Jai Ho!

Happy New Year and all that.
Yes, this is a review alright, but not a movie review, albeit a cricketing one.

It was the first series of the new year, and with the loss to New Zealand, we have now lost the numero uno ranking in ODIs in the new year.

It is not the loss that rankles fans like yours truly.
It is the insipid display of our batting (barring Kohli and Dhoni, and later Jadeja) in this series and the perennially toothless bowling attack that we have been enduring, which hurts.

There are times when the very first ball of the match sets the tempo - the immaculate line and length a bowler finds right from ball one, the agility and reflexes shown by the fielder(s), the team spirit and body language that is reflected in the way the team carries itself, and if batting, the intent, concentration, and discipline shown by the batsmen.

All these add up to make a cricket match exciting and accelerate its tempo, building up to a crescendo by the time the last ball of the series is bowled.
This time, however, the euphoria has ended much before the last ball of the series actually gets bowled, thanks to the series already having been lost by India, and the last match turning out to be a dead rubber.

As I said, it is not the result - victory or defeat will eventually follow, sooner or later, as per the efforts that are put up in either direction - it is the efforts, the process being followed (or the lack of it) which needs correction.

With the likes of Dhawan, Ishant Sharma, Raina, and to a a large extent, even Rohit Sharma, failing, the time has come for some serious introspection on what we need to do to perform better overseas.

Hopefully, we shall see a reformed and as the cliched new product commercials have us believe, a (New, Improved!!) Team India on its next important assignments overseas.

PS: Watch this space for more - we still have the Test series to go.
And with the change in personnel - someone like Pujara coming in, we still have hope for a better performance by our team in Test-ing conditions overseas too.

Hoping for better performances and victories eventually: Jai Ho!

To new times and fond remembrances!

Though all years have their own particular significance, the year 2013 will be remembered for many historic reasons.

It was the year that saw a paradigm shift in Indian polity, with the Aam Aadmi Party capturing a sizeable part of the imagination and votes from the people in Delhi.
In pretty much a year after it was formed, this party, led by Arvind Kejriwal, has been sworn in to power. A fabulous metamorphosis from a grassroots person to the head of governance in the city.
The symbolism that the city also happens to be the nation's capital, should also not be lost on anyone.

From a cricketing standpoint, it was also an year where many greats left the game.
Ricky Ponting, Sachin Tendulkar, Graeme Swann, and Jacques Kallis - to name some of the truly great ones.

Of these, the last person to announce his retirement - Jacques Kallis - was someone truly special.
The most complete of cricketers of the modern era, and arguably the best all-rounder the game ever saw, besides Sir Garfield Sobers.
The remarkable thing with Kallis has been that he has been able to achieve such staggering numbers in not just batting, but also in bowling and fielding (catches) too.
They say, the best definition of a true-blue genuine, quality all-rounder is that apart from doing multiple things, he can walk into a team on the basis of any one ability itself.
That holds true for Jacques Kallis, in every possible way.
You take the numbers from batting, bowling or fielding (catching) - and he is right up there, with the very best.
And we are talking of numbers taht belong to the all-time list.
Highest number of matches, highest number of runs/centuries, maximum wickets, maximum catches - you name it, and he is spoken of in the same breath as the very best of all times.

As if this were not enough, just consider the fact that the guy has also played a sizeable numbers of One Dayers for his country, and other county/IPL stints too.
Take that workload into account, and what you get apart from a smorgasboard of awe-inspiring statistics, is also the disbelief that someone could do so much, so well, in so many things, and for so long!
Truly an all-time great, Jacques Kallis, you are a hero in every sense of the term - fare thee well!

Farewells apart, it is also a time to sit back and assess some of the performances of our young guns in South Africa. Especially two gentlemen by the names of Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli.
These two, along with Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, have been touted as the future of Indian cricket and the next Fab Four, after the originals - Sachin, Dravid, Ganguly, and Laxman.

As is often rightly said, the true test of a cricketer, is outside of his natural zone - such as in a match situation where an attacking batsman might have to shelve his blitzkreig in favor of a more sedate and cautious approach for his team.
Also, the other obvious 'alien' territory is the territory itself - foreign shores, bouncy pitches for players from the subcontinent!
It is here that the performances of Pujara and Kohli have gladdened the heart the most.
Both have acquitted themselves very well in both the matches that India have played, and while the second innings of the last Test is still to be played as I write this, it is certain that the future of Indian cricket is in good hands.
Apart from the NFF - New Fab Four - combine the experience of Gambhir, the dash of Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, and a still young Mohammad Shami, and we have the solid nucleus of a team that can truly serve us well for the next decade or so.
The coming year(s) then, should truly be ones to cheer about and look forward to!
So here's to new times and fond remembrances, and a very happy new year 2014 to all!!

There will never be another Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

So, it has been the end of an era and all that.
It has taken me a few weeks (and I am still not done) just soaking up all I the good articles I could get to read, about a certain gentleman with Tendulkar as his surname.

Sure, there was this huge build-up to Sachin's final test series, right from October 10, when he announced his retirement, all building up to an incredible crescendo by the time he actually walked out in pads for the last time for India.

Followed by, yes you guessed it, his unanimously-loved farewell speech.

I am happy to share, before anything else, some wonderful articles that are truly worth reading, in understanding what people think and feel about Sachin:

Two of the best pieces I read, are here: one, by the wonderful Siddharth Vaidyanathan, and this is the very talented Ashish Shakya, entering tributes online.

And then, of course, there's Cricinfo - providing the most exhaustive coverage they'd ever have done on one man: brilliant, fascinating, engaging, excellent.
 
For me, there are quite a few abiding memories and lessons with which I shall remember Sachin:
Dignity, Humility and Impeccable Conduct

All these are qualities that have been oft-spoken and are so true that howsoever many times you hear them from anyone, they never seem cliched just because you know they are being spoken from the heart from each and every person who says so.

But apart from these, there is another thing that I would like to add:
There are many people who are talented and precocious.
There are many who will plunder runs and ravage the best of bowling attacks consistently.

However, the reason why there will never be another Sachin Tendulkar, is because:

Sachin never knew which 16 year-old to look up to, when he played for India at 16.

Sachin never knew who could understand exactly what it felt to be the pulse of a billion people each and every time he walked out onto the ground (or, better still, just walked out, anywhere!)

Sachin never knew who to be like, when he was adored and worshipped like crazy for 24+ years

Many people can bat and play well amazingly.
Who knows, there will be someone who will bat like Sachin, but they will have a shining example right in front of them - not only on how to play well, not only on how to react to adoring fans and overnight success, superstardom, the constant weight of expectations.
For every such thing, they will have a Sachin Tendulkar's life and conduct to look up to.

Thanks you Sachin, for all the memories, all the lessons.
Fare thee well, Little Master - you are truly Bharat's Ratna!

A void called 2-down

November 15, 1989 : For the uninitiated, here are the oft-shared stats on the 'where-were-you-when-Sachin-made-his debut' question:

When 16-year old Sachin Tendulkar faced his first ball in Test cricket from Pakistan's Waqar Younis: 

• The Berlin Wall was still standing
• Saddam and Osama were still US allies 
• Oil was $19 per barrel 
• The Sensex was under 750 points
• Maruti 800 was a bold young challenger to the Ambassador and Fiat
• The internet and mobile phones hadn't come to India, and 
• Doordarshan was the only TV channel.

Eight Indian Prime Ministers and a mountain of mind-boggling statistics later, he will retire as arguably the greatest batsman and unarguably one of the finest gentlemen to ever grace a cricket field.

Yes, there have been people who have thought he left it for too late, but then, let's just say, for once, he showed he too was human, and must have had a goal in his mind which made him play on.
We have also heard him speak of playing as long as he was still enjoying the game.

Late or not, the fact is, that there will be a void in the Indian Test team at the #4 position. Two down, in comes Sachin - this has been the standard template since the last 24 years.
To not see Sachin very soon at all in any form of cricket, is without doubt, going to be tough.

An immortal, by the name of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

Dear Sachin, we can only wish you the very best and thank you for all the wonderful memories you have bestowed us with, thanks to your craft, impeccable conduct, genuine humility, and unflinching commitment towards the game.

You will be missed, big time.

Thank you for letting us see you live, exhibiting your skills and your conduct.

Thank you for making us forget all our troubles by the sheer enjoyment and delight you provided with your uninhibited strokeplay.

Thank you for teaching us that good guys can also finish first!

Thanks a lot, and God bless!!!