Go India Go!!

Four years ago, MS Dhoni completed his trophy cabinet, by winning the Champions Trophy (too), in 2013.

With this, India (and Dhoni, as captain), had won each of the major, coveted tournament titles that are up for grabs in the cricketing world - after the Test # 1 position, and the ODI and T20 World Cup victories.
Note: Of course, for the record, India had won the Champions Trophy as joint winners with hosts Sri Lanka in the rain-marred final in 2002, but there is another joy in being the sole winners, with your hands not jostling for space, when the winner is asked to lift the trophy.

So - circa 2017 - it's Champions Trophy time, as India take on Pakistan in their very first encounter on June 04.

Here's my starting XI for the match:

  1. Rohit Sharma
  2. Shikhar Dhawan
  3. Virat Kohli (c)
  4. Yuvraj Singh
  5. M S Dhoni (wk)
  6. Kedar Jadhav
  7. Ravindra Jadeja
  8. Ravichandran Ashwin
  9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar
10. Mohammad Shami
11. Jasprit Bumrah

I hope we have another great tournament in the offing.

All the best, Team India!!
Time for an encore of 2013!!!!

Happy Birthday Sachin!!

So, it's that time of the year again when we pay obeisance to a certain Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar!

Many happy returns of the day, to not just one of the best cricketers the game has ever seen, but even more importantly, a completely genuine and dignified superstar despite being a living legend.

Picture this for a moment:
You capture the imagination of your local area or even your state (in any field), as a precocious prodigy, while still in your teens - say 19. People throng to watch your talent unfold as your perform.
I'm sure we can imagine the expectations.
Feel the pressure.
The and hopes that rest on you and the subsequent adulation you receive if you succeed.
Tell me if you don't feel dizzied by the adoring fans and the unending compliments.

Now, raise the bar by only a 100 times.
Replace state with country/even the world.
And, replace 19 with 16!

Most importantly, replace adulation with media frenzy, constant talk about how critical you are, as you realize the fact that rightly or not, want it or not, the nation's success, failure, or even any mood - begins to hinge in direct proportion to whether you made it to triple figures or not.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar for you.

True, we have always had superstars in each era, and we will continue to have many.
But as I wrote in an earlier post right after his retirement, no one, NO ONE (including the great Gavaskar and Kapil) had ever been or will ever be in the same pressure, certainly not in the same situation of not knowing what to follow, who to look upto, when facing superstar-level fame.

We love you, Sachin.
May you continue to stay grounded, humble, and remain an inspiration to everyone, not just on how to bat well and maintain balance on the pitch while batting, but also to excel off the field, in being a good human being and maintain that equanimity amidst any amount of success or failure.
May you stay blessed and have a wonderful, healthy and happy life for many years to come!!!

Best wishes!

Sincerely,
Just another of your zillion fans! :)

Chucking Feats!!

Well, as they say, he who laughs last, laughs best.

Even after we were trailing behind Australia, there was always this sneaking feeling that India will hit back and hit hard.

In my last post - AahUsTrailYeah (penned right after we lost the first Test), I had written about how we have all that it takes to bounce back and win:

"Eventual Result and Scoreline
Despite the loss, I still see India bouncing back, leveling scores, and eventually clinching the series.
So much for Us-Trail?Yeah!"

Just so happy to see that the Indian team turned the corner and actualized this prophecy!
Coming back, rebuilding from tough situations too, multiple people shining across each department of the game and the team displaying its mettle - truly befitting a No.1 side :)

There's another pleasing stat going around of us having beaten every Test team in our last/latest series against each of them.

Well, so much for Steve Smith abusing and discrediting Indians (Vijay), when a much more credible Australian by the name of Ian Chappell himself defended Murali Vijay's belief of having taken the catch!

Not to forget, the brazen hypocrisy of calling Vijay a cheat (that too, wrongly) for a subjective call (as proven by Chappell's stand himself), whereas labeling his clear transgression of cricketing rectitude by making DRS a DressingRoom Review System, as just a 'brain fade'!

Ever believed in things called Consistency and same rules for everyone, Mr. Smith?

Well, to him and others of his ilk, we need not bother or even respond, when our results and feats can do all the talking :)
The word isn't Fucking Cheats, Ms. Smith.

We'd rather say Chucking Feats - enjoying chuckling over feats in front of you, after having beaten you, fair and square!!

So here's to even more chuckling, Team India - both at home and overseas :)
As I said, he who chuckles (laughs) last, chuckles (laughs) best :)

Jai Ho, Team India - truly World Number 1 and here to stay :)

AahUsTrailYeah!

That's right, mate!
Believe it or not, we have received a shellacking from the Austraalllyans in Pune.

As we head onto Bangalore for the next match trailing 0-1 in the four-match Test series, the writing on the wall is amply clear: Good (Rude) morning Team India - Wake up call!!

Time we pulled our socks up and correct the blunders we committed in the last match.

Here's what I believe:

Pitch
While there is no denying that the Aussies completely outbatted us in Pune, it is equally true that the kind of pitch we saw there, would not be the same across other venues.
Yes, Virat Kohli did not blame anyone but the batting for the inept performance.
But as much as he was honest in introspecting, he might also have been brave in discounting the impact that it had on the game.

Couple this with the fact that we dropped so many catches and lost a very good toss to win, and you know, the tables could well have turned had we batted first (and well) on the same pitch.

My expectation: I think the pitches in the remainder of the series will still be turning pitches but without the amount of turn or bounce that Pune offered, from Day One.

What that would do, is to make it a typical Indian wicket, best for batting on the first 2 days, kind of progressively getting tougher from Day 3, to then start breaking more, taking turn, and also generate uneven bounce, on Days 4 and 5.

Playing Eleven
I think Kohli will need to make sure that he puts out the best Playing XI, most suited and most equipped in form as well as temperament, to suit the surface and dent the opposition as much as possible.

Karun Nair might make his way into the eleven at the expense of a bowler (Jayant?) and there is also the possibility of Ishant being sacrificed for Bhuvi.

Eventual Result and Scoreline
Despite the loss, I still see India bouncing back, leveling scores, and eventually clinching the series.
So much for Us-Trail?Yeah!

Here's hoping each wish comes true :)
Go for it, Team IndiYeaah!!
Jai Ho!!