Friday, April 20, 2007
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Monday, April 02, 2007
Why India needs Greg Chappell..
A visionary without peers; an objective analyst without a semblance of a bias; a radical mind with an innovative approach...Greg Chappell in an honest appraisal in a soliloquy days before India left. Wouldn't India be better off with such clarity of thought???
Excerpts:
Excerpts:
What makes a Cup-winning team?
It basically boils down to the fact that through my 50 or so years of experience of watching, playing, commentating, selecting, talking, living cricket, I have learnt that there are certain things that work, and certain things that don't work, and so we better focus on the things that do work.
So then that was the focus: we said if we wanted to build a team that had a chance at the World Cup, there were certain things that we had to do well - batting bowling and fielding being the basic components of the game.
But there also had to be belief - belief is very important. One of the things that the support staff and the coaching staff and the team management was very much focussed on over the last 20-odd months was that we had to build that belief.
"We didn't have a lot of time to waste"
You know, going back to whatever World Cup it was that Germany won in soccer, where they had this total football, Australia has worked towards total cricket and I think most teams have to build the flexibility, build the depth, have replacements for key players in place.
When we took over -- I talked about where we began -- Ian Frazer has been a very important part of what we have been doing here in India, and one of the reasons why, one of the... from the start is that his training and his bent, if you like, is in how can you train better, how can you develop more quickly... How can you change from doing it one way to doing it another way in the shortest possible time to get the most benefit. And with only 21 months from the time we started to this point, we didn't have a lot of time to waste.
"The best lessons have been when we've done badly"
And so we looked at a whole range of things, all of the facets of fielding, batting and bowling. The team that wins the WC will be a good fielding team. The team that wins the WC will have flexibility and depth in batting, and it will have bowling that will also have flexibility and depth, and more than flexibility, you know, the mental creativity to be able to adjust.
So, with Kiran More as chairman, with Rahul Dravid as captain, and with the support staff, particularly Ian Frazer and myself, we sat down and we looked at the components. And each step along the way, we had to review - before each series, after each series, we sat down and said how are we going in regard to this blueprint. And funnily enough, laugh if you like, the best lessons have been when we've done badly.
"We've made mistakes..."
Following the
We had fixed views on the qualities that were necessary, but there was no fixed view that we had to have this player, we had to have that player. And we've made mistakes - again, you have to make mistakes to learn some lessons. None of this is a perfect science, development of people generally is not a perfect science. It is a combination of experiences that all come together to develop the individual.
We've had to take risks, we've had to put players under pressure, we've had to give them challenges that they have never had before, you know, if they only think the way they have thought before, then they'll do the things they've done before and they will get the results they got before.
Now in the
A cricket team is a work in progress at any stage. At no point can you say, right, this is it. We can't go to the World Cup and say, right, this is it, we've got the format to win us the World Cup. We will have to be flexible enough to change our attitude and our thinking on certain things at various stages during the World Cup. So we, the coaching staff had to be flexible enough to do that, the players had to be flexible enough to cope with.
And I think one of the big things, one of the big challenges for the coaching staff in the time that I've been here is that you know, I think certain players and certain segments of the media had fixed views about the roles for certain players. We couldn't afford to have those fixed views because otherwise, the team wasn't going to progress.
If you only look at wins and losses, and this is something we have had to do along the way, we have had to take the risk of losing a few games to gain some advancement, to be a better chance for when we came to the World Cup.
We threw the batting lineup around, because we had to find out which players had the capacity to cope with pressure, which players had the capacity to perform well in this role, you know, was he better placed to do a role in this position in the batting order or in this position? Was he better placed to bat early in the innings, later in the innings, or in the middle of the innings?
So if we didn't try the different combinations, we wouldn't know what we had got. We have had to risk losing games to get some answers, because you can't get those answers in the nets, you can't develop players in the nets.
You can do a lot towards developing them, but if they can't take those lessons from the nets to the middle, then you haven't advanced them at all. You know, some of the players haven't been happy at times, because it is not the roles that they felt they were best suited to, or that was best suited for them, but we had to find the best roles for the team for each of those individuals, and I think we are as close as we can get to having worked that out.
If two bowlers are best bowling at this period of the game against this type of opposition because they've got a lot of left handers, or they've got a lot of players who play spin well, or they've got players who are susceptible to pace, then we have to change the format of our bowling attack for that particular game.
If we go in and say that this guy is going to bowl at this particular stage of the game in every game, we won't do as well as if we prepare to change that depending on the conditions. And what we have tried to do is give ourselves back ups for key players.
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"When we lost Yuvraj, it exposed us..."
And it was nothing to do with - probably the best example of how important players can be and their role in the team can be was when we lost Yuvraj. He was probably one of the best one day batsmen in the world at the point when he got injured. And he was a key component in that successful run of 18 wins. When we lost Yuvraj, it exposed us to what problems we really had.
On Rahul Dravid
So all of a sudden - no, not all of a sudden because we were already planning down that path, and Rahul Dravid has been heavily involved in this from day one; I mean, Rahul Dravid is the captain, we haven't done anything that Rahul hasn't supported, and rightly so because he is the captain, he is the man who has to go out there in the middle. And there have been times when he has said no, I don't think that is the best way to go, this is the best way to go, and that is fine, because again, he is the guy that takes the team out on the field, and as much as he has been criticized at various stages for not being his own man, he has been very strong at various points along the way, because if he is unhappy with the team that he has got, that is going to impact on his ability to lead that team.
But, you know, we've pushed him as well, from a captaincy point of view, you know -- he came into the captaincy without a great deal of experience, I mean, he captained India on a few occasions but it is different being the real captain to the stand-in captain - it's been a huge adjustment for him and I think he has done a fabulous job, to be honest.
His captaincy during that period of 18 wins had a big bearing on us winning those games. And he is learning all the time, he is trusting his instincts better and better all the time, you know, he has had a strong input - for instance, when we came back from the West Indies, one of the areas that we had to change, tackle, was we realized that those overs 20-40, maybe even 15-40 but particularly 20-40, are critical overs in the one day game as it stands today, with the three power plays, and particularly playing on wickets that are less true.
"Sehwag had been struggling at the top of the order"
So we looked at the personnel that we had. It didn't work very well for us in the
We felt that there were overs where you needed power to go through the field rather than just going over the field, you had to have creativity; the one player that we identified during that stage was Virender Sewhag, as one guy who had that power, had that creativity. Sehwag had been struggling at the top of the order, so here was an opportunity to give him a new challenge and learn something about, from two aspects, learn something about batting in the middle overs because for most of his life he had been batting at the top of the order, but also understanding some of the difficulties of the guys batting in the middle order, so that even if he didn't eventually finish up being the man batting there, he would have a different perspective as an opener of how difficult it is for these guys in the middle overs, as the ball gets softer, as the field spreads - you know, it does become harder, and for him to have a proper understanding of that will make him a better opener...
It didn't quite work out because the one series where we wanted him to try out was the in
We thought we'll go with what we've got, and we didn't do very well. Again, it was probably a good lesson for us.
Without Yuvraj again, we were exposed in the middle order so again, it caused us to stop and rethink. And to Rahul's credit, I mean he has been fantastic through all of this, I mean he has been willing to be the one to go to the top of the order, go down the order, go wherever he has had to go for us to find out different things. I mean if leadership is not about leading by example then I don't know what it is, and Rahul's been very good in that respect.
So coming back from
Sehwag probably wasn't that comfortable with the idea of batting in the middle order; so we talked to Sachin about it. By this stage Sourav had come back, so that had given us another opening option and a very good opening option, because he has had a good record as an opener.
So we asked Sachin to try it. I think it is fair to say that he wasn't, you know, that he preferred to bat at the top of the order, but when we explained to him the reasons and the need from the team point of view, he was prepared to try it and I think he has done a wonderful job with it so far.
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A lot of people look at Suresh Raina as a failure. I don't see it as a failure at all, in fact, the kid's got a lot of talent, and if you have a look at the stats on Cricinfo of the last couple of years in one day cricket, his record in partnerships, in different areas, has been fantastic. He has been a good cricketer for
The good news is that he was forced out by others that brought things to the group that we could use. You know, Robin Uthappa has been a godsend, that's not probably the word I would like to use, he's been a blessing for us anyway, you know, he's a good field, he's a good thinker, he's an impact player that we can use at the top of the order, so he gives us backup.
"Yuvraj is on the way back and ready"
So we were looking for backups for key players, Sachin has provided us some back up for Yuvraj. Thankfully, it looks like Yuvraj is on the way back and ready. Rahul coming down the order also gives us some flexibility in that middle order
At this stage, we've had the bonus - Yuvraj is back and he is looking good. Dinesh Karthik has been sort of misunderstood, the flexibility he brings to the group is slightly misunderstood. We - and I use the royal we, Rahul Dravid, Ian Frazer, the selection panel, myself and others are involved in it - we played a couple of trial games in Chennai before we went to Malaysia and Dinesh played in the opposition team and opened the batting and played a couple of brilliant innings.
So all of a sudden we saw him in a different light. We saw him as an obvious backup for Dhoni in the sense that we've got a wicket keeper, a designated wicket keeper, not having to again cast Dravid into the sort of role to give us the balance, and he has the flexibility to bat up the order or low down the order, and as we saw in Cape Town, he has a great temperament, and he can fit into the fielding side very well, so he is an all rounder.
"We put a lot of faith into Irfan"
You know we put a lot of faith into Irfan because of his all round status. The potential that he has to make a big difference to our group - and again, the flexibility; if we want to go with five bowlers, five specialist bowlers, he is the only one that gives us that flexibility because he can bat. And again he can bat at the top of the order, he can bat down the order.
You know, I think he is best suited as an impact player at the top of the order and that is how we've used him, and with some success. Nobody factored in that he would lose confidence and form with his bowling, but he's been through that before and he's come out of it, and who's to say that something on the lines of the World Cup isn't going to bring the best out of him, because one thing we've found with him is he's got an amazing temperament -- we threw him into roles in batting that challenged him enormously, and he came through nearly every time.
It's been a challenge; it's been an important part of the development process of the group to get them to understand. I mean, we broke them up into small groups, because leadership in the field is critical to the development of a team, and what we found was that in the meetings, the senior players spoke and no one else spoke, because of the hierarchical nature of
Munaf's been a very important part of that development; Zaheer coming back in the form and the mindset that he has had has been fantastic. Harbhajan has done a wonderful job for us in the middle overs; we are getting better at bowling at the death though we can always get better with that - again, you know, we've tried different combinations and for different situations and different conditions we've got a bit more flexibility. If we could get more flexibility it would be great, and Irfan coming back into form would be an important part of that; it would give us a bit more flexibility.
But we've got Sehwag and we've got Sachin and Yuvraj and we've got three pretty useful, you know, Sourav is medium pace and we have got three useful spinning options, I mean, Sachin can bowl seam up if he needs to or he can bowl off spinners or he can bowl leg spinners or a combination - very clever. So I think again, we have the flexibility to allow us to play to our strengths, and that is all we can ask for.
The End
Saturday, March 17, 2007
The carnival has begun!
A week in which I had the party of my life at The Ramada; a week in which Muckshay (Mr.Shell) complimented me twice for the content on my blog and then linked all this crap on his blog; a week in which my academic output touched a nadir and then the icing on the cake-The commencement of the IXth Cricket World Cup.
Even though the Opening Ceremony lacked the pomp and colour of the previous one in South Africa, the way of life in the Caribbean was captured impressively and as is the case with everything else associated with this World Cup, people were willing to accommodate all the little glitches for this is the place where the Calypso style took its roots.
The tournament got off to a cracking start with two evenly matched sides on one of the finest one-day wickets I have seen. West Indies outplayed and outclassed Pakistan courtesy the 'Dwaynes'. The performance convinced me even more that Brian Lara is the most under-rated captain in World Cricket and that the West Indies will go a long way as predicted in http://adidasaddict.blogspot.com/2007/03/world-cup-swat-west-indies.html
This is a side that understands its limitations and Lara demoting himself was not a defensive move as suggested but an aggressive one giving sufficient leeway to the prodigal Samuels and attractive Sarwan to dominate. Gayle's sudden propensity to get himself out within the first couple of overs should be rectified with the minnows up next. Even though the bowling is considered to be their achilles' heel, what one saw was nothing short of world-class. Powell, Taylor and Colleymore constitute a high quality combination of pace combined with swing and accuracy. They have options and variety in the form of Bravo, Smith, Gayle and Samuels and an astute captain. If West Indies are able to hold back Smith as effectively as they were able to do while batting against Pakistan, expect some carnage.
Pakistan surprised nobody with their performance and tactical ineptitude. They continue experimenting with their openers thus depriving themselves of some well needed depth in their cricket. Inzy batting down the order is a decision taken out of fear for he is one of the finest players of fast bowling going around. Younis Khan needs to open the innings along with the talented Hafeez who should be told to curb that rush of blood. That would mean Shoaib Malik doesn't always fight out a lost cause as has become the case. Azhar Mahmood could add some tooth to an attack short on penetration. Their bowling is at best disciplined with the outstanding Gul their only real wicket taker. Naved's selection is bemusing to say the least. Akmal bats as if he needs to head to the loo real quick and the less said about Pakistan and its fielding, the better.
India needs to take in some lessons from the Pak. match for its side is structurally very similar to the Pakistan one, admittedly with more spine in the batting department. The way West Indies were able to wriggle their way out of trouble against Kaneria and Hafeez (read Harbhajan and Sehwag) should serve a reminder to Dravid about the need to play Pathan be it as opener. Spinners the world over are no longer a major wicket taking force and Pathan bowling cutters and opening the innings would not be a very bad idea against Bermuda and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh game will be a close one and will be watched with great interest. India struggled against Samuels and Gayle the last time they were here and coupled with India's inability to deal with left arm spin of late, it will be interesting to see whether Tendulkar and Sehwag in the middle order can deal with the impressive left arm trio of Rafique, Razzak and Saqibul. Aftab and Ashraful are the two match winners with the bat and Harbhajan and co. will have a contest on hand. India should win a close encounter.
England continue to be nothing but an over hyped side with its contingent of coat and tie commentators inculcated in the MCG manuals and their defeat against New Zealand highlighted the lack of depth and quality in their cricket. Kenya will trouble them on a slow track as will Ireland trouble Pakistan on a quick Sabina Park track.
Even though the Opening Ceremony lacked the pomp and colour of the previous one in South Africa, the way of life in the Caribbean was captured impressively and as is the case with everything else associated with this World Cup, people were willing to accommodate all the little glitches for this is the place where the Calypso style took its roots.
The tournament got off to a cracking start with two evenly matched sides on one of the finest one-day wickets I have seen. West Indies outplayed and outclassed Pakistan courtesy the 'Dwaynes'. The performance convinced me even more that Brian Lara is the most under-rated captain in World Cricket and that the West Indies will go a long way as predicted in http://adidasaddict.blogspot.com/2007/03/world-cup-swat-west-indies.html
This is a side that understands its limitations and Lara demoting himself was not a defensive move as suggested but an aggressive one giving sufficient leeway to the prodigal Samuels and attractive Sarwan to dominate. Gayle's sudden propensity to get himself out within the first couple of overs should be rectified with the minnows up next. Even though the bowling is considered to be their achilles' heel, what one saw was nothing short of world-class. Powell, Taylor and Colleymore constitute a high quality combination of pace combined with swing and accuracy. They have options and variety in the form of Bravo, Smith, Gayle and Samuels and an astute captain. If West Indies are able to hold back Smith as effectively as they were able to do while batting against Pakistan, expect some carnage.
Pakistan surprised nobody with their performance and tactical ineptitude. They continue experimenting with their openers thus depriving themselves of some well needed depth in their cricket. Inzy batting down the order is a decision taken out of fear for he is one of the finest players of fast bowling going around. Younis Khan needs to open the innings along with the talented Hafeez who should be told to curb that rush of blood. That would mean Shoaib Malik doesn't always fight out a lost cause as has become the case. Azhar Mahmood could add some tooth to an attack short on penetration. Their bowling is at best disciplined with the outstanding Gul their only real wicket taker. Naved's selection is bemusing to say the least. Akmal bats as if he needs to head to the loo real quick and the less said about Pakistan and its fielding, the better.
India needs to take in some lessons from the Pak. match for its side is structurally very similar to the Pakistan one, admittedly with more spine in the batting department. The way West Indies were able to wriggle their way out of trouble against Kaneria and Hafeez (read Harbhajan and Sehwag) should serve a reminder to Dravid about the need to play Pathan be it as opener. Spinners the world over are no longer a major wicket taking force and Pathan bowling cutters and opening the innings would not be a very bad idea against Bermuda and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh game will be a close one and will be watched with great interest. India struggled against Samuels and Gayle the last time they were here and coupled with India's inability to deal with left arm spin of late, it will be interesting to see whether Tendulkar and Sehwag in the middle order can deal with the impressive left arm trio of Rafique, Razzak and Saqibul. Aftab and Ashraful are the two match winners with the bat and Harbhajan and co. will have a contest on hand. India should win a close encounter.
England continue to be nothing but an over hyped side with its contingent of coat and tie commentators inculcated in the MCG manuals and their defeat against New Zealand highlighted the lack of depth and quality in their cricket. Kenya will trouble them on a slow track as will Ireland trouble Pakistan on a quick Sabina Park track.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Snapshots of something by the name of Opulence
Hehe! Food up for grabs (FOR FREE)!!
We ain't too far behind!!
Mother of Big Arguments
"........with engineers let us have sex".
Does Kota get a quota here too??
MBA or not, too young to be marrying........
And the perception is that 4th yearites are a lazy lot!!
And some most photogenic faces !!
Leveraging the 'spotLIGHT' !
The magnum opus!!
And I thought Opulence was the Annual National Management blablabla
MANAGING with bare minimum necessities??
A house packed! Or shall we call it 'Kakared'??
Some are a bit hard to please.....
In NAPt attention!!
Even Prahlad Kakar goes around with 'Black Cats'!!
Czar of the War finalists
Prisoners of War???
Star-gazing for 50,000 in cash...
Czar of the War finals in progress
The Czar of the War
Anwesh (IBMT, Bangalore)
Brimming or rather Grinning with cash
P.S. All characters appearing in the above work of art are partly fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living,dead or sleeping, is not entirely coincidental. The author disclaims any responsibility in case of copyright infringements or violations and has hence deliberately not included himself in any of the snapshots inspite of being the chief protagonist, planner, schemer and executionist par excellence of Opulence 2007.
The above was just a snapshot of Opulence 2007. In case you want the complete collection of Opulence 2007 photographs for free, mail the author at varun.adidas@gmail.com
* Shipping charges and service tax rates apply
Saturday, March 03, 2007
The World Cup Swat- West Indies
WEST INDIES
Strengths: On paper, possess all the virtues of a good one-day unit: a free flowing top order; a stylish middle order; a dangerous lower order; a fine fielding unit and some attacking fast bowlers. Sarwan's return will supplement Lara, Samuels and Bravo. In Powell, Taylor, Colleymore and Bradshaw, the Caribbeans possess an attack that is penetrating but at the same time accurate.
Weaknesses: A long tail and an erratic wicketkeeper prone to rushes of blood. Inconsistency has been the bane of West Indies cricket with collapses having become routine. Very suspect temperament of the younger lot. Gayle, Sarwan and Samuels are not success stories against the best in the world.
Opportunities: Playing hosts. West Indies is unique for the conditions you get across the various grounds during different months of the year. First time international cricket is being played here so early in the season. With the spotlight on them, there is very little opportunity for players to wander into forbidden pastimes. Brian Charles Lara is in his last ODI series and he is special! An easy opener against a depleted Pakistan
Threats: Pressure of being hosts. A very demanding population. Likely to win their group emphatically and so complacency could creep in which is so typical of them. The curse on the host nation!
Counsel: Be ralaxed and enjoy the experience. Use Sarwan lower down the order and Ramdin higher up. Play just one of Taylor and Powell. Lara should come in no higher than 5.
Verdict: Their brand of cricket plus their familiarity should find them a spot in the semis. The pressure of the big situation will get to them after that. Expect Taylor and Samuels to establish themselves.
Strengths: On paper, possess all the virtues of a good one-day unit: a free flowing top order; a stylish middle order; a dangerous lower order; a fine fielding unit and some attacking fast bowlers. Sarwan's return will supplement Lara, Samuels and Bravo. In Powell, Taylor, Colleymore and Bradshaw, the Caribbeans possess an attack that is penetrating but at the same time accurate.
Weaknesses: A long tail and an erratic wicketkeeper prone to rushes of blood. Inconsistency has been the bane of West Indies cricket with collapses having become routine. Very suspect temperament of the younger lot. Gayle, Sarwan and Samuels are not success stories against the best in the world.
Opportunities: Playing hosts. West Indies is unique for the conditions you get across the various grounds during different months of the year. First time international cricket is being played here so early in the season. With the spotlight on them, there is very little opportunity for players to wander into forbidden pastimes. Brian Charles Lara is in his last ODI series and he is special! An easy opener against a depleted Pakistan
Threats: Pressure of being hosts. A very demanding population. Likely to win their group emphatically and so complacency could creep in which is so typical of them. The curse on the host nation!
Counsel: Be ralaxed and enjoy the experience. Use Sarwan lower down the order and Ramdin higher up. Play just one of Taylor and Powell. Lara should come in no higher than 5.
Verdict: Their brand of cricket plus their familiarity should find them a spot in the semis. The pressure of the big situation will get to them after that. Expect Taylor and Samuels to establish themselves.
The World Cup Swat- Sri Lanka
SRI LANKA
Strengths: The islanders arrive into this tournament with a formidable top order, a solid middle order and an effective lower middle order. Jayasuriya, Tharanga and Sangakkara are in scintillating form. Murali makes Sri Lanka the only side in the tournament which can attack in the middle overs. A pair of promising quickies to boot. Can compete with the best in the field.
Weaknesses: Overseas record; the form of Attapattu and Jayawardene; a longish tail; a waning Chaminda Vaas and a couple of profligate fast bowlers.
Opportunities: The venue for the Group Matches, Trinidad resembles the Premadasa as far as nature of the pitch is concerned and should ease them into the tournament. Haven't locked horns with the major powers for some time which gives them scope to surprise.
Threats: India in the Group Stages who have had the Mickey on them of late. Their three major role players still nostalgic and overcome by the '96 experience. A good finish would please most.
Counsel: Assign roles to batsmen. Too many similar batsmen seeking identity in the middle order. Be selective with the bat. Attack with the ball and use Fernando and Malinga. Lay emphasis on wickets with Murali. Don't be the usual defensive self on the field.
Verdict: Will push hard but just miss out on the semis. Lack of ambition amongst many members of the team and a general easy going nature of team evident in India. A star will be born in the form of Upul Tharanga. Vaas, Atapattu and Jayasuriya will quit in unspectacular fashion.
Strengths: The islanders arrive into this tournament with a formidable top order, a solid middle order and an effective lower middle order. Jayasuriya, Tharanga and Sangakkara are in scintillating form. Murali makes Sri Lanka the only side in the tournament which can attack in the middle overs. A pair of promising quickies to boot. Can compete with the best in the field.
Weaknesses: Overseas record; the form of Attapattu and Jayawardene; a longish tail; a waning Chaminda Vaas and a couple of profligate fast bowlers.
Opportunities: The venue for the Group Matches, Trinidad resembles the Premadasa as far as nature of the pitch is concerned and should ease them into the tournament. Haven't locked horns with the major powers for some time which gives them scope to surprise.
Threats: India in the Group Stages who have had the Mickey on them of late. Their three major role players still nostalgic and overcome by the '96 experience. A good finish would please most.
Counsel: Assign roles to batsmen. Too many similar batsmen seeking identity in the middle order. Be selective with the bat. Attack with the ball and use Fernando and Malinga. Lay emphasis on wickets with Murali. Don't be the usual defensive self on the field.
Verdict: Will push hard but just miss out on the semis. Lack of ambition amongst many members of the team and a general easy going nature of team evident in India. A star will be born in the form of Upul Tharanga. Vaas, Atapattu and Jayasuriya will quit in unspectacular fashion.
The World Cup Swat- South Africa
SOUTH AFRICA
Strengths: A well oiled machinery and an impeccable fielding unit. Great depth in batting with effective finishers like Kemp, Boucher and Pollock to supplement the flair of Kallis, Gibbs and Smith. Fiery fast bowling unit.
Weaknesses: Suspect mental temperament and an unnerring ability to choke. Bowling attack one dimensional with negligible slow bowling options and a batting line-up that is vulnerable to high quality fast or spin bowling. A captain who loses his cool when the going gets tough.
Opportunities: The game against Australia could be the springboard for a great campaign. Have the best record in the Caribbean of all the teams. With boundaries likely to be at a premium, their fielding could shut teams out. Teams will be wary of the numero uno.
Threats: Sense of complacency. Their run in recent times has been at home where they are pretty much invincible. Seamer friendly conditions back home have blinded them of the lack of variety in their attack. A single defeat and it could all unravel.
Counsel: Hit the ground hard and aggressive. Try and dominate the opposition thus leveraging your opposition. Make others fear you and therein lies your best chance. Use Andrew Hall and Pollock judiciously with the old and new ball respectively. Kallis should bat at 3 and told to play aggressively.
Verdict: See them losing to Australia in the Group Stages and things going badly thereafter. Too much sameness in the bowling attack will see them clobbered by good batsmen. Top sides will sort their top order out. No semifinal berth.
Strengths: A well oiled machinery and an impeccable fielding unit. Great depth in batting with effective finishers like Kemp, Boucher and Pollock to supplement the flair of Kallis, Gibbs and Smith. Fiery fast bowling unit.
Weaknesses: Suspect mental temperament and an unnerring ability to choke. Bowling attack one dimensional with negligible slow bowling options and a batting line-up that is vulnerable to high quality fast or spin bowling. A captain who loses his cool when the going gets tough.
Opportunities: The game against Australia could be the springboard for a great campaign. Have the best record in the Caribbean of all the teams. With boundaries likely to be at a premium, their fielding could shut teams out. Teams will be wary of the numero uno.
Threats: Sense of complacency. Their run in recent times has been at home where they are pretty much invincible. Seamer friendly conditions back home have blinded them of the lack of variety in their attack. A single defeat and it could all unravel.
Counsel: Hit the ground hard and aggressive. Try and dominate the opposition thus leveraging your opposition. Make others fear you and therein lies your best chance. Use Andrew Hall and Pollock judiciously with the old and new ball respectively. Kallis should bat at 3 and told to play aggressively.
Verdict: See them losing to Australia in the Group Stages and things going badly thereafter. Too much sameness in the bowling attack will see them clobbered by good batsmen. Top sides will sort their top order out. No semifinal berth.
The World Cup Swat- Pakistan
PAKISTAN
Strengths: A vastly experienced middle order with Younis, Yousuf and Inzamam besides Mr. Bang Bang, Afridi. Exciting young fast bowlers and a high quality leg-spin bowler in Kaneria.
Weaknesses: A top-order that excites none but the opposition; a prodigal wicket-keeper; a highly immobile fielding unit; a long tail and a bowling attack high on quality but very low on form. Akthar and Asif were touted to be the remedy for their ills but without them and that wily customer, Abdur Razzaq, their attack is pretty uni-dimensional.
Opportunities: Pakistan's cricketing history is replete with heroics when least expected and to call the current situation a crisis would be an understatement. Inzamam and Woolmer will find the squad easier to handle without Akthar. Inzy and Yousuf in the twilights of their career. Complacent opposition.
Threats: A tough opener against West Indies especially without Afridi. It could all go wrong from there. Expect some interesting comments by Akthar, Imran and Miandad to fuel the situation.
Counsel: Stick together and be aggressive with the bat but very disciplined with the ball. Cut out the flair play. Maintain a low profile.
Verdict: Difficult to see them make much of an impact. Just too many things weighed up against them. Super Eights is as far as they will get.
Strengths: A vastly experienced middle order with Younis, Yousuf and Inzamam besides Mr. Bang Bang, Afridi. Exciting young fast bowlers and a high quality leg-spin bowler in Kaneria.
Weaknesses: A top-order that excites none but the opposition; a prodigal wicket-keeper; a highly immobile fielding unit; a long tail and a bowling attack high on quality but very low on form. Akthar and Asif were touted to be the remedy for their ills but without them and that wily customer, Abdur Razzaq, their attack is pretty uni-dimensional.
Opportunities: Pakistan's cricketing history is replete with heroics when least expected and to call the current situation a crisis would be an understatement. Inzamam and Woolmer will find the squad easier to handle without Akthar. Inzy and Yousuf in the twilights of their career. Complacent opposition.
Threats: A tough opener against West Indies especially without Afridi. It could all go wrong from there. Expect some interesting comments by Akthar, Imran and Miandad to fuel the situation.
Counsel: Stick together and be aggressive with the bat but very disciplined with the ball. Cut out the flair play. Maintain a low profile.
Verdict: Difficult to see them make much of an impact. Just too many things weighed up against them. Super Eights is as far as they will get.
The World Cup Swat- New Zealand
NEW ZEALAND
Strengths: The most lethal fast bowler in the world, Shane Bond; a most consistent and effective lower middle order; the best spin bowler in world cricket; an astute captain; a great backroom staff but most importantly something quite foreign to New Zealand cricket- some top order batting of note. Like the Proteas, the Black Caps are quite out of this world when it comes to fielding and in Ross Taylor, they seem to have unearthed a gem. Watch out for the old firm in the form of McMillan and Styris.
Weaknesses: Abyssmal history of fitness. Shane Bond is odds on to break down and Jacob Oram might not be the same force irrespective of the number of fingers that he decides to bring along. Lack a central inspirational figure like Chris Cairns; have a poor record on slow tracks; and have very little ammunition in their bowling but for 007. A suspect top order and Kyle Mills' absence might hurt.
Opportunities: With England in the group, an opportunity to coast to the Super Eights. Unknown exciting commodities in the top order and with very few sides having depth in their bowling in one-day cricket, a batting line-up that runs deeper than the Pacific could drown a few teams.
Threats: Very few stand out batsmen or bowlers which could send them burying for cover in the face of quality. They don't go into this tournament as the 'usual' dark horses but as one of the leading contenders and hence, teams are unlikely to be complacent.
Counsel: You have got most things in order, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to play Patel, the off-spinner too, for very few teams do so. Don't play Bond against the minnows and build your campaign around Oram. Make more use of the power plays while batting.
Verdict: Would be a shock if they don't reach the semis and might just creep into the finals but shouldn't win. Rely too much on McCullum and Oram who aren't very effective against spin. Quality teams will take note.
Strengths: The most lethal fast bowler in the world, Shane Bond; a most consistent and effective lower middle order; the best spin bowler in world cricket; an astute captain; a great backroom staff but most importantly something quite foreign to New Zealand cricket- some top order batting of note. Like the Proteas, the Black Caps are quite out of this world when it comes to fielding and in Ross Taylor, they seem to have unearthed a gem. Watch out for the old firm in the form of McMillan and Styris.
Weaknesses: Abyssmal history of fitness. Shane Bond is odds on to break down and Jacob Oram might not be the same force irrespective of the number of fingers that he decides to bring along. Lack a central inspirational figure like Chris Cairns; have a poor record on slow tracks; and have very little ammunition in their bowling but for 007. A suspect top order and Kyle Mills' absence might hurt.
Opportunities: With England in the group, an opportunity to coast to the Super Eights. Unknown exciting commodities in the top order and with very few sides having depth in their bowling in one-day cricket, a batting line-up that runs deeper than the Pacific could drown a few teams.
Threats: Very few stand out batsmen or bowlers which could send them burying for cover in the face of quality. They don't go into this tournament as the 'usual' dark horses but as one of the leading contenders and hence, teams are unlikely to be complacent.
Counsel: You have got most things in order, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to play Patel, the off-spinner too, for very few teams do so. Don't play Bond against the minnows and build your campaign around Oram. Make more use of the power plays while batting.
Verdict: Would be a shock if they don't reach the semis and might just creep into the finals but shouldn't win. Rely too much on McCullum and Oram who aren't very effective against spin. Quality teams will take note.
The World Cup Swat- India
INDIA
Strengths: Possess the form batting order heading into the tournament. An assortment of contemporary greats, useful fast bowlers with the ability to strike early and high quality spinners; on paper, India look to be a major threat. Dravid, Tendulkar, Yuvraj and Dhoni in the middle will supplement a dangerous top order; Munaf and co. will form a probing seam attack and Harbhajan will keep batsmen honest with his tweakers.
Weaknesses: An aged side coupled with Harbhajan's inability to bowl batsmen out means India will struggle in the middle overs. This will be the worst fielding side in the competition with only Pakistan and England for company; bowling at the death has also been an area of concern besides an unsettled opening combination. Question marks persist over Sehwag and Pathan.
Opportunities: The toughest group in tough batting conditions might prove to blessing in disguise. India's record over Sri Lanka has been exemplary and individuals desperate to prove their mettle might just make India an irresistable combination.
Threats: Individuals in the dusk of their career with a weight of achievements behind them. Side too pedigreed and succeptible to major shifts in form & performance. No major expectations within the squad.
Counsel: Forget Sehwag and Uthappa; think of Pathan to partner Ganguly and bowl cutters on the slow tracks. Think of Dhoni as an option in the top order while batting first. Get Kumble playing as second spinner as his intensity would be welcome in the middle overs when India get insipid.
Verdict: This is more of a gut feeling which cannot be rationalised. India look odds on favourite to reach the semi-finals after which individual masterclasses are going to win them the competition. A fitting riposte by Greg Chappell!!!
Strengths: Possess the form batting order heading into the tournament. An assortment of contemporary greats, useful fast bowlers with the ability to strike early and high quality spinners; on paper, India look to be a major threat. Dravid, Tendulkar, Yuvraj and Dhoni in the middle will supplement a dangerous top order; Munaf and co. will form a probing seam attack and Harbhajan will keep batsmen honest with his tweakers.
Weaknesses: An aged side coupled with Harbhajan's inability to bowl batsmen out means India will struggle in the middle overs. This will be the worst fielding side in the competition with only Pakistan and England for company; bowling at the death has also been an area of concern besides an unsettled opening combination. Question marks persist over Sehwag and Pathan.
Opportunities: The toughest group in tough batting conditions might prove to blessing in disguise. India's record over Sri Lanka has been exemplary and individuals desperate to prove their mettle might just make India an irresistable combination.
Threats: Individuals in the dusk of their career with a weight of achievements behind them. Side too pedigreed and succeptible to major shifts in form & performance. No major expectations within the squad.
Counsel: Forget Sehwag and Uthappa; think of Pathan to partner Ganguly and bowl cutters on the slow tracks. Think of Dhoni as an option in the top order while batting first. Get Kumble playing as second spinner as his intensity would be welcome in the middle overs when India get insipid.
Verdict: This is more of a gut feeling which cannot be rationalised. India look odds on favourite to reach the semi-finals after which individual masterclasses are going to win them the competition. A fitting riposte by Greg Chappell!!!
The World Cup Swat- England
ENGLAND
Strengths: For the first time in its history, England goes into a competition on the back of its batting. Bell, Pietersen, Collingwood and Flintoff represent a potent middle order. Flintoff is probably the best third seamer heading into the competition and Panesar has already established himself as an effective spinning option.
Weaknesses: A bowling attack comprising Lewis, Plunkett, Tremlett and Anderson shouldn't make many batsmen lose sleep especially on some of the placid tracks. A below par fielding unit and a succeptible top order plus a captain whose chances of turning up twice in a row is only slightly better tha England's chances of winning the tournament.
Opportunities: The easiest group in the tournament. Have traditionally done well against the Kiwis in one-day cricket and a victory could give them a directional impulse. Opponents might take England a bit too lightly.
Threats: The innate feeling in the side that test match cricket is more challenging. England's team is nothing but a motley crew whose primary idea of a World Cup is a good time in the Caribbean.
Counsel: Keep the beer cans out of bounds and have Michael Vaughan as non- playing captain.
Verdict: The Barmy Army will create more of a flutter than this English team. Will cause an upset or two courtesy Flintoff and Pietersen but the beaches are where you will find the English cricketers during the semi-finals. Duncan Fletcher will bow out with ignomity.
Strengths: For the first time in its history, England goes into a competition on the back of its batting. Bell, Pietersen, Collingwood and Flintoff represent a potent middle order. Flintoff is probably the best third seamer heading into the competition and Panesar has already established himself as an effective spinning option.
Weaknesses: A bowling attack comprising Lewis, Plunkett, Tremlett and Anderson shouldn't make many batsmen lose sleep especially on some of the placid tracks. A below par fielding unit and a succeptible top order plus a captain whose chances of turning up twice in a row is only slightly better tha England's chances of winning the tournament.
Opportunities: The easiest group in the tournament. Have traditionally done well against the Kiwis in one-day cricket and a victory could give them a directional impulse. Opponents might take England a bit too lightly.
Threats: The innate feeling in the side that test match cricket is more challenging. England's team is nothing but a motley crew whose primary idea of a World Cup is a good time in the Caribbean.
Counsel: Keep the beer cans out of bounds and have Michael Vaughan as non- playing captain.
Verdict: The Barmy Army will create more of a flutter than this English team. Will cause an upset or two courtesy Flintoff and Pietersen but the beaches are where you will find the English cricketers during the semi-finals. Duncan Fletcher will bow out with ignomity.
Friday, March 02, 2007
The World Cup Swat- Australia
AUSTRALIA
Strengths: The most versatile batting line-up in world cricket; an opportunistic fielding cordon and mental fortitude without parallels. With Ponting, Hussey, Symonds and Clarke, Australia can attack, slaughter and decimate. A bowling attack that can leave out the two best test match bowlers in the world speaks volumes of their depth. There is no evident weakness in this unit.
Weaknesses: The bowling attack wears a non-penetrative look in the absence of Brett Lee; Andrew Symonds is the most valuable one day cricketer in the world and question marks over him aren't bound to fill them with confidence. Lack of wicket taking slow options in the middle overs have seen Australia struggle to defend totals. Brad Hogg is short of match practice and Johnson and Bracken have petered away after impressive starts. They are no longer an intimidating force.
Opportunities: A victory against South Africa and Australia would be on its way. The format of the tournament gives Australia time to set its house in order. Australia don't particularly like losing and canalizing this anger could imply dire consequences for other teams. Ask England.
Threats: A difficult clash against South Africa in the Group Stages who have had the better of Australia in recent times. A loss there and teams are going to relish the challenge thereafter. Australia's big three rivals have had the better of them in recent times and they don't possess the aura about themselves any longer.
Counsel: Since bowling is your grey area, go in with the extra bowler which means that Shane Watson gets the nod for opening the innings ahead of Mattie Hayden. Bank on Tait and Hogg for Carribbean wickets are conducive to wrist spin and reverse swing. Chase when you win the toss and give the new cherry back to the 'Pigeon'- Glenn McGrath. Your most important match in the competition is South Africa in the Group Stages.
Verdict: Nobody is going to stop the Kangaroos from getting to the 'Last Four' but the absence of Brett Lee means that this won't be a third consecutive World Cup victory. Hussey, Ponting & McGrath will have huge tournaments whereas it is going to be no fairytale ending for Gilchrist and Hayden. Expect the next generation of cricketers to leave their stamp.
Strengths: The most versatile batting line-up in world cricket; an opportunistic fielding cordon and mental fortitude without parallels. With Ponting, Hussey, Symonds and Clarke, Australia can attack, slaughter and decimate. A bowling attack that can leave out the two best test match bowlers in the world speaks volumes of their depth. There is no evident weakness in this unit.
Weaknesses: The bowling attack wears a non-penetrative look in the absence of Brett Lee; Andrew Symonds is the most valuable one day cricketer in the world and question marks over him aren't bound to fill them with confidence. Lack of wicket taking slow options in the middle overs have seen Australia struggle to defend totals. Brad Hogg is short of match practice and Johnson and Bracken have petered away after impressive starts. They are no longer an intimidating force.
Opportunities: A victory against South Africa and Australia would be on its way. The format of the tournament gives Australia time to set its house in order. Australia don't particularly like losing and canalizing this anger could imply dire consequences for other teams. Ask England.
Threats: A difficult clash against South Africa in the Group Stages who have had the better of Australia in recent times. A loss there and teams are going to relish the challenge thereafter. Australia's big three rivals have had the better of them in recent times and they don't possess the aura about themselves any longer.
Counsel: Since bowling is your grey area, go in with the extra bowler which means that Shane Watson gets the nod for opening the innings ahead of Mattie Hayden. Bank on Tait and Hogg for Carribbean wickets are conducive to wrist spin and reverse swing. Chase when you win the toss and give the new cherry back to the 'Pigeon'- Glenn McGrath. Your most important match in the competition is South Africa in the Group Stages.
Verdict: Nobody is going to stop the Kangaroos from getting to the 'Last Four' but the absence of Brett Lee means that this won't be a third consecutive World Cup victory. Hussey, Ponting & McGrath will have huge tournaments whereas it is going to be no fairytale ending for Gilchrist and Hayden. Expect the next generation of cricketers to leave their stamp.
Building up to the World Cup
This promises to be the most intensely fought World Cup ever. The Pontings, Flemings, Dravids, Jayawardenes, Vaughans, Inzamams, Smiths and Laras of this world will their teams to do battle in this cricketing extravaganza. Will Ponting and company emulate the Windies and make it a hat-trick of World Cups or is the Australian supremacy a thing of the past?
Next up, a SWOT analysis of all the major pretenders.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
My 15 BLUES
I suspect that when the 'Colonel' & company sit together to decide the 15 who would take the flight out to the Caribbean, there would be billions wanting to be a fly on that wall. Every four years, this major upheaval in our mindset is ample reflection of an entire nation's conscience possessed. If 2003 was all about Laxman or not, 2007 has a few more intricate issues attached. A look at who will make the cut for the WC starting in two months time.
The safest bets would be on the wicketkeeping and spinning department. India have come a long way since 2003 when Rahul Dravid did a Gianlugi Buffon. Rahul might have looked more like a football goalkeeper in his efforts, but he did a mighty fine job ala the Italian custodian. Mahendra Dhoni has captivated international audiences ever since he set foot on the international stage and though he still has his critics, there is no doubt that his dismantling of international attacks has been consistent and effective and that he is a safe bet behind too. Dinesh Karthick has shown lot of spunk and fight and he is a mighty good fielder too. India will need Karthick in the middle order as a specialist batsman to rotate the strike.
India will struggle with their fast bowling department. Agarkar and Zaheer will lead the pack but that is again a step back from 2003 when Zaheer, Nehra and Srinath were at the peak of their prowesses and represented India's most potent fast bowling attack. Sreesanth has been India's revelation in 2006 but except for a 6 wicket haul against England in the early part of the year, his performances in the one-day format have been built more around passion and aggression rather than consistency. I would have to put Pathan in this category even though I am sure he will end up playing just the Group stages in the World Cup. India's success in the one-day format, when it happened, was due to Pathan's new ball bowling and his presence allowing India to play five bowlers. At the World Cup, that would mean playing Kumble and Harbhajan together, a combination that would take some stopping in slow, low Caribbean conditions. Kumble's bowling over the last 24 months has been right alongside the likes of Warne and Murali whereas Harbhajan was the best slow bowler in one-day cricket in the year 2006 with an economy rate of around 3.7 .
Without Pathan, five bowlers would mean too long a tail and with 20 over powerplays, it would take a very brave team management to play two spinners in an Indian setup with four bowlers. Hence, to say that Pathan would be crucial to India's chances would be a gross understatement. India will risk Munaf as their fifth seam bowling option inspite of his fickle fitness for prior to South Africa, he was head and shoulders above the rest when it came to the fast bowling stakes. His height and ability to hit the deck gives the attack some variety as well. People might consider Ramesh Powar unlucky to miss out but facts will suggest that his best bowling performances have come against shoddy opposition. Brian Lara and Sarwan consistently found him out on India's last trip there. His will be a career in the shadows- a large shadow that.
India's travails in the batting department have been well documented and with six spots up for grabs, there is bound to be some serious thought there. Yuvraj, Sachin, Rahul and Sourav are sure to take up four of those spots. His lengthy layoff not withstanding, Yuvraj is India's best middle order batsman as he showcased in 2005 and early 2006; Sachin is still indispensable for he offers flexiblity in the batting department with the array of strokes he possesses and his bowling has always come up trumps in pressure cooker scenarios; Dravid continues scaling new heights and Sourav has made too 'impressive' a comeback, and is probably odds on favourite to open.
I feel the selectors should have given Ganguly an extended run before coming to a conclusion. A 98 on a flat pancake against a travel weary bowling attack is not exactly my idea of returning to form. The signs were there: balls smoted out of the ground, the quick dab and runs and of course a run-out. Yes, Ganguly ended up being India's top run getter in the test match series but the selectors seem to be losing sight of the fact that Ganguly's performances in the test match arena had been 'passable' leading upto the time he got dropped. It was his one-day efforts that had taken a more drastic dip, averaging under 20 against test playing nations over a two year period. I hope that the "Prince" is back for good but my gut feeling is that his selection will go down as one made in haste. Sourav will disappoint.
That leaves us with two more spots. Sehwag, inspite of all his miseries is too serious a matchwinner to be ignored. His bowling will also be valued and towards the end of the South African series, there was a certain commitment that didn't reflect on the scorecards. The last spot will be a tussle between Robin Uthappa and Suresh Raina depending on their performances over the next few matches. My call would be Robin for he is a good top order one-day player and Greg and Rahul seem convinced that they need a specialist opening bat.
That would leave Laxman with the strange honour of never having been in a World Cup Squad; Kaif would be desperately unlucky to miss out despite having scored three fifties in the West Indies, unfortunate for a honest tryer who has somehow been always typecast as villain whenever India has lost in recent times. Raina's time will definitely come.
My call on what the World Cup squad would be:
Rahul Dravid (c), Sachin Tendulkar (vc), Virendra Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Robin Uthappa, Yuvraj Singh, M.S. Dhoni (wk), Dinesh Karthick, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Zaheer Khan, S. Sreesanth
Expecetd Duds: Irfan, Sourav
Expected Hits: Sachin, Karthick
And since I am sticking my neck out, a chocolate on my part for every error that I make and spotted by you. So chocolate-crazy people, the comments section is all yours!
The safest bets would be on the wicketkeeping and spinning department. India have come a long way since 2003 when Rahul Dravid did a Gianlugi Buffon. Rahul might have looked more like a football goalkeeper in his efforts, but he did a mighty fine job ala the Italian custodian. Mahendra Dhoni has captivated international audiences ever since he set foot on the international stage and though he still has his critics, there is no doubt that his dismantling of international attacks has been consistent and effective and that he is a safe bet behind too. Dinesh Karthick has shown lot of spunk and fight and he is a mighty good fielder too. India will need Karthick in the middle order as a specialist batsman to rotate the strike.
India will struggle with their fast bowling department. Agarkar and Zaheer will lead the pack but that is again a step back from 2003 when Zaheer, Nehra and Srinath were at the peak of their prowesses and represented India's most potent fast bowling attack. Sreesanth has been India's revelation in 2006 but except for a 6 wicket haul against England in the early part of the year, his performances in the one-day format have been built more around passion and aggression rather than consistency. I would have to put Pathan in this category even though I am sure he will end up playing just the Group stages in the World Cup. India's success in the one-day format, when it happened, was due to Pathan's new ball bowling and his presence allowing India to play five bowlers. At the World Cup, that would mean playing Kumble and Harbhajan together, a combination that would take some stopping in slow, low Caribbean conditions. Kumble's bowling over the last 24 months has been right alongside the likes of Warne and Murali whereas Harbhajan was the best slow bowler in one-day cricket in the year 2006 with an economy rate of around 3.7 .
Without Pathan, five bowlers would mean too long a tail and with 20 over powerplays, it would take a very brave team management to play two spinners in an Indian setup with four bowlers. Hence, to say that Pathan would be crucial to India's chances would be a gross understatement. India will risk Munaf as their fifth seam bowling option inspite of his fickle fitness for prior to South Africa, he was head and shoulders above the rest when it came to the fast bowling stakes. His height and ability to hit the deck gives the attack some variety as well. People might consider Ramesh Powar unlucky to miss out but facts will suggest that his best bowling performances have come against shoddy opposition. Brian Lara and Sarwan consistently found him out on India's last trip there. His will be a career in the shadows- a large shadow that.
India's travails in the batting department have been well documented and with six spots up for grabs, there is bound to be some serious thought there. Yuvraj, Sachin, Rahul and Sourav are sure to take up four of those spots. His lengthy layoff not withstanding, Yuvraj is India's best middle order batsman as he showcased in 2005 and early 2006; Sachin is still indispensable for he offers flexiblity in the batting department with the array of strokes he possesses and his bowling has always come up trumps in pressure cooker scenarios; Dravid continues scaling new heights and Sourav has made too 'impressive' a comeback, and is probably odds on favourite to open.
I feel the selectors should have given Ganguly an extended run before coming to a conclusion. A 98 on a flat pancake against a travel weary bowling attack is not exactly my idea of returning to form. The signs were there: balls smoted out of the ground, the quick dab and runs and of course a run-out. Yes, Ganguly ended up being India's top run getter in the test match series but the selectors seem to be losing sight of the fact that Ganguly's performances in the test match arena had been 'passable' leading upto the time he got dropped. It was his one-day efforts that had taken a more drastic dip, averaging under 20 against test playing nations over a two year period. I hope that the "Prince" is back for good but my gut feeling is that his selection will go down as one made in haste. Sourav will disappoint.
That leaves us with two more spots. Sehwag, inspite of all his miseries is too serious a matchwinner to be ignored. His bowling will also be valued and towards the end of the South African series, there was a certain commitment that didn't reflect on the scorecards. The last spot will be a tussle between Robin Uthappa and Suresh Raina depending on their performances over the next few matches. My call would be Robin for he is a good top order one-day player and Greg and Rahul seem convinced that they need a specialist opening bat.
That would leave Laxman with the strange honour of never having been in a World Cup Squad; Kaif would be desperately unlucky to miss out despite having scored three fifties in the West Indies, unfortunate for a honest tryer who has somehow been always typecast as villain whenever India has lost in recent times. Raina's time will definitely come.
My call on what the World Cup squad would be:
Rahul Dravid (c), Sachin Tendulkar (vc), Virendra Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Robin Uthappa, Yuvraj Singh, M.S. Dhoni (wk), Dinesh Karthick, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Zaheer Khan, S. Sreesanth
Expecetd Duds: Irfan, Sourav
Expected Hits: Sachin, Karthick
And since I am sticking my neck out, a chocolate on my part for every error that I make and spotted by you. So chocolate-crazy people, the comments section is all yours!
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Solitude, CAT and more arbitrariness
Solitude borne out of laziness has been the theme of the last week, so much so that this shall be my 4th post in a week- one less than than the number I have managed to put together in a year's time.
Even semesters mean festivity in IT-BHU and four-day weeks. Over here, a working day is a relative term as all 'nerds' and 'geeks' in this 'elite' institute will happily testify. Technex-The Annual National Technical Festival (sounds cliched) came and went. Technex has taken gargantuan leaps since I have been here and this year's event appealed even to the author-a person with esoteric tastes.
It is also nice to see the Men in Blue get back to winning ways. They have had a baptism by fire of late and it pains you when the nice men in this world (read Tendulkar and Dravid) come under stick. Another couple of victories and the entire nation is going to go nuts about India's chances at the World Cup. India's time at the world stage will come only when they unearth good wrist spinners, death bowlers and at least a few bricks in the middle order to supplement the 'Wall'. Fielding and youth was the number one priority not long back, and today, only Pakistan can pose a stiff challenge for the tag of the most inept fielding unit.
Logic can be ludicrous in cricket!
In between, I managed to enroll myself, technically speaking, for CAT classes. I don't particularly fancy the odds there but in hindsight, I feel that I have let myself be dragged into that whirlpool which tries to engulf you at the start of a year where every self-respecting third year student has to become career conscious. I think the entire rat race has resulted in absurdity and wierdness unparalleled. However, I must admit that I had fun. Attendance compulsions in my department have meant that I have not sat in a class with single digit strength for a long time. The change was refreshing!
Besides, to hear an 'eccentric Bong' extolling the virtues of my name was enlightening. Coming from a typical middle-class Tamil background, it was embarassing having to own up my ineptitude at the Vedas. I will remain a novice in this field all my life.
There are a couple of people cursing their offspring at this point of time somewhere in this world!
He demeanour was comical to say the least. His gait wouldn't give you the impression of an entertainer but there was something about his demure approach and his tendency to refer to the world of sports in case any clarification was required that fascinated me and had me awestruck. References to Owens, Navratilova, Aldrich, Gower and Boycott are not necessarily the worst way in the world to keep me interested. I fancy that I have an enjoyable year ahead there.
Our comparison with the IITs holds no basis when it comes to the number of selections to IIMs and the reasons are not too difficult to behold. I cannot refrain from taking a jibe at the general intellectual milieu pervading here- a matter of no little concern, but something that will be brushed under the carpet along with the relevance of acads in a year where compensation packages have reached unprecedented heights. The number of quizzes, debates and other intellectual activities are constantly on the wane. Technex didn't even bother with a Quiz this time around. The comparison with IITs is so very obviously being done by short-sighted people.
Is anybody looking at the larger picture? I can only hope that India's economic boom is for ever!
Even semesters mean festivity in IT-BHU and four-day weeks. Over here, a working day is a relative term as all 'nerds' and 'geeks' in this 'elite' institute will happily testify. Technex-The Annual National Technical Festival (sounds cliched) came and went. Technex has taken gargantuan leaps since I have been here and this year's event appealed even to the author-a person with esoteric tastes.
It is also nice to see the Men in Blue get back to winning ways. They have had a baptism by fire of late and it pains you when the nice men in this world (read Tendulkar and Dravid) come under stick. Another couple of victories and the entire nation is going to go nuts about India's chances at the World Cup. India's time at the world stage will come only when they unearth good wrist spinners, death bowlers and at least a few bricks in the middle order to supplement the 'Wall'. Fielding and youth was the number one priority not long back, and today, only Pakistan can pose a stiff challenge for the tag of the most inept fielding unit.
Logic can be ludicrous in cricket!
In between, I managed to enroll myself, technically speaking, for CAT classes. I don't particularly fancy the odds there but in hindsight, I feel that I have let myself be dragged into that whirlpool which tries to engulf you at the start of a year where every self-respecting third year student has to become career conscious. I think the entire rat race has resulted in absurdity and wierdness unparalleled. However, I must admit that I had fun. Attendance compulsions in my department have meant that I have not sat in a class with single digit strength for a long time. The change was refreshing!
Besides, to hear an 'eccentric Bong' extolling the virtues of my name was enlightening. Coming from a typical middle-class Tamil background, it was embarassing having to own up my ineptitude at the Vedas. I will remain a novice in this field all my life.
There are a couple of people cursing their offspring at this point of time somewhere in this world!
He demeanour was comical to say the least. His gait wouldn't give you the impression of an entertainer but there was something about his demure approach and his tendency to refer to the world of sports in case any clarification was required that fascinated me and had me awestruck. References to Owens, Navratilova, Aldrich, Gower and Boycott are not necessarily the worst way in the world to keep me interested. I fancy that I have an enjoyable year ahead there.
Our comparison with the IITs holds no basis when it comes to the number of selections to IIMs and the reasons are not too difficult to behold. I cannot refrain from taking a jibe at the general intellectual milieu pervading here- a matter of no little concern, but something that will be brushed under the carpet along with the relevance of acads in a year where compensation packages have reached unprecedented heights. The number of quizzes, debates and other intellectual activities are constantly on the wane. Technex didn't even bother with a Quiz this time around. The comparison with IITs is so very obviously being done by short-sighted people.
Is anybody looking at the larger picture? I can only hope that India's economic boom is for ever!
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
The enigma that is Dada
So, after a couple of sentimental outpourings it is back to my core competency. If you reckon that a decent grade score (on the donward spiral all the time) makes me a talented or even an interested 'Mechaniche', nothing could be farther from the truth. It is back to my comfort zone and back to a person who has probably intrigued me the most, myself apart.
The ephemeral Yorkshirean still calls him the "Bengal Tiger" or the "Prince who could smash spinners out of the park with my grandma's broomstick". Shane Warne and Steve Waugh remember him as "an irritant" who had the audacity to look the Aussies into the eye and keep people waiting at the toss. Freddie Flintoff calls him a "royal" who never practised and took cricket as a pastime but would still celebrate (showing off a muscular frame) as if he had won matches on his own. In the eastern parts of India, he is God and held on the same pedestal as Durga. In any dressing room, he is called Dada with a mixture of respect, envy and intrigue.
Fascinating!
No person has captivated the public conscience in recent times for his methods and actions as much as Sourav Chandidas Ganguly has. Not even Shane Warne. When you do a personality check with Warney, you wonder about this fuss. This guy doesn't smoke, neither does he get watered down and create trouble at places, nor does he get hooked up with all handsome looking females that he comes across. But the cynosure of all eyes nevertheless!
His roll of honour includes over 15000 international runs, 150 international wickets and100 international catches. But one suspects that Sourav Ganguly will be remembered more for his bare-chested celebrations, his verbal ding-dongs with the Aussies, his ability to infuriate the opposition, his perceived 'rudeness' to the Srinaths (At a crucial moment in the Trinidad test, he was caught by cameras gesticulating to Srinath besides abusing him), for thinking that Kumble was a good option as 12th man, for his candidness but at the same time his remarkable ability in not getting bogged down even under the extremest of situations.
His trademark punches through the off-side (which had Dravid claiming , ''through the off-side, first there is God, then there is Sourav") will be missed, his characteristic jig down the track at the first sight of a spinner will be missed and his dismantling of the quickest bowlers in the world in manners never seen before will be missed as well. So will his fielding with only one serious competitor- Inzamam.
He will be remembered for introducing Sehwag Yuvraj, Harbhajan, Dhoni and Pathan to world cricket. He will also be remembered as the captain who got his bowlers to bowl straight by instating Rahul Dravi as wicketkeeper, for prolonging Jumbo's career but at the same time cutting down that of the Mysore Express. He defied logic by getting Sehwag to open in Test cricket; having specialist batsmen to bat at No.8 in one-day cricket; preferring Dinesh Mongia and Sanjay Bangar to Laxman in a World Cup squad; winning test matches in Australia, England and the West Indies and reaching a World Cup final with a side not having an all-rounder, a specialist fast bowler, a wicket-keeper or a wrist spinner.
My take on Dada doesn't match up to the intrigue of the man. A middle class Bengali with a beatiful celeb wife plus a comfortable livelihood, I beleive has got more to do with his downfall than anything else. At the end of it all, Sourav will look back at his career with the greatest tinge of regret. Greatness was always just a step away but for some strange reason, he always shunned that step trying to get the entire team there. I feel that there came a point in time when Dada got so engrossed about how his 'Men in Blue' were doing that he lost sight of the fact that he was a batsman blessed with great talent but weaknesses manifold and that the opposition would always come hard at him.
To crucify him for that would be unfair, for Sourav I thought, always looked at ways to get the most a bunch which was very limited in talent. Greg offered him a way out by offering him a way out of the captaincy and back to the nets but the proud middle class Bengali in him surfaced and he took it as a personal affront. Over the last few years, one couldn't but help get the feeling that Ganguly started overestimating his abilities as a batsman. His best efforts, be it in England or in the West Indies had been exercises in dogmatism, perseverance and determination more than the brutesque power, timing and lazy elegance that had always been his trademarks. When in the late 90's he was the most realiable outfielder and slipsman, here he was- an embarassment to modern day athleticism. When he was a safe bet as third seamer in the late 90's with match-winning spells in the longer format, here he was, trying to match Kumble on the speed gun.
Ganguly, for me, will have to go down in history books, as the captain who transformed the way India played cricket and how the world looked at India as a cricketing nation; the finest Indian left-hand batsman; the best all rounder India has seen in one day cricket after Kapil and Sachin; a fierce competitor who hated losing and instilled pride, aggression and respect in Indian cricket. Gone were the quota systems and the laidback approach that had been the bane of Indian cricket.
On a global stage, I beleive, Dada will be put in the bracket of the Flemings and Gowers in terms of batsmanship, undoubted ability with brilliance in spurts whenever one doubted, lazy elegance and a blessed sense of timing. I do beleive that Sourav had more weaknesses than the other two; both were fine players of the short-pitched stuff and equally comfortable off their legs, but just the fact that Sourav got there is a tribute to his mental strength and dogmatism.
As for the World Cup, my call is that Dada will have a pretty barren spell. A string of low scores with a gem or two interspersed in between might not be the best way for 'The Prince' to bid adieu to 'his' stage, but it would be so unlike the man and his career if he went out as per his whims. Sourav has had his opportunities but he has never been able to chart his own course or destiny.
That is how history will define him- a great captain and a damn good cricketer.
The ephemeral Yorkshirean still calls him the "Bengal Tiger" or the "Prince who could smash spinners out of the park with my grandma's broomstick". Shane Warne and Steve Waugh remember him as "an irritant" who had the audacity to look the Aussies into the eye and keep people waiting at the toss. Freddie Flintoff calls him a "royal" who never practised and took cricket as a pastime but would still celebrate (showing off a muscular frame) as if he had won matches on his own. In the eastern parts of India, he is God and held on the same pedestal as Durga. In any dressing room, he is called Dada with a mixture of respect, envy and intrigue.
Fascinating!
No person has captivated the public conscience in recent times for his methods and actions as much as Sourav Chandidas Ganguly has. Not even Shane Warne. When you do a personality check with Warney, you wonder about this fuss. This guy doesn't smoke, neither does he get watered down and create trouble at places, nor does he get hooked up with all handsome looking females that he comes across. But the cynosure of all eyes nevertheless!
His roll of honour includes over 15000 international runs, 150 international wickets and100 international catches. But one suspects that Sourav Ganguly will be remembered more for his bare-chested celebrations, his verbal ding-dongs with the Aussies, his ability to infuriate the opposition, his perceived 'rudeness' to the Srinaths (At a crucial moment in the Trinidad test, he was caught by cameras gesticulating to Srinath besides abusing him), for thinking that Kumble was a good option as 12th man, for his candidness but at the same time his remarkable ability in not getting bogged down even under the extremest of situations.
His trademark punches through the off-side (which had Dravid claiming , ''through the off-side, first there is God, then there is Sourav") will be missed, his characteristic jig down the track at the first sight of a spinner will be missed and his dismantling of the quickest bowlers in the world in manners never seen before will be missed as well. So will his fielding with only one serious competitor- Inzamam.
He will be remembered for introducing Sehwag Yuvraj, Harbhajan, Dhoni and Pathan to world cricket. He will also be remembered as the captain who got his bowlers to bowl straight by instating Rahul Dravi as wicketkeeper, for prolonging Jumbo's career but at the same time cutting down that of the Mysore Express. He defied logic by getting Sehwag to open in Test cricket; having specialist batsmen to bat at No.8 in one-day cricket; preferring Dinesh Mongia and Sanjay Bangar to Laxman in a World Cup squad; winning test matches in Australia, England and the West Indies and reaching a World Cup final with a side not having an all-rounder, a specialist fast bowler, a wicket-keeper or a wrist spinner.
My take on Dada doesn't match up to the intrigue of the man. A middle class Bengali with a beatiful celeb wife plus a comfortable livelihood, I beleive has got more to do with his downfall than anything else. At the end of it all, Sourav will look back at his career with the greatest tinge of regret. Greatness was always just a step away but for some strange reason, he always shunned that step trying to get the entire team there. I feel that there came a point in time when Dada got so engrossed about how his 'Men in Blue' were doing that he lost sight of the fact that he was a batsman blessed with great talent but weaknesses manifold and that the opposition would always come hard at him.
To crucify him for that would be unfair, for Sourav I thought, always looked at ways to get the most a bunch which was very limited in talent. Greg offered him a way out by offering him a way out of the captaincy and back to the nets but the proud middle class Bengali in him surfaced and he took it as a personal affront. Over the last few years, one couldn't but help get the feeling that Ganguly started overestimating his abilities as a batsman. His best efforts, be it in England or in the West Indies had been exercises in dogmatism, perseverance and determination more than the brutesque power, timing and lazy elegance that had always been his trademarks. When in the late 90's he was the most realiable outfielder and slipsman, here he was- an embarassment to modern day athleticism. When he was a safe bet as third seamer in the late 90's with match-winning spells in the longer format, here he was, trying to match Kumble on the speed gun.
Ganguly, for me, will have to go down in history books, as the captain who transformed the way India played cricket and how the world looked at India as a cricketing nation; the finest Indian left-hand batsman; the best all rounder India has seen in one day cricket after Kapil and Sachin; a fierce competitor who hated losing and instilled pride, aggression and respect in Indian cricket. Gone were the quota systems and the laidback approach that had been the bane of Indian cricket.
On a global stage, I beleive, Dada will be put in the bracket of the Flemings and Gowers in terms of batsmanship, undoubted ability with brilliance in spurts whenever one doubted, lazy elegance and a blessed sense of timing. I do beleive that Sourav had more weaknesses than the other two; both were fine players of the short-pitched stuff and equally comfortable off their legs, but just the fact that Sourav got there is a tribute to his mental strength and dogmatism.
As for the World Cup, my call is that Dada will have a pretty barren spell. A string of low scores with a gem or two interspersed in between might not be the best way for 'The Prince' to bid adieu to 'his' stage, but it would be so unlike the man and his career if he went out as per his whims. Sourav has had his opportunities but he has never been able to chart his own course or destiny.
That is how history will define him- a great captain and a damn good cricketer.
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