60 runs or so, and we should have been able to at least draw the match and share the trophy.

Yes, it hurts even more when you realize that our team came so close and yet, was so far.

But then, you see who you lost to.

You see who played better cricket over the entire length of the match.

You see how we still lost to a team that is truly THE most liked team for its conduct..

Haan thoda dard hua, par chalta hai.

And of course, you see this and it feels like the same wind is now blowing a lot better suddenly:

Yes, the world is a better place because of good, genuine people.

I'm pretty sure that both Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson are thorough gentlemen off-the-field.

It's just that when it comes to Kane, one can say that about him on-field too.

As regards Virat, for all the histrionics, the energy, the aggression, the animated + abusive send-offs, howsoever integral, natural, and 'necessary' they might seem to be to him, they pale in comparison to the classy and impeccable conduct of Kane.

I certainly believe that Kohli has no ill-will or personal grudge against anyone off-the-field but the reactions are in poor taste when you think whether such a person/cricketer (let alone a captain) can be a role model for the next generation. Great batsman yes, works for him yes, but do I want to advocate that as the way to be for others? I personally don't think so at all.

No coincidence then, that India is now a much fitter and more aggressive team under Kohli. On the other hand, Kane's team has one or two aggro folks but even they never cross the line and it is also largely thanks to Kane that the Kiwi team reflects its unflappable captain cool's personality. 

There's been a lot of talk about how NZ had an unfair advantage in that the conditions suited them - true. 

They even enjoyed the invaluable edge of having played two Tests just prior to the Big Final in English conditions - yes, tick that one too. 

It's also true that they had a much easier road to the final, having played mostly at home and not having had to scrap for wins like India did in Australia against Australia despite historic setbacks and adversities.

And credit to India, we never complained or gave any excuses either.

Even Shastri or Kohli asking for a three-match final is justified and not a case of sour grapes. But by the same logic, should we then not apply the same rule before we celebrate 1983 - our win exactly 38 years ago as I write this today on June 25?

Even the more optimistic Indian would concede that had the finals been a best-of-three, India would have struggled to be World Champions then. And obviously, we know of many other winners too who could have lost to their opponent, had it been a three-match result.

So why complain now, especially in Tests where even over a 5-day period there are enough twists and turns? I am all for a best-of-three too but how do we schedule it? How do we stall the already crammed international cricket calendar and ask team to park one month of valuable time for the eventuality of them being in the finals for 15 possible days of cricket (excluding recovery breaks required in between)?

And even if we imagine that this does happen, atleast one of the three Tests could still get rained out or hampered by various factors like the weather, the pitch or the conditions favoring one finalist more than the other. What happens if we can have only 2 matches with 0-0 or 1-1? One might still crib what was the point then. A team might say there were unfair advantages to one finalist due to any factor like weather or toss or anything else too So while in an ideal world, it would be great to have three matches, I suspect even then, it might not be able to guarantee to a world where everyone will be happy for sure.

So let's make the big day count, till we find a better option. And let's not forget, how New Zealand behaved after the tied final, which they eventually lost in the 2nd Super Over! In a World Cup final! 

So while Kohli has not said anything wrong, let's remember how Kane and NZ behaved when they lost the way he did in the World Cup final. I still remember that even at the height of dejection, how Kane remained so graceful and calm without making any statements about rules and the cruel hand that fate dealt to him.

And therein, lies the greatness and likeability of Kane and New Zealand. Which is also why, they remain almost every no-Kiwi citizen's second-favorite team (right after the person's home nation team).

Well done, India and New Zealand - despite all the rains, despite all the delays, you put up a spectacle worth watching and it was quite fitting to get a championship winner on the last hour of the last (6th) day's play. 

In the end, as I said, the picture of Kohli and Kane says it all. Well done, more power to Test Cricket, and more power to both India and New Zealand!

13 years and counting!

Dear reader(s),

I began writing on something or the other on this platform in 2008. 

As you might see from the archived posts on this blog, what began then was just sporadic jotting. 

And while I might not have written anything too elaborate or exhaustive here, I have always tried to use this medium to just keep writing about anything that is current or appealing enough for me.

Most of my posts have been about cricket and sometimes, about the current socio-political affairs of India. The idea is to just ensure that I stay in touch with the habit of putting my thoughts on the canvas of this blog, every now and then. 

In 2008, when I started off on this journey, I would write a few posts here, and a few there, every few months. That was also fine but I wanted to make this blog a habit. Well, not exactly a particularly taxing or strenuous habit (like a daily or even a weekly blog) but at least once a month. 

So April 2009 onwards, I decided to ensure that I would write about something here at least on a monthly basis.

And here we are today, May 2021. 12 full years of at least one blog post a month. That's quite literally an entire schooling (span) in itself. 

A big thank you to everyone who has been following me, and to every reader who has enjoyed the posts and shared their feedback over email. (Of course, I have still not enabled the Comments section but I would like to keep it that way, at least for now, but I always welcome all your emails)

Here's to more such wonderful milestones in future too!

Take care :)

Stay home, stay safe, and vaccinate!

It's been more than a year since COVID-19 hit the world - at least most parts of it.

One could have been forgiven for thinking that things would be fine more than 400 days later. Especially when many nations began coming out of it towards the end of 2020. Or at least began showing signs of improvement and more control over the dreaded pandemic.

However, no one would have thought that despite the knowledge that a second (or third) wave would hit them, most countries were feeling more confident and more secure by the time we welcomed 2021.

However, this turned out to be a disastrous miscalculation, surely in a place like India.

Apart from mistaking the lull before the storm as a complete flattening of the curve, we made two cardinal mistakes.

1) No one bothered to increase mass-scale production of vaccines and begin vaccinations across the length and breadth of this huge country. Governments' failure - both at the Centre and states.

2) With the few people who began getting vaccinated (along with of course, the Corona-fatigue of people who had been locked down), there was a general sense of nonchalance and insouciance towards continuously following COVID-appropriate behavior. Public failure and gross negligence.

To make matters worse, people began congregating in mass gatherings with impudence of I-care-two-hoots for masks and social distancing.

No one bothered to think that even if they would be fine, someone else who could become more vulnerable to any potential virus that their presence could escalate.

The results have been catastrophic and here we are, today. Record number of cases, record number of deaths, horrifying accounts of people dying of lack of oxygen, hospitals turning patients away, doctors and medical staff breaking down and feeling helpless, the list goes on and on.

While we cannot undo the past, we can certainly do much better to improve our present and future. Please do not venture outside of your homes, unless it is absolutely essential. Even then, take every precaution you can, stay safe, and get vaccinated as soon as you are eligible and called upon.

This is also a moment to express our gratitude to all those who tireless helped others. Be it the doctors or other medical staff, the police and paramedical staff or the delivery boys or the sanitation workers who  have ploughed away incessantly.

Thank you, everyone.

If you are a COVID warrior who can help others by donating blood or plasma, please do.

If you are anyone who can help anyone, please do.

This is a time when the entre nation needs us. All of us, together.

Stay strong and please take care everyone. I'm sure we will overcome this soon. Jai Ho!

A memorable English spring

The juggernaut called Indian cricket continues to roll and more power to it!!

After a rude jolt in the first Test, India has always managed to stay one step ahead of the Englishmen in all formats of the game.

Of course, don't gi by the whitewash in the scoreline across each format - the series was a close one and England competed very well in every format.

But true to the character of the Men In Blue, Team India managed to find ways to scrape through every tough situation and overcome every obstacle in their way.

We kept getting match winning performances from Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Shardul Thakur.

Not to forget, some scintillating debuts by Ishan Kishan, Suryalumar Yadav, and Krunal Pandya.

Wishing many more super duper performances from our awesome assembly line of incredible performers.

Here's to many more enjoyable seasons in Indian cricket...Jai Ho!!

Kuchh din toh guzaaro Gujarat mein!

This is turning out to be quite a riveting series with epic proportions between India and England (not to forget, with both Australia and NZ also following every bit of action with added interest).

If the opening Test belonged to the toss and Joe Root, the second one belonged to the toss, Rohit Sharma, and R Ashwin.

Suffice to say that the upcoming pink-ball Test will be another mouth-watering affair, with both teams vying to take the ascendancy. If India manage to win this, they will need to only only ensure that they do not lose the next match, to make it to the WTC Finals. So, a win or at least a draw, will be high on their wishlist from this match.

On the other hand, England have to win both this match as well as the next one. If not, they will have to quietly say bye-bye to their hopes of qualifying for the Finals. A draw from here will make Australia happy, who will then get to bypass both India and England, to meet New Zealand in the Finals.

All said and done, the pitch will be crucial, but so will the performances too. Any Test side has to perform in every condition, not least one which aspires to be a WTC finalist. And there is enough talk of home advantage - why not? Why can we not have pitches that turn and help spinners from Day One? For all the critics of such tactics, how often have you heard the same people complaining about seaming, bouncy pitches that jag the ball in and around your chin/chest from the first over of the day?

It's all fine as long as nothing is substandard. And substandard it has not been. If you needed any further confirmation, I have a few names for you: Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin - centurions from the same match, same pitch. Even Ben Foakes, in the English First Innings, showed how one can apply oneself to play and score on such a pitch.

So let's leave the excuses and wailing to disgruntled and frustrated Vaughans, Waughs and other such cry-babies. Time to spend some time in Gujarat now, get your dhoklas and fafdaas ready, let's get to the action in the middle soon, and let's look forward to another round of top quality cricket from two wonderful sides.

All the best, India - Jai Ho!

IndiaA, IndiaA!!! IndiaA, IndiaA!!!

It's a new year and after what was pretty much a calamitous 2020 for the entire world, at least when it comes to Indian cricket, we couldn't have had a more resounding start to the new year!!

Actually, things began taking a turn for the better right after Christmas 2020, with the Boxing Day Test itself where we registered a historic win, which was followed by an unforgettable heist to achieve a draw at Sydney in the first week of the new year by our bravehearts, culminating in a crescendo of indescribable proportions with the unbridled joy on conquering what used to be called - attention all Aussies, especially Tim Paine: past tense now - what used to be called - a fortress for Australia, the Gabbatoir.

There are so many things one feels as a cricket lover and as an Indian team fan, yet there's precious little that I have which can be explained in words.

Some of my friends have pointed to certain sections in the cricketing world (you can guess and even expect the geo-coordinates of such people! It must also be mentioned though, that in all fairness, not everyone from such locations is bereft of objectivity and fairmindedness. So we are talking of only some/most (but not all) Burnol-worthy, jealousy-driven zealots from certain locations in Asia). They deserve to only be ignored and prayed for. Nothing less, nothing more.

You don't even need to be an Indian fan, not even a Test match specialist. All you need to be is to not be a bigoted, blinded supporter who would hate to see India win anywhere against anyone.

In any case, if you cannot appreciate this from India, there's nary a chance you ever will.

So let that be as it may, one can only pity those who understand cricket and even know the importance and magnitude of such a series win, but fall short of duly accepting or acknowledging it. Such achievements, are anyway not dependent on anyone's certificate or the lack of it.

Sample this: the last time we won in Australia two years ago, in 2018-19, there was a lot of talk about Smith and Warner being away from the squad and hence, it was seen as a win that wasn't against their best team - as if we had kept the two out, instead of it being the result of their own shenanigans.

Despite that, 2 years later, when we toured again, we already landed with a depleted squad. 

Ishant was ruled out of the entire tour right from the IPL. Rohit did not reach Australia till the second Test and so he could play only two (half of the) Test matches and Virat had to return back on paternity leave right after the first Test.

It was pretty much an India A team that we had fielded. Even with that team, people began getting injured, hit and replaced. Hanuma Vihari, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, R Ashwin, Navdeep Saini (soon into the fourth Test).

If this is not backs to the wall stuff, what else is?

From losing the first test after getting dismissed for 36 on Dec 19 to becoming 2-1 winners in the same series exactly a month later on Jan 19 with pretty much an India A squad (or even lesser), it could not have got better than this. Fairy tales might look more realistic in comparison.

And yet, we did it!

We did what no team has done. With not just two players out, but almost the entire first-choice team being out injured or unavailable. We did it despite a historic loss and humiliation. We did it, despite every kind of targeted, hostile bowling and equally targeted, equally hostile behavior by the haughty Aussie team.

We marched on and achieved the unthinkable. To beat the Aussies in their own. Correction: We beat the full-strength Aussie team with our second-string Indian team in their own den. Even at their so-called fortress. Even when we did not have to or need to win the match to win the trophy. We would have won the trophy even.after just drawing the final Test.

But this is why is the new Team India.

This is why champions are made of sterner stuff.

This is why we won, even when we did not have our best personnel.

We won it when Pujara hobbled and winced in pain after taking body blows but did not cower and did not leave until getting out and ensuring we were not going to lose the match.

We won it when Vihari and Ashwin braved every bruise, every hamstring, every back pain, every ounce of their patience and ability to see through the Aussie battery in Sydney.

We won it when Rahane, Gill, Jadeja, Pant, Saini, Sundar, Thakur, Bumrah, Siraj, Rohit and Saini kept punching above their weight ball after ball, game after game. 

We would have won it even if all our players were asked to bat on one leg.

We won because everyone in that team had self-belief and a never-say-die attitude. Combined with dignified aggression. All these are qualities which only one team had in the series. And it wasn't Australia.

Thank you Team India, for providing such a spectacle, such  joy, such a series. Truly the best win till date and one to savor for the ages!!

It was a privilege to watch this team do the unthinkable and in such grand style, despite such adverse circumstances - beating Australia in Australia two times in a row!! Too good, keep it up!!

Jai Ho!!