A Personal Take on all the recent cricketing action: From WI-ENG, AUS-PAK to IPL 2022!

There has been a lot going on in the world of Cricket in the past few months! Starting from the mega IPL auctions that was held in February 12 & 13^th, 2022 where almost 600 crores INR was spent for all the ten franchises to fill up their team & form their squads. Pretty interesting times as far as IPL 2022 goes.

 But before  I get into discussing about the IPL action, there was lot of intriguing action happening across the world of cricket that I wanted to highlight. There was the three match Test series in West Indies where Englands plight as a Test match team continued to increase. After getting drubbed 0-4 in the Ashes, there was lot of talk about them ‘resetting’ their red ball game.

                                       Times up for Joe Root to get sacked as the skipper of this English Test team

 Well, dropping some batsmen who clearly don’t belong to international standards as yet, and leaving out James Anderson & Stuart Broad from your squad surely doesnt qualify for a ‘reset.

 The only bright spots for England in the series that a cricket analyst & fan in me was happy to see how England managed to notch up scores close to 400 as a batting unit. Theres something to look ahead to when their home summer kicks on in June.

 Windies were top notch in fighting above their weight. They had a relatively young, inexperienced team & yet under the leadership of someone who completely goes under the radar in Kraigg Brathwaite, they managed to defeat England at home a second consecutive time, Earlier it was 2-1 in 2018/2019 and now in 2022 the series score line reads 1-0 in their favor! Promising signs & one hopes the Windies team can pose a strong challenge in the longest form of the game more often in the future.

 Another landmark series thats probably the most heartening sights to watch was the recently concluded Benaud-Qadir trophy in Pakistan. Its amazing to see a big nation like Australia come to Pakistan shores & send  a message to the other countries in the world that yes we can play Cricket again in Pakistan!

 England & NZ backed out owing to security concerns, so this tour will only boost the chances of people getting an opportunity to see more action from Pakistans famous, iconic stadiums.

 Keeping aside the security concerns aside & analyzing only the Cricket we all got to watch; it was a riveting Test series. Of-course theres an argument that pitches could have been better as they were too flat.

But considering this is the first Test series featuring a top nation in almost a decade, I personally feel we can excuse PCB for this as in the end of the day we got to see some fabulous individual & team performances with Pat Cummins leading Australia to a famous & richly deserved serries win in Pakistan shores! 

I am certainly looking forward to seeing how this Aussie  side fares against India in their home conditions where they have hardly been tested in the past 4-5 years. Can Australia challenge India? We would need to wait & watch for that!

And finally  moving on to the talk of the town; IPL 2022! To be very honest I am sensing an exhaustion of IPL cricket. As we just had a season completed in October, 2021 and now again to see the same teams go about isnt that exciting.  

To get familiar with how each franchise has shaped post the mega auction is another big challenge for the IPL when it comes to retaining a loyal fanbase for each team. Personally, I hope there is no more mega auctions & we can slowly get used to the 10 teams & the players who are a part of them.

 To help me do a fun & candid weekly wrap up of the IPL 2022 action thats happened so far is my mate Mayur Shivakumar who is a Toastmasters veteran & someone who watches the game a lot & is enthusiastic about sharing his views about the game & specifically IPL 2022.

                          The season of new, fresh  & energetic leaders in IPL 2022

 Here’s presenting a fun Q& A segment where I get Mayurs take on a variety of topics related to IPL 2022! Hoping that you all would like this interesting style of collaboration as the IPL action moves on.

 1. Before we get into dissecting the IPL so far, your thoughts on the successful resumption of Cricket in Pakistan as a fan/viewer? With Australia’s tour going with no major glitches. 

 The test series was good. Nail biter on the third day evening was exciting after 2 drawn matches. Pakistan is a country of wronged people who have very little to cheer for. This Test series must have been a good relief for them. 

 2. Have you got used to the how each team looks like? As in familiarity factor with each franchise is a factor in people taking to this edition of the IPL. 

 Many players have switched and it is taking time. The 2 new teams do look exciting. 

 3. Considering IPL 2021, are you satisfied as a viewer with the IPL being played only in four venues across Maharashtra? 

If its possible to do it in3 grounds and still make it successful why not in 4 grounds or venues?

 4. Getting to the big announcement ahead of IPL 2022; MSD stepping down as captain of CSK. Please elaborate on MSD-CSK bond and how much of a challenge its going to be for Ravindra Jadeja to step into MSDs shoes. 

 It had to happen someday. The transition will take time. Hopefully sooner. 

 5. Your take on the two new franchises; Gujarat Titans & Lucknow Super Giants. Some favorite players you are looking out from each team. 

 LSG’s opening pair of KL Rahul and Quin ton DeKock looks great. GT have a lethal bowling attack with Mohammed Shami and Rashid.Khan  Will be exciting to see as the tournament progresses. 

 Lets end this candid Q& A  with a quick rapid fire!!

 1. 5 Indian players who has impressed you the most so far across franchises?

Too early to say

 2. 5 overseas players who have been really worth the pay-check so far? 

Too early to say

 3. Top three teams in terms of team-balance in your opinion. 

Delhi, Lucknow, Punjab

 4. The top three teams with the best jerseys in IPL 2022. 

Delhi, Gujrat, Bangalore

 5. Its a bit early but from what you have witnessed so far, do you see a new champion this season? 

Too early to say

 

Resurgent, Ruthless India storm into Manchester as firm favorites to win this series

 Team India under Virat Kohli’s captaincy is capable and equipped to scale new heights and most importantly their attitude and approach to each game makes them stand apart. One rather bemusing aspect of this team’s rapid rise to world domination in Tests in recent times is the fact that they need to be constantly pushed to the corner for them to bounce back strongly; something thats not an ideal situation to find yourselves in as a team especially overseas.

 India struggle, ‘The After Glow Effect’ as a Test Team in recent times

 

The resounding, ruthless nature of India’s win at The Kia Oval isn’t something new for this team. In 2020-2021 itself this phenomena called ‘The After Glow Effect’ has impacted Kohli’s men. The ability to back up a fantastic series win or a win with a convincing follow up performance.

 They get bundled out for an embarrassing 36 runs at the Adelaide Oval. With Virat Kohli flying home, it looked done & dusted but under Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy, India bounce back and how!

Beating Australia in their home conditions and breaching the fortress ‘Gabba’ will remain one of India’s finest achievements in their Test history; considering they were playing with a second or third best team owing to the number of injuries in their camp.

 Before R Ashwin & Axar Patel made England’s batting unit look like school kids, India failed to back up their outstanding series win in Australia when they landed up at The Chepauk. Joe Root was magnificent as he went to score a stroke filled 217 and that floored India.

But then India bounced back and trounced England, thereby winning the series 3-1 and also almost making the first game look it was from another series altogether!

So the question everyone would be asking is: After the glorious of a win at The Lord’s, India slumped to a worrying low at The Leeds only to come back harder & stronger at The Oval. Which India is going to turn up in the series decider? Can they include more consistency in their artillery? Well only time will tell!

 Small tactical moments or strategies right through the game cost England dearly

 

One among many reasons why experts, fans of this beautiful game & current and former players are advocating the beauty of Test Cricket is the fact that the game has a constant ebb & flow and small tactical glitches could cause you the game; unlike ODIs, T20Is or The Hundred where its less likely to happen.

 I would like to highlight some instances where England lost the plot in the fourth Test allowing India to go 2-1 up in the series:

 1. .On a very placid, flat deck  in overcast conditions on Day One, Joe Root put India in to bat & had the visitors reeling at 127-7. Rather than trying to stick to their basics, they spread the field when ‘Lord’ Shardul Thakur unleashed some fabulous shots on his way to a scintillating 31 ball fifty.

Instead of attacking the other tail-enders and ensuring the total stays below 150 or so, England lost the plot tactically as they allowed easy singles for the others and Thakur carried on his majestic manner. He was allowed to largely as fields set were extremely defensive and the bowlers all of a sudden looked flat and tired.

 2. After you bowl out India for 191(maybe 30-40 more than what they should have scored), it’s imperative for you to put up a score in excess of 300 to shut the door on the opposition. Yet again England gave away some soft dismissals and their middle order couldn’t support someone like Ollie Pope who was looking extremely fluent and confident.

The middle & lower order should have ensured India stay on the park longer, tire their bowlers and fielders in the process.

But with everyone getting cute 20s & 30s and then throwing it away, we had a lead of only 99 runs which was not going to play in India’s mind. What followed from the likes of Rohit Sharma, Pujara, Virat Kohli and again Shardul Thakur was fantastic!

 3. And finally, with them being on 88-0 overnight requiring 291 runs on Day Five with all ten wickets intact, England just didn’t show enough urgency to go for the chase. India’s bowlers were quick to understand that a first session where England don’t score much is exactly what could help them capitalize on later.

And thats what happened. The scoreboard didn’t move much in the first session of Day Five; the pressure of not pushing the scoring as expected was visible in the manner in which their openers went about the chase, especially Haseeb Hameed  who gobbled up way too many deliveries on such a benign surface.

It’s going to be extremely tough for England to bounce back in this series

 

 A lot of what happens in the middle in Test Cricket is in the mind. The mental side of things have left England scarred after a very familiar batting collapse on Day Five masterfully executed by Jasprit Bumrah & Shardul Thakur.

Yes, on hindsight it could be little naive to proclaim that getting the openers would mean India would go on to win the game. But I strongly felt if India could get the openers out, the kind of pressure they were able to constantly induce; it was about time before the likes of Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Moen Ali, Ollie Pope and even Joe Root.

It became even more clear after that truly special spell from ‘Boom Boom’ Bumrah where he castled the stumps of Pope and Bairstrow. England looked rattled, listless after that spell, such was the impact. They gave up trying to go for an achievable chase way too early.

The quality of this team under Kohli’s captaincy is these players keep coming at you, hard. After Bumrah did the damage, Thakur chipped with couple of wickets including the crucial scalp of Joe Root and Umesh Yadav also later came to the party.

So, yes England can & will make personnel changes by getting in Jos Buttler and Mark Wood into this side. I wont be surprised if they pick Jack Leach in this team to throw a new challenge to this Indian batting lineup whose fragility hasn’t come down too much, it’s just that as a team they functioned better than England to go 2-1 up.

The most important question to be asked from this English side is can they shrug off a disappointing game at the Kia Oval and start afresh?  If they need extra motivation to put one good foot forward, then it would be that if they do well as an unit in the fifth Test they can square the series 2-2 and retain or hold the Pataudi trophy. 

With lot of tired legs, familiar problems plaguing their Test team its going to take a lot to come back into this series. But they can take some solace from the fact that India's middle order is far from settled, there are lot of questions on Ajinkya Rahane's spot in the side, to the overall batting weighing or depending far too much on the top three batters. 

Certainly it's going to be an exciting & thrilling end to this Test series post which T20s take center stage; resumption of IPL 2021 & then the big tournament: ICC World T20!

Are Virat Kohli’s aggressive men falling prey to their own mistakes & ‘templates’?

Cricket, Test cricket to be specific is the best leveller in this beautiful game. After a thunderous win at the home of Cricket; Lord’s where a dominant and aggressive India bundled out a hapless English batting line up under fifty overs. 

Head to the next Test at Leeds and everything falls apart. India’s batting lineup just collapsed and the end result doesn’t make for great reading: Lost by an innings and 78 runs. What needs to be analyzed and discussed more is was the drubbing at the Adelaide Oval(36 all out) and now at Leeds(78 all out) just freak incidents or is it self induced in a way? 

Fragility of India’s middle-order has been an ongoing issue

                                        India's middle order really need to step up

Ever since the ICC World Test Championship started in 2019, India’s batting has been their biggest concern. Couple of reasons why it hasn’t been highlighted as much it should have is the fact that despite some huge collapses, the team has fought back and won the series magnificently: 

The win Down Under & the home series win against England is a classic example. And one classic parameter to judge if a batting line up is doing well or not is too look at the statistics. And the numbers actually look good for this current Indian batting lineup since 2019. Rohit Sharma averages 60.77, Virat Kohli( 42.45), Ajinkya Rahane( 42.22), Cheteshwar Pujara(28.03) is an exception to a large extent as his value as someone who can dent an opposition with rigid defense may not reflect in averages & runs alone. 

So the Indian team management could be well in their right to back these players. As they have since 2019 had some shocking performances but as a batting unit have somehow managed to come back stronger. Since this ongoing series hangs in the balance, India’s top five batsmen need to fire as an unit; something that’s not happened in a while(even though overall win % wont give that picture). 

  Virat Kohli’s template: Is it proving to be detrimental for India?

One of Virat Kohli’s most admirable qualities as a skipper is the fact that he is extremely aggressive on the field which rubs on the other players. The rise of Mohammed Siraj who was getting copped for leaking runs at will for RCB in the IPL to what he has become off late is an amazing story! 

Also, Virat doesn’t try to hide away from his team’s mistakes. He openly admitted in the post match conference post the third Test that the middle order just couldn’t capitalize on the fantastic start provided by the openers( India capitulated from 217-2 to 278 all out). 

While its admirable that a captain or leader owns up to his team’s follies, the question one needs to be asked is are these mistakes something which could have been avoided? Yes, on a given day the opposition could just be too good, and one must appreciate that and move on. 

But Kohli’s template as a skipper in recent times especially in Test Cricket to constantly question Pujara’s intent, a strong backing of Rahane & Pant despite both of them producing in recent time, one good innings a series and the most recent addition to his template ; dropping the best off-spinner going around the world R Ashwin in order to boost the batting as Ravindra Jadeja brings in a better package overall along with the four bowlers. 

  Can common sense prevail, finally?

Cricket Analysts, fans, experts all have one question in their minds: Why would you drop the world’s best spinner going around to bolster the fast bowling stocks? R Ashwin is easily in his best bowling form off late. 

His purple patch’s best example would be how he strategically worked out Steven Smith’s weakness to the ball that cramps him up so magnificently! That troubled Smith a lot and other bowlers capitalized on that aspect well. So not only are India missing out on R Ashiwn’s astute thinking & leadership skills, they are missing out on not utilizing a bowler at the peak of his prowess. 

And incase there is a doubt that Ashwin cant offer too much with the bat, it sadly means India is so doubtful of their current batting lineup that they are depending on a #8 to bail them out. That certainly doesn't make sense. 

If the only parameter to leave out R Ashwin in the first Three Tests was an overall package; Ravindra Jadeja offers more is something I cant personally accept. On conditions that don’t do a lot for spin, with England having 4-5 left handers in their team, it’s common sense to play your front-line off spinner and make the spinner a wicket taking force, rather than just hold an end up & leave it to the fast bowlers to do all the work of getting the wickets. 

The simple point is we are heading into the flattest surfaces next; The Oval & Old Trafford, Manchester. And considering the ball won’t move around or wobble too much, can common sense prevail finally and could we have three pacers: Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah & Mohammed Siraj supported by the spinners; R Ashwin & Ravindra Jadeja?

India have bounced back from such situations earlier; which is good & bad

As I had mentioned earlier in this article, coming back from a thumping defeat is nothing new to this fiery, confident team under Virat’s captaincy. So the afterglow of such a result usually pumps up this team, they almost function and play well when the chips are down. Thats an amazing quality for any team to have especially when you tour overseas. 

But the concern still lies with the fact that #3 to #7 aren't doing enough and it has been the case for a long time, barring the occasional hundred by Ajinkya Rahane at the MCG or Rishabh Pant’s brilliance at the Gabba. Plus with the skipper who is one run away from crossing 23,000 runs milestone in International Cricket going through a torrid run since 2020 where he averages 23.15 it only compounds matters. 

Kohli likes to back his men and I don’t see a Rahane or a Pant getting dropped from the Oval Test although their batting numbers may suggest so. In all probability, despite knowing that the pitch could get better and offer more for the batsmen we could see Shardul Thakur replacing a jaded Ishant Sharma for the fourth Test. 

As that goes in complete sync with the ‘template’ of playing four seamers plus this team management has clearly forgotten R Ashwin’s brilliant match winning century in the second Test at the Chepauk on a rank turner where most of the batsmen on both sides looked completely out of sorts. 

So to consider Thakur a better batsman than Ashwin just doesn’t make any sense whatsoever. To wrap this up, for the next game, for all you know we could even see the same playing X1 for India. Or finally, what many people want could happen; which is to see R Ashiwn get his rightful spot in this team as a bowling all-rounder. 

England would be on cloud nine after their exploits at Leeds and India are searching for lot of answers. It certainly is a mouth-watering prospect to see how well this Indian team known for strong fight-backs can comeback into this series; with or without R Ashwin in the playing X1.

Dominant, Aggressive India claim a historic Test Match win amidst the perilous situation humanity finds itself in

 Its extremely tough and almost inhumane not to get affected by the Taliban’s taking over of Afghanistan in recent days. The amount of grief witnessed on TV or even Social Media is beyond description; how could the world come to this? When the world is still reeling due to ongoing, raging pandemic, we have another catastrophe.

The biggest takeaway possibly from these events that has truly shaken up the world forever is the concept of humanity? Have we failed our own when no one even shows solidarity online when countless people strive to escape their own motherland?

All I see is videos of passengers in grief, seeking help etc. Can we please stay away from not worsening things for people watching & who could get affected more as a result of such posts on SM platforms? Think of Afghani people stranded in other countries and at-least for them we must ensure Social Media doesn’t become a source of more grief & distress.

In a completely different part of the world, India and England played out a classic Test Match. It had all the makings of a potboiler, filled with emotions, drama and some fine individual performances as India thumped England by 153 runs.

                                    A dominant India went on to script a historic win at the Lord's

Should I say the result was expected? Such is the apathy of this English Test team that after having a dominant days 2,3 & 4, where Joe Root made batting look so elegant & easy, it took one incident at the fag end of Day three where Jasprit Bumrah bounced out James Anderson and the legend looked visibly disturbed by the barrage of bouncers hurled at him.

That stretch of about 10-15 minutes changed the complexion of the game. Or let’s say from my point of view, that incident spurred a confident India to become extremely aggressive and allowed them to exert control of proceedings. For England, since that Bumrah-Anderson over everything fell apart; tactically.

                                   The battle that that shook up and changed the complexion of this Test match

When you have got India’s biggest threat to increase the lead well past 250 or 300, Rishabh Pant out pretty early on Day Five, ideally you should have some basic common sense bowling to the lower order of India, which would eventually lead to them folding pretty quickly. 

Lost, weak, tactically clueless; this could sum up England’s plan to counter Jasprit Bumrah & Mohammed Shami. For those who missed this live, the highlights package don’t do justice to what England ended up doing by having six fielders in the boundary with one close in fielder for the most of Bumrah-Shami partnership that saw Mohammed Shami unleash some magnificent shots that would make any top order batsmen proud!

Despite the complete lack of game awareness and planning by Joe Root & his men, full credit must go to Bumrah and Shami for withstanding some tough overs from Mark Wood and then as they became more comfortable with the conditions,  they went on pile on the agony for the English who shockingly were ‘hoping’ for a mistake from the Indian tail enders, and not sticking to the basics and setting a field for that.

Despite having only 62 overs to dismiss England in the second innings, India seemed firm favorites to win the Test. England looked gone, they just didn’t seem in the contest. Was it the incident with Bumrah-Anderson that brought about that semantic change in the attitude of the teams? Or was it that with Mark Wood injured, James Anderson looking like he was suffering a niggle, Joe Root had very little options and hence opted to become ultra defensive? Only they could have answers for that question I suppose!

With a top three consisting of Rory Burns, Dom Sibley and Haseeb Hameed and a fired up, riled up Indian bowling lineup especially after the bowler’s efforts with the bat in the second innings, everyone was just waiting for Joe Root to walk out. England’s openers have got three ducks between them as their contribution which is a record in English Cricket.

Full credit to the Indians for pouncing on a wounded home nation. The attacking bowling, positive mindset to give Jasprit Bumrah six over spells clearly worked wonders. As he was causing all sorts of troubles to every English batsmen. Virat Kohli’s aggressive attitude has to be lauded as he never allowed England to settle in at all in the second innings.

Incisive, ferocious spells from Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Siraj paved way for a historic win at the home of Cricket. A quality advertisement for a format of the game that’s always in the scanner for it’s relevance, popularity etc.

This game should if anything tamper that debate for a while, as no other format in this beautiful game can we expect such emotion, drama, tension to lead up to such a result. Yes, there are concerns and rightly so of the game becoming far too focused on expanding its wings and popularity, thereby reducing the quality of Test Cricket, which is a fair enough debate but which can be paused for another time.

Have Pujara & Rahane managed to silence their critics? 

For me personally the biggest takeaways from this emotionally charged up game of Test Cricket would be the exquisite batting of KL Rahul and Joe Root; pure, classical shots that were so good to watch! Apart from that the resilience shown by Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane who pretty similar to every other batsmen in the English team apart from Joe Root were little unsure of their place & role in the team.

They answered all their critics by playing out the second session of Day Four without a loss of a wicket which on hindsight gave India the edge. Pujara played an important knock but certainly some questions would still be raised on whether he could have played differently in his style of play; little more impetus on him rotating the strike around maybe?

Well, India can be proud of what they achieved, it’s not their fault that England had only two batsmen trying to delay the inevitable; Joe Root and Jos Buttler.  Fantastic effort from this team to ensure they won so emphatically! It’s going to take serious soul searching for the hosts to come back  in this series; but it really would make for a riveting watch if they can bounce back and produce a closely fought Test series as we still have three matches to go.

Heres hoping for a fantastic Test series to follow and hoping that the devastation and the trauma caused in Afghanistan can come to an end soon. It has been extremely tough to read or watch those events unfold & I am and will be eternally grateful to the game of Cricket as it played a huge part in deviating my mind completely from the happenings of the world we live in; where humanity is fighting an existential battle of sorts as we see a country going back into the dark all over again..

Happy Birthday, ‘Dada’ Sourav Ganguly: A personal note on an one of a kind skipper & player

 Sourav Ganguly or ‘Dada’ as hes fondly called by fans, well-wishers and his countless admirers was truly an one of kind skipper & player. Just to put this into complete context, for a generation of followers of the game, Indian cricket couldn’t have been at a lower ebb when Sourav Ganguly became their skipper.

The massive outrage that led to then skipper and a fine batsmen, probably among the best Indian batsman; Mohammad Azharuddin's life ban after his involvement in the infamous match-fixing scandal that shook world cricket. I was probably 10-11 years old at that time & for me the scandal came as a shock but it didn’t alter my love for the game one bit.

India’s evolution under the Sourav Ganguly-John Wright combination

The complete Indian team setup looked different post 2000, with Ganguly leading the side and we had a relatively unknown, yet highly spoken & rated John Wright as the coach. Everyone including me were wondering, what can this combination do for Indian cricket?

 As I hadn’t seen or heard of so many people drifting away from the sport as much as the match-fixing scandal made them to. It was not just about lifting Indian cricket higher up in the rankings but to rebuild lost trust in the beautiful game: Cricket.

Such was the challenge ahead of them that Ganguly had two paths; one was to try and fade away as yet another captain who couldn’t achieve much or else make a difference, statement through his style of leadership and mentorship. ‘Dada’ chose the second path and I would be ever grateful to him for doing so!

A lot has been written about the era under Ganguly, but what I want to say as someone who was completely & truly invested in Indian cricket in that 6-7 years post 2000. Such was the impact that particular team had on me as a Cricket fanatic and I am sure it would resonate with a lot of 90s kids reading this piece!

Memories, a lot of fond memories courtesy Sourav ‘Dada’

I can still fondly remember how Sourav Ganguly the bowler excelled in the Sahara Cup against Pakistan at Toronto Canada in 1997/1998. Also on what was a truly torrid tour down-under in 1999/2000, Ganguly’s stroke filled 141 against Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval is still very fresh in my memory!

And of course how can one not mention the iconic celebrations at the Lords after India truly announced themselves on the world stage; beating England in their home turf! Let’s just say what we see with the slump in the competitiveness and skill set in Sri Lankan cricket over the past few years was how India’s team was in the early 2000s: some formidable names surrounded by complete novices who were ready to prove a point, but needed the right amount of guidance & support to grow as players. 

I could get into complete detail about the memories I have from Sourav Ganguly’s era and the players who made them extra special but the focus for this piece has to be on the impact ‘Dada’ has made, so will not go into that much detail here.

The transformation of the perception of Indian cricket across the world

The need of the hour at that time was to have a leader who could help India compete especially when they toured overseas. Such was the expectations, but over the course of his captaincy stint, ‘Dada’ changed how the world started perceiving Indian cricket! From meekly surrendering to oppositions earlier to dominating & fighting overseas, India were certainly no push-overs!

Post the horrid tour down-under in 2000, India won in England, Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, West Indies under Sourav Ganguly. Some of the iconic wins in Pakistan or at the Adelaide Oval in 2003 is still celebrated but largely the magnitude of the achievement hasn’t been given complete justice, or at least that's what I feel. 

A large part of that is due to two factors: Players who ensured those successes got their due share of credit, and not much media time was dedicated to Sourav's captaincy on those epic tours & Indian cricket fan's fascination for series wins or trophies. 

Yes, India didn’t go on to win a series in a SENA country in Ganguly’s stint as a leader, so now in 2021 probably he may pale in comparison to the leaders post him as they have ICC trophies in their kitty or they have gone on to achieve unparalleled success overseas, something that evaded Sourav Ganguly- the leader.

A final note, a passing thought on how I would like people to perceive Sourav Ganguly & his achievements

I would want all the readers to take the following points as takeaways from this article:

1. Appreciate what Sourav Ganguly the batsman and skipper has done for Indian cricket. Look at at the resources he had and what he went on to achieve with them.

2.  A big part of India’s transformation even should we say BCCI’s is due to Sourav Ganguly. Hes ensured that Women’s cricket gets it fair due, yes maybe he has made some changes too late but at least acknowledge the fact that as BCCI president he’s ensured Indian women’s team play a Test match after a long gap of eight years. 

3. You may have your favorites but don’t forget where it started from. What captains after ‘Dada’ managed to achieve, was primarily because of the seeds sown by Ganguly’s men. And full credit to the people who followed him for ensuring they build on what’s provided to them.

4. And finally, hopefully fans of Indian cricket will have a broader image and memory of Sourav Ganguly than just his infamous spat with Greg Chappell. Ganguly: The batsman, skipper and now the administrator should only be talked about and not that one year which continues to leave a bad impression about Team India.

On that note, here’s wishing Sourav ‘Dada’ Ganguly a happy, healthy and awesome 49^th birthday! Thanks for all the memories of your time as India’s skipper; a phase that has truly shaped how the team is now: Confident, courageous, dominant and successful! 

Cricket in times of a pandemic or lack of Cricket- I will dearly miss it

These are extremely distressing times for mankind. No one has experienced such a situation before in their lifetime where one has to worry about their existence on a daily basis. How safe is it to resume normal life to an extent is always pondering in our heads. And when you see the news, we tend up only get fed with the inevitable and lots of grief and worry.

Just about a few days back, there was a statistic which was extremely hard to digest- 11 Crore employees (unorganized and organised sector) are without a job in India since the lockdown was imposed. This number just in a span of 40-50 days. It’s equally as bad elsewhere especially in bigger countries like USA, UK.

From a personal point of view, my day begins and ends with Cricket. It’s a very small event in the larger context with people’s lives at stake and many going jobless etc but for someone who lives and breathes the game and for all these years has been privileged enough to watch some form of the game in some part of the world happening on a daily basis, the toughest pill to swallow is the eventuality of us not seeing the sport being played in any form for the next 5-6 months at least.

So on behalf of all those whose lives revolve around Cricket in some form or the other, I have penned down a heartfelt note to the beautiful game-Cricket:

Cricket- I will miss you

I will miss waking up in the mornings and watching highlights of games. I will miss staying up late on many days to watch live games of Cricket in any form.

I will miss watching the exuberance of David Warner, Chris Gayle, Rohit Sharma and ABD.

I will miss the magnitude of the brilliance of the fab four- Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson and Joe Root.

I will miss the frustrating flamboyance and talent that Windies possess, especially their limited overs side.

I will miss watching the finishers like Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Glen Maxwell in action.

I will miss the joy of seeing leg spinners like Rashid Khan, Yuzvendra Chahal and even Adil Rashid control ODIs and T20Is.

I will miss watching the speed and accuracy of Kagiso Rabada, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Trent Boult.

I will miss the consistent growth of the current Indian bowling unit under Jasprit Bumrah.

I will miss watching the Test match specialists in action who pop up occasionally amidst all the T20Is and ODIs.

I will miss watching games on iconic grounds like Lords, MCG, Newlands in Cape town or Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

I will miss the consistently inconsistent performances of Sri Lanka, South Africa and Pakistan.

I will miss the never-ending debate on whether MSD should retire or continue playing.

I will miss voices like Mark Nicholas, Ian Bishop, Nasser Hussain and Ian Smith who bring unending joy through their voice.

I will miss all the talk and noise around topics like the role DRS plays in the modern game.

I will miss the beauty of seeing the ball beat the bat; the see-saw battle between bat and ball which makes the game so special!

I will miss the obvious reality of how batsmen friendly the game has become- bigger bats, flat pitches and smaller boundaries.

I will miss the sheer brilliance of the expectation of a new, upcoming cricket series especially the ones that are talked about a lot- IPL and ICC World T20.

On the other hand, keeping the fact that we have got a forced break from the sport, all cricketers nearing retirement or with severe injuries can actually completely recover and come back fresh. This break could add probably a year extra to their playing career- especially for the likes of MS Dhoni, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, ABD, Chris Gayle to name a few.

And also for many people who felt there was too much cricket being played and there were far too many irrelevant series being played in recent times, the sincere hope is that when there could be possibly no cricket of any sort in the near future, they are able to reignite their lost fondness for the game and that the game through that gets back some of it’s fans that it lost.

Hopefully, things would reach a stage in the world where one can expect sporting activity in the next few months.  It could either be the IPL 2020 or the ICC World T20 as per the original schedule. Cricket fans, tragics and followers would sincerely hope for that day to come as soon as possible. Even if they are able to start off playing in closed doors it would be any day better than not watching a game of live cricket at all.

You could call me selfish but if the situation improves globally, I would want the sport to be played following all norms so that the players and administrators involved are safe. Playing in closed doors is a good alternative for the sport to come back into action. Many people would feel their fears, worry evaporate slowly if there is a pleasant distraction of seeing their favourite players play the game as nothing unites a nation like India like Cricket and Movies.

Personally, a five Test series between India and Australia later in the year played amidst closed doors would be a perfect comeback for the sport after the forced break owing to the deadly COVID-19. Until then, all of us like me would have to hold on dearly to the replays shown of old games on Star Sports and Sony Six and of course we have YouTube where we can revisit the games and players that defined and shaped our love for the game!

Cricket Talk- A freewheeling chat on Cricket during lockdown

The world is in a bad state, owing to the Coronavirus. This pandemic has caused lot of human and economic turmoil. The uncertainty looming around this is the most worrying bit. And on a very personal note, having been used to watching some live Cricket action daily, this period has been pretty hard to digest on that front.

So rather than lament on something that’s not in my control, I decided to catch up with one of my closest buddies Sooraj, who is equally a cricket freak as I am even now. At times, our personal choices may differ, for eg MSD but the great thing is our love for the game and even our sensibilities and thoughts on the game are very similar.

And to add to this, he’s among the very few people in my life who has read lot of cricket books and through him my knowledge and respect for the game has enhanced further. I have got to explore the sport further by reading some timeless books that I somehow didn’t read until he recommended me to do so.

In his own words,” Hey guys! This is Sooraj. To say a bit about me, a cricket head who fell in love with the game when I was 7. Now a couple of decades down the line, I would say nothing much has changed. Watching a well fought session in test cricket gives me bigger high than having two pegs. Firmly believes sport is the healthiest addiction.”. 

Since the lockdown has been extended across India and as he’s in Chennai, we decided to get candid and have a chat about Cricket, personal choices, preferences etc and I must say I felt like I was sitting with him and we were having our usual conversation!

Here’s hoping you all enjoy ‘Cricket Talk’ where me and Sooraj express our love for the game in a fun and candid Q&A:

Q: Your first reaction when you possibly know there won’t be cricket played anytime soon? Has that reality sinked in as yet? For me I am still not able to digest the reality completely…

       Well to be frank no. This is the first time that anyone has been deprived of cricket. But thanks to the uploaders on Youtube, I am luckily able to watch the highlights of many past matches.  

Q: What were your earliest memories of the sport? Who inspired you and made you a true Cricket lover?

      The earliest memory (if my memory serves me right) is the 1999 CWC. I was only about six then, and didn’t really understand the game, but had to sit through those as my grandad and uncles were pretty much interested.

Q: Thanks to you I could revisit Sir Viv Richards and admire his batsmanship. Any other cricketer who has such an influence on you? Probably any Indian player?

      So kind of you to say that mate!

Maybe Sourav Ganguly. Don’t really know why I liked, probably because he was the captain and he had the most flamboyant and aggressive stroke play during those days.      

Q: When was your first visit to a Cricket stadium? And can you describe that experience.

     

         The very first match which I saw was the India vs Australia test in Chepauk, 2013. It was of course unforgettable. India won the match and almost all of them played a wonderful hand. To hear the whole stadium erupt “Sachiiiin…..Sachiiiin” is unforgettable.

Another incident was during the luncheon interval, when I went nearby the practice pitches. The younger bunch of Aussie cricketers were there, and one amongst them was Steve Smith. But little did I know that I was watching the future legend at an arm’s distance!

Q: You were among the very few Cricket purists I have met and it’s great that we can connect on that front! Can you elaborate a bit for those who may not know who is a true purist?

The feeling is mutual! Well, in my words, a purist is someone who has fortunately/unfortunately fell for the game before the guiles of T20 took over. Those who have grown up watching Test cricket will know that watching Rahul Dravid countering the seam movement in the morning session in Old Trafford is equally exhilarating if not more than Chris Gayle clobbering sixes out of the Chinnaswamy!

Q: The one series or player you will miss watching live in the coming months? You can keep it to 2-3 players at max (as I know the list can be long! )

       I look forward to watching Virat, Pujara & Bumrah in Australia at the end of the year. Hoping that happens though.

Q: Cricket is life: As in every aspect of our lives is associated with memories of and from the sport. Why does cricket mean such to you like it does for me?

      As I mentioned earlier, this quarantine period has been one of watching the old matches. I have been digging the highlights of the matches during the time I was a kid. That is literally equivalent to reminiscing my past. All the years of my childhood have been connected to the matches I saw then. So I guess that pretty much explains what this game means to me.

Cricket Shots- Answer these questions with the first thing that comes to your mind..

Q: Who is your favorite player and why?

A: Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards. He was more than a player. Cricket was more than a game for the West Indies. It was the time where colored people struggled for civil rights. Cricket was an opportunity for making a statement. And boy! Did he do that!!

Q: Your first Cricket idol or inspiration was?

A: Not one cricketer, but I think the Australian team as a whole I would say. Pure dominance.

Q: Have you ever tried copying a batsman’s stance while growing up?

A: Haha. Jacques Kallis. I loved his upright stance. Looking back, I’ll forgive that kid who was stupid enough to try those stunts.

Q; Have you modeled your action on a famous player? I tried to copy ‘The Kings’ and failed miserably!

A: Well, I’d rather say that my friends didn’t quite let me bowl so much because of my unique bowling skills, haha.

Q: The most exhilarating moment you witnessed in a Cricket field was?

A: MSD’s six. (You know which).

Q: Do you think Sir Viv Richards could have achieved what Sachin has managed to do (100 International centuries)? Considering how much easier the game is tilted in the favor of batsman in the past few decades.

A: If he played today? There wouldn’t be anything which would have stopped him, I guess. The greater number of ODIs being played plus the advent of cement roads for T20 pitches, bigger bats, smaller grounds would have helped.

Q: The flattest pitch you have seen in your life is?

A: Rajkot.

Q: The most boring player you have ever watched? Either live or on TV.

A: SS Das (Former Indian Test match opener)

Section 3: Choices and Personal favorites 

Q: Kumar Sangakkara’s cover drives or Virat Kohli’s?

A: Kohli is class, but I’ll go with the elegance of Sangakkara.

Q: Sanjay Manjrekar or L Sivaramakrishnan- The most irritating commentator?

A: Sanju Manju any day.

Q: IPL without MS Dhoni is like ----------------------------------------------------------

A: Whiskey without ice. Drinkable, but will miss the cool factor.

Q: If you had to pick the best exponent of the yorker ever who would it be?

A: Lasith ‘Slinga’ Malinga, although Jasprit Bumrah inside a few years.

Q: One spinner whose ability has left you bemused?

A: Shane the King Warne.

Q: The most overhyped cricketer in your opinion is?

A: Many of the young Pakistan cricketers when they start off are hyped. Won’t even know where they end up after playing for a couple of years.

Q: The least appreciated or talked about cricketer is?

A: Rangana Herath.

And before we end this fun Q&A, few words to those people who actually don’t understand how it feels to be robbed of Cricket or Movies in these times. Well they are smaller things compared to the bigger picture, but what you want to share on this point?

I am reminded of John Keats who said “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”

Even if it’s Tendulkar’s straight drive or De Niro’s dialogues, they’re just works of art. And sometimes, a few such things, keep increasing in their beauty, and each time you watch it, it still remains a joy!