जी हाँ, पेश है एक और बार - BCCI की चमकार!
इसके जितना कमा नहीं पाती कई countries की सरकार!!
दादागिरी करने का मिला एक और हथियार!
करे अपने cricketers पर privacy-protection की बौछार!
BCCI की चमकार!
आया नया अँधेरा!!
(BCCI Says: "WADA का..)
..हर Clause मेरा"!
Enough, BCCI and Indian cricketers - much as we love our cricket, along with the joy you provide us with your talent, we are not taking this.
I mean, I simply don't get it, guys. Our cricketers are already exalted to demi-god status, we don't grudge them that. (It's another matter though, that all others who get recognition for the country should also come atleast close to the celeb status, wealth and sheer clout that the cricketers command after donning national colors).
But howsoever famous you may be, you cannot not adhere to already stated, and universally-accepted rules and guidelines.
We have the best of the best conforming to the clauses of the WADA - be it with the ATP (Tennis) or FIFA (Soccer) or all the sportspersons who participate in sports affiliated to the IOA (International Olympic Association). And didn't BCCI know what it was getting into, when it signed the agreement with WADA?
The cricketers are, reportedly, unhappy with the WADA clause that requires them to furnish information about where they would be, on the grounds that it infringes on their privacy. Sure, but isn't it a small price to pay for, if you understand the intent behind the policy and also note that all others agree to it as well?
Is others' privacy or information less sensitive or less important than our demi-gods'?
And instead of reining in the delinquents, why has the BCCI chosen to side with the cricketers, even taking on the Government, and bullying the ICC into creating a separate, autonomous testing system for cricketers?
Isn't that unfair use of monopoly?
One needs to be fair to all, and if security and privacy are the reasons, ask a Roger Federer if he is not entitled to privacy or the Pakistani and Sri Lankan teams if they are not concerned about security.
WADA is a universally-recognised body, which would only help each sport to get rid of the menace of doping.
And then, we whine about the lack of standards and cricket not being included in the Olympics.
If you shirk from performing when the stage is yours, you cannot cry over talent not being recognized.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Dear Bapu..
Dear Bapu,
I have always revered you for not only showing a new way of life but also practising everything that you preached.
It is no wonder, therefore, that most of your teachings are the foundation stones on which our constitutional practices and principles have been built.
However, sometimes I wonder, what your approach would have been if you were to have lived in the present era, of relentless and repentless terror, corruption and judicial torpidity.
Bapu, one of your most famous quotes has long been the cornerstone of our policy and law-making practices. It goes something like this: "Even if a hundred criminals go scot free, it's still preferable to even one innocent being unfairly prosecuted".
Please do not misinterpret my difference of opinion as disagreement with (much less, criticism of) your line of thought. I am anyway too inconsequential and your thoughts were and will always remain too good to be criticised. I am just wondering whether, having seen the light of the day in today's times, you would have wanted to continue your policy of tolerance and benefit of doubt to even the most evident of crimes and criminals - only for the sake of a policy.
I believe the assumption, typically sensitive and caring of you, was relevant for precisely the times you lived in. Back then, I cannot recall incidents when ingenious minds used their creativity negatively to make up lame excuses in favor of criminals.
Correct me if I am wrong, but today, things have come to such a pass due to the archaic give-benefit-of-doubt unless proven guilty (completely), that it has allowed our justice deliverance mechanism to go into unexplainable and unreasonable stupor, faster and longer than a Kumbhakarna.
I wonder how you'd react if you were to witness the gross abuse of the judicial process and policies in order to make open-and-shut cases (of inhuman, barbaric and most unequivocally condemnable acts) favorable for the accused party, all in the name of benefit of doubt, lack of evidence, delay in judgements' deliverance, etc. for years and years together.
The latest development is another case in point, where a decisive verdict would not only deliver justice but also provide a fitting message to the perpetrators of such crimes, about the consequences that they should be prepared for, if they dare to even think of committing any such heinous acts.
Why do we not deliver justice promptly in open and shut cases?
What do we get by waiting everytime for n number of evidences against an accused, who has all the time in the world to fabricate the case, threaten witnesses, pay up equally debased lawyers to abuse any caveat or loose ends in the law to his advantage, and delay the trial or even be released 'honorably'?
And again, I am not advocating that we do not behave in a statesman-like manner. I also know that there are diplomatic, political and symbolic reasons that also delay a verdict. But to see this happening in every case only gives the impression that the state itself is weak, paralysed and too indecisive to even deliver a just verdict promptly.
Well, forget promptness, most often, we are left high and dry hoping for atleast a verdict - Afzal Guru is still accused in the Parliament attack case of 2002. The Kataras, the Sabharwals, the Jessica Lalls, the Pandher-Koli victims, all have a story to tell - only to keep awaiting justice and expect their next generation to carry on the battle, hoping against hope.
Bapu, if you were around and you saw such blatant violation of civic and fundamental rights, and denial of justice to even the victims of open-and-shut cases, what would you have done?
Would you not agree it is high time we took the bull by its horns and ensure we DELIVER JUSTICE TO THE DESERVING AND THE HAPLESS VICTIMS, RIGHT AWAY?
Bapu, I guess you would have had to seriously reconsider the policy of trusting even a known criminal to be innocent if you could see the impunity with which criminals go scot-free, just for want of enough evidence (how much and when is it ever enough for them, anyway?!), and time-warped deficiencies in our laws and archaic policies.
Love you Bapu, but I believe the Mahatma that you always were, your soul too might really feel at peace only when we all shrug off this inertia of being indolent to arm-twisting by known criminals and offenders, and insolent to the frustrated, helpless victims.
One might somehow still be able to bear the victimisation inflicted by a criminal. But it is infinitely and exponentially more unbearable, unreasonable and unfair on those victims to see the criminal being exempted from punitive action simply for want of archaic laws and loose processes. And it is we, who are responsible for doing so.
Just as important as delivering justice to victims of known offenders (yet to be proven guilty only in the the soap opera of a trial in the courtrooms) is how soon justice gets delivered.
Justice delayed is justice denied, as well as faith dented - not just of the victims, but also of all those people who helplessly and frustratingly witness, read, observe and follow such developments.
Why be a weak state, taking years together to deliver long-due justice, which should take a month's time at best?
Bapu, did you ever want that people arm-twist the principles you laid out for our governance, in this way to suit themselves unfairly, and at the cost of the people who have already suffered enough?
Haven't we been witnessing that today, by taking advantage of the benefit-of-doubt and innocent-till-proven-guilty policy along with the inordinately long delays in judgements, known criminals and offenders merrily while away their time, while the victims and bravehearts who pursue the case seeking justice, are the ones actually suffering?
So eventually, instead of ensuring that even one innocent does not suffer, we have ended up making only the innocent victims suffer - not only once when they themselves bore the brunt of the inflicted crime, but many times over when they kept coming to the courts in the hope of justice and with the will to see the culprits being brought to book. Alas, only in vain.
So haven't all of us - since all of us are components of our corrupt, debased, and completely negligent system, the why-bother-if-it-doesn't-affect-me or why-take-on-the-system junta - actively or passively, only helped the criminals go off the hook, and made justice just a mirage for the victims?
Would you have wanted this to happen, Bapu?
I wish you could react to how things are today..
I wish you could show us the right way forward..
I have always revered you for not only showing a new way of life but also practising everything that you preached.
It is no wonder, therefore, that most of your teachings are the foundation stones on which our constitutional practices and principles have been built.
However, sometimes I wonder, what your approach would have been if you were to have lived in the present era, of relentless and repentless terror, corruption and judicial torpidity.
Bapu, one of your most famous quotes has long been the cornerstone of our policy and law-making practices. It goes something like this: "Even if a hundred criminals go scot free, it's still preferable to even one innocent being unfairly prosecuted".
Please do not misinterpret my difference of opinion as disagreement with (much less, criticism of) your line of thought. I am anyway too inconsequential and your thoughts were and will always remain too good to be criticised. I am just wondering whether, having seen the light of the day in today's times, you would have wanted to continue your policy of tolerance and benefit of doubt to even the most evident of crimes and criminals - only for the sake of a policy.
I believe the assumption, typically sensitive and caring of you, was relevant for precisely the times you lived in. Back then, I cannot recall incidents when ingenious minds used their creativity negatively to make up lame excuses in favor of criminals.
Correct me if I am wrong, but today, things have come to such a pass due to the archaic give-benefit-of-doubt unless proven guilty (completely), that it has allowed our justice deliverance mechanism to go into unexplainable and unreasonable stupor, faster and longer than a Kumbhakarna.
I wonder how you'd react if you were to witness the gross abuse of the judicial process and policies in order to make open-and-shut cases (of inhuman, barbaric and most unequivocally condemnable acts) favorable for the accused party, all in the name of benefit of doubt, lack of evidence, delay in judgements' deliverance, etc. for years and years together.
The latest development is another case in point, where a decisive verdict would not only deliver justice but also provide a fitting message to the perpetrators of such crimes, about the consequences that they should be prepared for, if they dare to even think of committing any such heinous acts.
Why do we not deliver justice promptly in open and shut cases?
What do we get by waiting everytime for n number of evidences against an accused, who has all the time in the world to fabricate the case, threaten witnesses, pay up equally debased lawyers to abuse any caveat or loose ends in the law to his advantage, and delay the trial or even be released 'honorably'?
And again, I am not advocating that we do not behave in a statesman-like manner. I also know that there are diplomatic, political and symbolic reasons that also delay a verdict. But to see this happening in every case only gives the impression that the state itself is weak, paralysed and too indecisive to even deliver a just verdict promptly.
Well, forget promptness, most often, we are left high and dry hoping for atleast a verdict - Afzal Guru is still accused in the Parliament attack case of 2002. The Kataras, the Sabharwals, the Jessica Lalls, the Pandher-Koli victims, all have a story to tell - only to keep awaiting justice and expect their next generation to carry on the battle, hoping against hope.
Bapu, if you were around and you saw such blatant violation of civic and fundamental rights, and denial of justice to even the victims of open-and-shut cases, what would you have done?
Would you not agree it is high time we took the bull by its horns and ensure we DELIVER JUSTICE TO THE DESERVING AND THE HAPLESS VICTIMS, RIGHT AWAY?
Bapu, I guess you would have had to seriously reconsider the policy of trusting even a known criminal to be innocent if you could see the impunity with which criminals go scot-free, just for want of enough evidence (how much and when is it ever enough for them, anyway?!), and time-warped deficiencies in our laws and archaic policies.
Love you Bapu, but I believe the Mahatma that you always were, your soul too might really feel at peace only when we all shrug off this inertia of being indolent to arm-twisting by known criminals and offenders, and insolent to the frustrated, helpless victims.
One might somehow still be able to bear the victimisation inflicted by a criminal. But it is infinitely and exponentially more unbearable, unreasonable and unfair on those victims to see the criminal being exempted from punitive action simply for want of archaic laws and loose processes. And it is we, who are responsible for doing so.
Just as important as delivering justice to victims of known offenders (yet to be proven guilty only in the the soap opera of a trial in the courtrooms) is how soon justice gets delivered.
Justice delayed is justice denied, as well as faith dented - not just of the victims, but also of all those people who helplessly and frustratingly witness, read, observe and follow such developments.
Why be a weak state, taking years together to deliver long-due justice, which should take a month's time at best?
Bapu, did you ever want that people arm-twist the principles you laid out for our governance, in this way to suit themselves unfairly, and at the cost of the people who have already suffered enough?
Haven't we been witnessing that today, by taking advantage of the benefit-of-doubt and innocent-till-proven-guilty policy along with the inordinately long delays in judgements, known criminals and offenders merrily while away their time, while the victims and bravehearts who pursue the case seeking justice, are the ones actually suffering?
So eventually, instead of ensuring that even one innocent does not suffer, we have ended up making only the innocent victims suffer - not only once when they themselves bore the brunt of the inflicted crime, but many times over when they kept coming to the courts in the hope of justice and with the will to see the culprits being brought to book. Alas, only in vain.
So haven't all of us - since all of us are components of our corrupt, debased, and completely negligent system, the why-bother-if-it-doesn't-affect-me or why-take-on-the-system junta - actively or passively, only helped the criminals go off the hook, and made justice just a mirage for the victims?
Would you have wanted this to happen, Bapu?
I wish you could react to how things are today..
I wish you could show us the right way forward..
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
My 3 Best Friends
The following post might seem as if I am writing in a highly delusional, despondent mood, or that something tragic has befallen me, or that I have been watching Astha TV, Sanskaar TV or some marathon, non-stop pravachan for years together!!
However, none of the above is true.
I just want to share my thoughts and beliefs on this platform, and it'll be nice if any of the readers (if they too happen to agree with my thoughts) can also benefit from believing in some things that I have believed in, and benefited from.
All of us go through, have gone through, (and inevitably, will go through) such times in life, when one does not fully comprehend the reasons behind why something happened (I stress especially on the unpleasant happenings, because most of us generally do not "question" the good things that God bestows us with!)
There are times when one feels one has been hard done.
There are times when it seems that there could possibly be nothing good or rational behind an event/result that did not occur in consonance with one's wishes or to one's liking.
क्या आपको भी कभी ऐसा लगा है?! :-)
क्या आप भी कभी ऐसी situations में आए हैं?!! :-)
क्या आप ऐसे समय पर दुखी और निराश हो जाते हैं? :-)
अगर इन सवालों का जवाब हाँ है, तो मेरे इन तीन मित्रों से ज़रूर मिल लीजिये: :-)
I believe in 3 axioms in life - 3 postulates, which I cannot prove - you just need to believe them, that's all.
These principles/axioms/postulates are my 3 best friends because they always help me deal with the biggest of unexplainable, bewildering disappointments with ridiculous ease.
They have been such great friends to me that whenever I have faced any disappointment or an unwanted event in life that I have not found reasonable or justifiable, it is this belief in these 3 friends that has always helped me (through them) to find solace, assuredness, renewed belief and gratitude towards God and His grace, and contentment in whatever happens, has happened, or whatever will happen.
Thought of sharing them with you, just in case any of you too might be interested in meeting these friends, and if any of you might benefit from them, it would be worth the post.
If you can believe them wholeheartedly and sincerely, these 3 friends will always hold you in good stead:
1. Even if you cannot believe or understand it, everything happens for the best
Nothing happens without reason, and happens for the best, even if you cannot understand the 'good' in it, let alone the 'best' part. You just gotta believe in the fact that even the things that you do not find favorable or likeable, are happening for the best - it's just that at the given time, you are not able to know/understand/appreciate the reason behind it. But our ignorance cannot and should not change the merit of the event or the wisdom of His decision.
If not you, atleast certainly He, the Almighty, knows the reason, the blessing, and the 'good' for you, in the ostensibly 'unfortunate' event that you might be crestfallen about.
As I said, I cannot prove it with some statistical data or anything else except self-belief and experiences from my life as well as that of others.
All of us must be aware of incidents which, our immature mind would have thought of as unfair, harsh, or unfortunate and unwanted.
However, eventually, with time and more wisdom, we might have realised the merit behind those incidents and the positives that accrued from those 'unfortunate/avoidable' circumstances.
2. He plans for you much better than you can ever plan for yourself
He, the Almighty, knows more than you can ever imagine and He Himself wants to keep you more happy than the happiness that you yourself can ever want and plan for yourself.
Again, it is imperative that we do not feel perturbed by any situation and never forget that everything is happening for our good (even better than the 'good' anyone can ever plan for oneself, because it is planned for us by Him) and that even though we cannot understand the reason or even if the 'good' part is not evident, we are not as mature as Him and are not good enough to understand the reason behind His decisions.
But you should never forget that He is always with us, for us, despite us being us!
3. He is Supreme
The Almighty is named so, because of the word itself: All Mighty. Nothing in this world is beyond Him, the Almighty.
Unless you are an atheist, you cannot not believe this!
So hopefully, believing this wholeheartedly and at all times, should not be beyond you. So never let go of this belief - it will keep you happy, content, assured, and blessed.
As with the other 2 rules, you just need to have genuine, unflinching and resolute belief in these rules. That's all it takes for me to feel good or atleast come to terms in a much, much better way with any situation.
Now, if you genuinely believe all these 3 friends, combine all that they tell you, and then look at anything in life with this perspective:
1. Even if something apparently unfortunate happens, it is for a greater good. So whatever is happening, is for the best even if we cannot understand it right now. Just need to believe in Him.
2. He plans for you much better than you can ever plan for yourself. He knows more than we can ever imagine and He Himself wants to keep us more happy than the happiness that we ourselves can ever want and plan for ourselves.
3. He is Supreme, and whatever He wants, and only that which He wants, will happen.
With this belief, refer back to Rules 1 & 2 again.
So, believing the points put forth by all my 3 friends, I can only conclude that He is someone whose wants dictate and decide what happens with each one of us, and it is that very He, who wants and plans for us to make us even happier than we can ever imagine and plan for ourselves even in our wildest dreams.
So it's just a matter of having the faith and ensuring that we do not forget the fact that even if we are unable to see the good/the benefit in an event, we should atleast be wise enough and faithful enough to ensure that we do keep believing in Him and in His plans for each one of us. And since He wants to keep us happy, He WILL do so, in His own way and style. Rest assured, whatever and whenever it'll be, it'll be better than even we could have planned for ourselves. For, HE is Almighty!!!
May God keep blessing us all!
However, none of the above is true.
I just want to share my thoughts and beliefs on this platform, and it'll be nice if any of the readers (if they too happen to agree with my thoughts) can also benefit from believing in some things that I have believed in, and benefited from.
All of us go through, have gone through, (and inevitably, will go through) such times in life, when one does not fully comprehend the reasons behind why something happened (I stress especially on the unpleasant happenings, because most of us generally do not "question" the good things that God bestows us with!)
There are times when one feels one has been hard done.
There are times when it seems that there could possibly be nothing good or rational behind an event/result that did not occur in consonance with one's wishes or to one's liking.
क्या आपको भी कभी ऐसा लगा है?! :-)
क्या आप भी कभी ऐसी situations में आए हैं?!! :-)
क्या आप ऐसे समय पर दुखी और निराश हो जाते हैं? :-)
अगर इन सवालों का जवाब हाँ है, तो मेरे इन तीन मित्रों से ज़रूर मिल लीजिये: :-)
I believe in 3 axioms in life - 3 postulates, which I cannot prove - you just need to believe them, that's all.
These principles/axioms/postulates are my 3 best friends because they always help me deal with the biggest of unexplainable, bewildering disappointments with ridiculous ease.
They have been such great friends to me that whenever I have faced any disappointment or an unwanted event in life that I have not found reasonable or justifiable, it is this belief in these 3 friends that has always helped me (through them) to find solace, assuredness, renewed belief and gratitude towards God and His grace, and contentment in whatever happens, has happened, or whatever will happen.
Thought of sharing them with you, just in case any of you too might be interested in meeting these friends, and if any of you might benefit from them, it would be worth the post.
If you can believe them wholeheartedly and sincerely, these 3 friends will always hold you in good stead:
1. Even if you cannot believe or understand it, everything happens for the best
Nothing happens without reason, and happens for the best, even if you cannot understand the 'good' in it, let alone the 'best' part. You just gotta believe in the fact that even the things that you do not find favorable or likeable, are happening for the best - it's just that at the given time, you are not able to know/understand/appreciate the reason behind it. But our ignorance cannot and should not change the merit of the event or the wisdom of His decision.
If not you, atleast certainly He, the Almighty, knows the reason, the blessing, and the 'good' for you, in the ostensibly 'unfortunate' event that you might be crestfallen about.
As I said, I cannot prove it with some statistical data or anything else except self-belief and experiences from my life as well as that of others.
All of us must be aware of incidents which, our immature mind would have thought of as unfair, harsh, or unfortunate and unwanted.
However, eventually, with time and more wisdom, we might have realised the merit behind those incidents and the positives that accrued from those 'unfortunate/avoidable' circumstances.
2. He plans for you much better than you can ever plan for yourself
He, the Almighty, knows more than you can ever imagine and He Himself wants to keep you more happy than the happiness that you yourself can ever want and plan for yourself.
Again, it is imperative that we do not feel perturbed by any situation and never forget that everything is happening for our good (even better than the 'good' anyone can ever plan for oneself, because it is planned for us by Him) and that even though we cannot understand the reason or even if the 'good' part is not evident, we are not as mature as Him and are not good enough to understand the reason behind His decisions.
But you should never forget that He is always with us, for us, despite us being us!
3. He is Supreme
The Almighty is named so, because of the word itself: All Mighty. Nothing in this world is beyond Him, the Almighty.
Unless you are an atheist, you cannot not believe this!
So hopefully, believing this wholeheartedly and at all times, should not be beyond you. So never let go of this belief - it will keep you happy, content, assured, and blessed.
As with the other 2 rules, you just need to have genuine, unflinching and resolute belief in these rules. That's all it takes for me to feel good or atleast come to terms in a much, much better way with any situation.
Now, if you genuinely believe all these 3 friends, combine all that they tell you, and then look at anything in life with this perspective:
1. Even if something apparently unfortunate happens, it is for a greater good. So whatever is happening, is for the best even if we cannot understand it right now. Just need to believe in Him.
2. He plans for you much better than you can ever plan for yourself. He knows more than we can ever imagine and He Himself wants to keep us more happy than the happiness that we ourselves can ever want and plan for ourselves.
3. He is Supreme, and whatever He wants, and only that which He wants, will happen.
With this belief, refer back to Rules 1 & 2 again.
So, believing the points put forth by all my 3 friends, I can only conclude that He is someone whose wants dictate and decide what happens with each one of us, and it is that very He, who wants and plans for us to make us even happier than we can ever imagine and plan for ourselves even in our wildest dreams.
So it's just a matter of having the faith and ensuring that we do not forget the fact that even if we are unable to see the good/the benefit in an event, we should atleast be wise enough and faithful enough to ensure that we do keep believing in Him and in His plans for each one of us. And since He wants to keep us happy, He WILL do so, in His own way and style. Rest assured, whatever and whenever it'll be, it'll be better than even we could have planned for ourselves. For, HE is Almighty!!!
May God keep blessing us all!
Monday, June 15, 2009
Ye Cup...Kaheen Aur Hi Jaayega :-(
So, the dream has ended.
England have knocked the defending World Champions out of the 2009 edition.
It's a pity we couldn't even make the semis.
It's a pity we played the way we played, given the talent and the billing the team always enjoyed.
Wish Bhajji - despite his excellent bowling otherwise - had enough wits about him to atleast not spray the ball way down the leg side (and fast at that!), only to give away 5 runs, along with an extra ball - not even once, but TWICE! - and certainly, not on the last ball of the innings!!!!
Couldn't Dhoni have just had a quiet word with him before atleast that last ball of the innings, especially when he had kept that over tight - just to remind Bhajji to ensure no extras were conceded?
Mind you, I don't have a problem with the opposition playing well, but to gift the match away by making crucial, basic errors is a cardinal sin.
By the way, I would have still castigated the bowler and the captain for the aforementioned instance in the aforementioned way, even if India had won.
Why was RP Singh not bowled for his entire quota, when he had bowled so well?
I can still live with the idea of promoting Jadeja if you try to understand Dhoni's intent - it was not such a bad idea after all, to have him up at #4, so that the bigger players were not lost before the 10th over, and the scoreboard would have kept moving.
Even if Jad would have got out, he wouldn't have been as big a loss as a Yuvraj or Dhoni or Yusuf and again, if he were to come down the order with the asking rate at 9+ or 10+, it would not have served him well there too. Wouldn't we have then said it was too much to ask from the inexperienced youngster?
So all in all, when it came to using his experience and playing style, I think it was better he came when he did. The only problem was that he took too many balls, he could have taken atleast 5-10 balls less than he actually did, and that's where Dhoni too missed a trick. He should have given instructions to the youngster to get on with it, definitely when the halfway mark of the innings had been crossed.
Why was Jadeja not told to hit out or get out, when he was clearly struggling? When he eventually holed out, it seemed he was more happy than the bowler for putting him out of his misery.
If you face good bowling, as India did, I still don't mind the slow start, but atleast the basic, school-level errors could've been avoided.
A little more common-sensical approach, a dash of enjoyment and intensity in the field and on the pitch in gaining an extra run with hard running, and a little more communication from the captain - is all I have a complaint against.
Yes, we could still have lost, but atleast I wouldn't mind it as much if we tried and gave our best, but lost just because the other team came better on the day.
Anyway, just as with wins, let's hope that we don't get carried away too much.
This is just an emotional outburst, and I am sure our team has enough talent to win more often than lose.
I'm sure the guys are just as disappointed as the others, if not more.
But just hope the intensity and enjoyment never get flagged, as it seemed to happen last night at Lord's.
England have knocked the defending World Champions out of the 2009 edition.
It's a pity we couldn't even make the semis.
It's a pity we played the way we played, given the talent and the billing the team always enjoyed.
Wish Bhajji - despite his excellent bowling otherwise - had enough wits about him to atleast not spray the ball way down the leg side (and fast at that!), only to give away 5 runs, along with an extra ball - not even once, but TWICE! - and certainly, not on the last ball of the innings!!!!
Couldn't Dhoni have just had a quiet word with him before atleast that last ball of the innings, especially when he had kept that over tight - just to remind Bhajji to ensure no extras were conceded?
Mind you, I don't have a problem with the opposition playing well, but to gift the match away by making crucial, basic errors is a cardinal sin.
By the way, I would have still castigated the bowler and the captain for the aforementioned instance in the aforementioned way, even if India had won.
Why was RP Singh not bowled for his entire quota, when he had bowled so well?
I can still live with the idea of promoting Jadeja if you try to understand Dhoni's intent - it was not such a bad idea after all, to have him up at #4, so that the bigger players were not lost before the 10th over, and the scoreboard would have kept moving.
Even if Jad would have got out, he wouldn't have been as big a loss as a Yuvraj or Dhoni or Yusuf and again, if he were to come down the order with the asking rate at 9+ or 10+, it would not have served him well there too. Wouldn't we have then said it was too much to ask from the inexperienced youngster?
So all in all, when it came to using his experience and playing style, I think it was better he came when he did. The only problem was that he took too many balls, he could have taken atleast 5-10 balls less than he actually did, and that's where Dhoni too missed a trick. He should have given instructions to the youngster to get on with it, definitely when the halfway mark of the innings had been crossed.
Why was Jadeja not told to hit out or get out, when he was clearly struggling? When he eventually holed out, it seemed he was more happy than the bowler for putting him out of his misery.
If you face good bowling, as India did, I still don't mind the slow start, but atleast the basic, school-level errors could've been avoided.
A little more common-sensical approach, a dash of enjoyment and intensity in the field and on the pitch in gaining an extra run with hard running, and a little more communication from the captain - is all I have a complaint against.
Yes, we could still have lost, but atleast I wouldn't mind it as much if we tried and gave our best, but lost just because the other team came better on the day.
Anyway, just as with wins, let's hope that we don't get carried away too much.
This is just an emotional outburst, and I am sure our team has enough talent to win more often than lose.
I'm sure the guys are just as disappointed as the others, if not more.
But just hope the intensity and enjoyment never get flagged, as it seemed to happen last night at Lord's.
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