The bottom-line being,  sometimes people do not realise the prematurity of a situation, and that’s when we get a 3-0 green-wash (Pakistan v Bangladesh ODI Series, April 2008), and lots and lots more similar happenings preceding it. What do you guys think about it?

Image Credit: cricinfo

Post from: EveryJoe

Why do Bangladesh play cricket?

With Tendulkar, it’s like the elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about.”
-Sanjay Manjrekar on Sachin Tendulkar

Source

Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly were picked out of the Indian team prior to the CB series. Rahul, of course, had been culled long before that, so his absence wasn’t talked about. But some people weren’t happy to see Ganguly go and opined if the selection committee can be brave enough to cull Ganguly, they should axe Tendulkar as well.

Moreover, Tendulkar hasn’t brought any laurels to the team in this tournament and was dismissed most of the times even before the match started (except today’s 63, of course). So that’s got tongues wagging again. And Manjrekar’s always one to have his voice heard.

This is quite an important issue for us, really. In fact, we’ve a poll running on this very topic — Which Indian Senior Will Go First?. Obviously, it was started before CB series selections were made and we included Rahul Dravid anyway because there was a slight chance of him coming back into the team. Out of all the people who voted, 19% think Sachin will go first. A whopping 38% reckon it’s Dravid’s turn. Oh really, he’s out already. So no surprise there. 26% foresaw Ganguly packing bags, but again, since he’s flown back already, we’re not surprised. About 17% folks don’t care about this at all. Oh, but we care.

The big question is: Have we found a stable replacement for Tendulkar? Sehwag’s days seem to be limited. He’s lost much of his spark. The BCCI are of course going to keep him in the team, leaning on the same delusion that has had them support him all through his debacle. He’s good, really, don’t get me wrong there. But then again?

Gautam Gambhir seems to be the only opener currently who seems to be in control of things.

And there’s no Dravid now. No Ganguly. We need some experience in the team. Gambhir was heard saying the other day that “tips” from Tendulkar had helped him a lot. That’s just an example. You know what I mean. I think, we can keep him some more.

Whadaya say?

Post from: EveryJoe

Weekly Debate: Time for Sachin Tendulkar To Go?

The idea of off-season may be completely off to some. A previous post on it got, like, no response (We are thick-skinned. Heh), but however ill-fated it may be, we are determined to shop it around. For us, it’s the Great Romantic Novel (think Gone With the Wind). Someday someone will bite.

OK, the point now:

Why we think cricket should have an off-season every year?

* Players get rest and time to heal. Actually, if the ICC is even half-serious about preserving it’s trump cards, the players who bring in the crowds (that is, tickets, that is bucks), they’ve got to think about this. Shane Bond and Shaun Tait are quitting cricket. We won’t ever have the pleasure of watching them again. Brett Lee spent an entire decade battling with injuries and struggling with form. Now when he’s just three or four years away from retirement, we are witnessing some of his sparks of flair (I chose it over flashes of brilliance. Howzzat?) You could say the game is bigger than the players. Oh yeah it is. But pluck out Sachin, Sehwag out of the Indian team and then see how many turn in to watch matches. Players make the team– and the game. Nuff said. Now some science talking– there are some players who are more prone to injuries than others are. Let’s not delve into the intricacies of genetics and human physiology. Granted, but a temporary break can benefit every one.

* Those of you who watch American and British TV will understand where we are going with this now. Do you get Big Brother all the year round? Even producers of Hannah Montana air the show in chunks. They could go on for the year; it’s such a hit, but no, they don’t. Since sports are basically entertainment, the same strategy applies to them as well.

* Since players are humans….: This is our weakest argument, but here goes….Players have families and they deserve their time as well. Today, the cricketing year is so hectic that players barely see their kids. And wives. And, uh, girlfriends. Ask Shane Warne. He can tell you what devastations the tours can be to their personal lives.

* Injured players can recover. In peace. Every match you can’t play because you’re unfit is like a stab in your heart.

* Authorities can brainstorm a gameplan for the next season.

With IPL and ICL coming up, off season remains a dream. Alas…

Your turn now, boys and girls. Fire away. Do you think cricket needs an annual off-season? Or you think six and out is run by an idiot?

Post from: EveryJoe

Weekly Debate: Should cricket have off-season?

We’ve called him cool, and we truly believed it. But that coolness has failed to show itself in Test  cricket. Everybody pardoned Dhoni’s less than stellar performance against Pakistan. Too early, we echoed. But nothing has changed in Australia so far. Just 105 runs in 6 innings. Sehwag came into his own. Pathan bounced back (Interesting, he always gets Man of the Match on bouncing back), but Dhoni has kept everyone waiting. Karthik for Adelaide, anyone?

Post from: EveryJoe

The Dhoni Debate

Post from: EveryJoe

Mr. Bucknor needs eye check-up. Fast…

Journalists are quite fond of finding new angles to old, beaten-to-death topics. These so-called slants come in handy when you’ve few important things to report, or to be very, very concise, your team is slipping off the pedestal.

Andrew Stevenson, Sydney Morning Herald correspondent, alleges, based on his research from secondary (as opposed to primary and authorized) sources, that Indian cricket team’s selection is caste-based.

By chance or fate, he chose to visit the baby twice in Dr Purandare hospital noticing, to the horror of all on the second trip, that it wasn’t the same boy.

The tiny hole in the boy’s left ear – still visible today – was gone. A panicked search confirmed his judgement: the boy had been swapped with the son of a fisherwoman.

Gavaskar, from a proud, wealthy Brahmin family, the highest caste in the Hindu social order, had an uncle, Madhav Mantri, who played for India. It’s one of the great imponderables, a classic recasting of the nature-nurture divide to speculate whether Gavaskar, raised by a fisherwoman, could have played the game.

He might have had the eye and the dexterity to star in backstreet games, but would a fisherwoman’s son have played 125 Tests and scored 34 centuries? The chances may not have been great. The Brahmin caste, which forms only a tiny fraction of India’s population, has always dominated the national cricket side.

Don’t get me started on neuroscience. It’s my major. This is nature vs. nurture. Let’s leave it to the experts, Andrew.

“Why do their fielders not chase the ball to the boundary? Why do Indian batsmen rarely run for singles, apparently preferring to hit the ball to the fence or amble through for two runs in no obvious haste?” Anand wrote. “Having too many Brahmans means that you play the game a little too softly, and mostly for yourself.”

That sounds like some sort of conspiracy theory!

Despite his talents, Kambli was always booed and mocked at his home ground, Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Observers believed it was because of the dark colour of his skin. Not so, says Kambli. “I think it’s because of my caste.”

“I think” signifies you are opining. Facts please?

SECOND TEST SIDE

Castes among the Indian team’s Hindus:
Brahmin
Anil Kumble
Rahul Dravid
VVS Laxman
Sachin Tendulkar
Sourav Ganguly
R.P. Singh
Ishant Sharma
Jat
Yuvraj Singh
Rajput
Mahendra Dhoni

Of the team’s non-Hindus, Wasim Jaffer is a Muslim and Harbhajan Singh a Sikh.

Ow. I never knew about players’ castes, really, except for Harbhajan and Zaheer’s, obviously.

This is just very, very disappointing reporting from Sydney Morning Herald. Does anyone here actually believe this baloney?

Photo Credit: SMH

Post from: EveryJoe

Caste Apart: Australian Media’s Soft Journalism

Chucking is all over me. So here goes.

While this is not a substitute for 3-D analysis and we’re not biomechanics, 2000 frames/second is slow enough for our eyes to observe bowling actions from varying angles.

I don’t really know if this is 2000 frames/sec, but it’s slow enough.

I am not going to say that it’s okay, because we all have different opinions regarding what throwing action is, and different eye (specs) powers.

As far as I am concerned, I think he bowls pretty neatly for his hypermobile joints. What do you think?

Post from: EveryJoe

Murali in slow motion: Decide for yourself

Let’s dig up some stats.

How has Tendulkar fared as India Test captain in comparison to Dravid and Ganguly, the other two recent skippers?

So there. Point taken.

However, unlike Ganguly and Dravid, his batting never suffered during captaincy.

As you can see, his batting average suffered a decline of about 4 points. Not negligible, but not bothersome either.

Stats aside, you may like to note that Tendulkar has quit captaincy in the past. It was silly on BCCI’s part to expect him to lead again. I was unsure if he would agree to the offer. And it comes as no surprise to me that he has turned it down.

Captaining India is no child’s play. It definitely sucks up a lot of one’s time and energy fielding media inquiries, attending conferences, etc. Add to that, one has to put up with the politics that is always doing the rounds of BCCI’s headquarters.

So that leaves BCCI with the following options:
Dhoni, Ganguly, Kumble, Laxman

Kumble and Laxman don’t fit the bill. Not only are they too low-profile, timid, but they haven’t really been with the team much lately. And to be honest, they are not going to be around for a long time either.

Now that leaves us with Ganguly and Dhoni. Ganguly, of course, is India’s most successful captain. But after the Chappell scandal, BCCI would be reluctant to appoint him. And with the current state of affairs in the team, that might not be a very wise thing to do indeed.

Dhoni, as some are opining, is way too young for that spot. Ugh. He’s older than Nawab Pataudi (who took over as captain at age 21), at least, gentlemen. Dhoni’s already handled seniors in the Future Cup, and he did fine. Besides, it’s clear that sooner or later he would have to take up Test captaincy too. So why not give him a chance now? And given that Pakistan’s current team comprises mainly of rookies and not much of a threat, this is the best time to test waters. IMHO, of course.

Kumble has been reported as saying that he’s ready for any “duty” that the board assigns him. Wow, that’s going to make the BCCI jump with joy. They can do anything in this state of desperation!

What’s your take?

Post from: EveryJoe

Tendulkar says “nah”; the captaincy drama continues

Yes, we’ve talked about players getting injured and dead beat due to nonstop playing, but on the other end, the spectators are getting a little tired of watching, too. Just like players need a break from playing, I personally feel I need a break from watching it, too, sometimes.

Of course, this is how the ICC’s system works, but couldn’t they make room for some off-time during November and December when no international cricket is played? Just like the WTA and ATP are approaching their end season. When the Australian Open starts next year, everybody is going to be all excited for the next season. Even with football, they have intervals between international tournaments.

What’s the point with playing so much cricket? If they want to make more money, maybe they could have a few more T20 cups.

Post from: EveryJoe

Too much cricket these days?

I was going to review Warney’s autobiography and boy, was I glad to present my recent epiphanies about the leggie, but what the heck, something spoiled my mood. And here you have a rant.

————————————————————————————————————

For starters, Shashi Tharoor is a former under secretary general of the United Nations. He ran for the post of general secretary, but lost. He’s also a prolific writer, and some 50-60 year olds (women, obviously) I know have found him very “dashing” and “handsome”.

Prior to the start of the World Cup this year, he had an op-ed published in the New York Times.

With all due respect to him, he’s a respectable person for his achievements, but in all honesty, his NYT stint has hurt many Americans’ integrity. (Indians don’t read NYT, so they are probably unaware.) I couldn’t understand what the underlying message of that essay is. It came off as ridicule rather than raillery. He sounds confused. He’s insulting both Americans and Indians.

Here’s one instance he is hurling insult at the Americans:

As legions of missionaries have discovered before me, you can’t bring enlightenment to people who don’t realize they’re living in the dark.

Another one:

In any event, nothing about cricket seems suited to the American national character: its rich complexity, the infinite possibilities that could occur with each delivery of the ball, the dozen different ways of getting out, are all patterned for a society of endless forms and varieties, not of a homogenized McWorld. They are rather like Indian classical music, in which the basic laws are laid down but the performer then improvises gloriously, unshackled by anything so mundane as a written score.

I am confused again. Mockery and praise coupled together, eh? Are you trying to demonstrate your linguistic prowess with paradoxes here, Mr. Tharoor?

India’s turn to be poked fun at:

Cricket is better suited to a country like India, where a majority of the population still consults astrologers and believes in the capricious influence of the planets — so they can well appreciate a sport in which, even more than in baseball, an ill-timed cloudburst, a badly prepared pitch, a lost toss of the coin at the start of a match or the sun in the eyes of a fielder can transform the outcome of a game. Even the possibility that five tense, hotly contested, occasionally meandering days of cricketing could still end in a draw seems derived from ancient Indian philosophy, which accepts profoundly that in life the journey is as important as the destination.

Someone who seriously follows the game (and I am sure this author doesn’t) knows that toss and pitch conditions do play a role in a match’s outcome. To my knowledge, most Indians usually blame their team’s loss in the players. And in all honesty, the general population gives a damn to edaphic factors. Pitch conditions and stuff is Greek to most of them.

Anti-climax to the essay:

So here’s the message, America: don’t pay any attention to us, and we won’t pay any to you. If you wonder, over the coming weeks, why your Indian co-worker is stealing distracted glances at his computer screen every few minutes or why the South African in the next cubicle is taking frequent and furtive bathroom breaks during the working day, don’t even try to understand. You probably wouldn’t get it. You may as well learn to accept that there are some things too special for the rest of us to want to waste them on you.

So Americans won’t get it. And in a previous paragraph, he went as far as insinuating that Americans have a short attention span. (I agree. Haha)

Cricket and baseball are analogous in many ways and perhaps have the same origin, but there’s a whole story behind their divergent evolution and spread to entirely different regions. Indians won’t stop loving cricket, and Americans aren’t giving up on baseball any time soon. Let that be. Why all this pseudo-attempt at boasting your love for the game? You’ve failed miserably at humor, Mr. Tharoor. And Six had so much respect for you, which has all come tumbling down following your smart alec remarks.

Photo Credit: Shashi Tharoor Official Site

Post from: EveryJoe

We are fine with both cricket and baseball. Any probs, Mr. Tharoor?