Indian Bowlers Disappoint Once Again
February 8, 2010 at 11:05 pm | In Cricket, Cricket and Sports, Indian team, Sports, Test, Test match, test cricket | 2 CommentsTags: Badri, Cricket, Dhoni, Dravid, India, Mithun, Sachin, Sehwag, South Africa, Tests
Bajji and Ishant need a break from test cricket
With 2 days to go the Indian team is starring down the barrel in first test of a two test series in Nagpur. Sehwag’s positive comments notwithstanding, it would be a miraculous escape if India does manage to save this game. This match is the exact replica of the 2008 series where South inflicted an innings defeat on India in the first test.
The batting yesterday was for sure a disappointment and in spite of the heroics of the debutant Badrinath the Indian team fell 325 runs behind the South African first innings total. Sehwag and Badri held the Indian innings together after a top order collapse which left India 50 odd for 3 wickets. The partnership, which added 136, looked to have pulled the hosts out of the woods but a late order collapse meant that India is fighting for survival at the start of the fourth day.
Dale Steyn was the chief wrecker for the tourists as he picked up 7 wickets in the Indian first innings, one more than what the Indian bowlers managed collectively. It’s amazing to know how the focus always remains on the batting failures as no one seems to be critical of the pathetic Indian bowling performance. The South African bowlers have managed to bag 12 wickets on the pitch where the Indian bowlers toiled just less than 2 days for a grand total of 6.
The Indian bowling is a real cause for concern, there is no support for Zaheer in the pace department and as far as the spin bowling is concerned less said the better. Harbhajan Singh has been really disappointing and has really struggled to step into the shoes of Anil Kumble. Amit Mishra also has failed to fulfill his early promise which leaves India with not many options in the spin department. Pragyan Ojha and Piyush Chawla are the only options left for the selectors.
Ishant is nowhere near international standards and has looked clueless. His performance against Bangladesh has been ordinary and for sure needs an extended stay away from the team. The Indian team somehow needs to unearth some decent bowlers if they have to stay on the top of the rankings. It seems like the team has to look past Harbhajan and Ishant for the test matches. Sreesanth will be available for selection for the second test and I am sure he will be replacing Ishant Sharma. I would have really liked to see Abhinav Mukund in the lineup as I am sure he couldn’t have done worse than Ishant. This test match seems all but lost barring a miracle so I guess the think tank would already be thinking about the second test in Kolkata.
Federer back to his dominating best
February 8, 2010 at 8:11 am | In Australian Open, Cricket and Sports, Sports, tennis | 1 CommentTags: Australian Open, Federer, French Open, Grand Slam, Murray, Nadal, tennis, US Open, Wimbledon
Federer with his Australian open trophy
Things returned to normal as Roger Federer won yet another grand slam title this Sunday to start the year 2010 on a high note. He defeated Andy Murray in straight sets to claim the title. It was yet another defeat for the Brit against Roger and he would be really disappointed with the result.
For Federer though this victory would be sweet and he extended his grand slam record to 16 wins. It’s amazing that people say that the champ is on a decline as he has won 3 slams in the past year. If this is called a decline then most current players would want to be on one.
In the last couple of years Federer has seemed to have lost the aura of invincibility and the command on the court with which he had dismantled the best with clinical precision. When Federer was left crying after his loss to Nadal in the 2009 Australian open lots of experts were quick to jump on the “Federer has lost it” bandwagon. Even though for the entire 2009, Federer seemed to have been struggling with his game the fighter in him came to the fore.
The elusive French open title followed by the Wimbledon last year indeed made the year unforgettable for the champion. During the course of which Roger upstaged another great Champion Pete Sampras when he overtook the latter’s tally of 14 titles during his Wimbledon victory. The brilliant year though ended with a disappointing loss in the US Open to Del Potro in an epic five setter.
In spite of that heart breaking loss I would say that Federer achieved his dream of winning the French open which remained elusive to Pete throughout his career. The 2010 though seems to have begun in the right earnest for the champion. He seems to have gotten back his form and confidence as he was largely untroubled on his way to the title. Seems like good times are back for the Federer’s fans and I hope that he goes on to win more titles this year and continues to scale more peaks.
Another feather in the cap of A.R.Rahman
February 1, 2010 at 1:49 pm | In Entertainment, General, General Lunch Time talk, Movies, Music, Real Life, Television | 1 CommentTags: AR Rahman, ARR, Couple Retreat, Grammy, Mozart Of Madras, OSCAR, Slumdog Millionaire
AR Rahman bagged couple of Grammys yesterday for his scores in Slumdog Millionaire
A.R.Rahman made India proud again with yet another award in the US yesterday. Rahman bagged two Grammys yesterday at LA for his scores in Slumdog Millionaire. This award is in addition to the OSCAR’s he received last year and also several other awards like the Golden Globe, BAFTA etc. for the same movie.
This award comes in the wake of yet another nomination for Rahman in this year’s OSCAR’s for his score in “Couples Retreat”. The past one year has been brilliant for the musical genius and I hope that he continues his golden run this year too. It’s brilliant to see that the man who is affectionately called as the “Mozart of Madras” to have become one of the most popular Indian musician in the world. Congrats again to one of the most humble and talented Indian musician of our times Allah Rakha Rahman.
Ajeesh sings in Goa
February 1, 2010 at 10:09 am | In Airtel Super Singer, Entertainment, General, Movies, Music, Real Life, Reality Show, Super Singer, Television | 1 CommentTags: Airtel Super Singer, Ajeesh, Andrea, Goa, Koffee with Anu, Unnikrishnan, Vijay TV, Yuvan Shankar raja
Ajeesh sings in Goa for Yuvan Shankar Raja
This article was a long time coming and for some reason it kept missing my radar. Well it has been more than 3 weeks since I listened to Ajeesh pairing up with Andrea for his first song in the movies “Idhuvarai illaadha unarvidhu”. The song was nice and aptly suites his voice. Yuvan seems to have chosen the right song to give Ajeesh the deserved break.
I think everyone by now knows that Ajeesh was the winner of the Airtel Super singer last year and it was promised that the winner would be singing for Yuvan Shankar Raja in his upcoming movie but I never expected it to be so soon. So it was a surprise for me when I heard his voice in the Goa soundtrack. I am happy for Ajeesh as he was in my top 3 favorites in the super singer 2008.
The song itself was very good and Ajeesh has done a brilliant job considering that this was his first in movies. He had little issues while hitting the top notes in the song which was repeatedly pointed out by the judges in the competition but that shouldn’t take anything away from the otherwise great rendering. The other observation I made was his style of singing resembled very much of the great Unnikrishnan (Airtel Super Singer judge), which might have crept in unknowingly. All it all a great beginning to his career behind the microphone and I hope that he scales greater heights in the years to come.
Vijay TV I think is doing a brilliant job in promoting their winners by giving them ample screen time. They have taken these singers to different cities in Tamil Nadu for concerts and have also invited them on their shows to perform like in “Koffee with Anu”. I hope that more singers from the super singer get to sing in movies and make a name in playback singing.
Team Selection Is Tomorrow For India’s Cricket Series Against South Africa (SA)
January 27, 2010 at 9:13 pm | In Cricket, Cricket and Sports, ODI, Sports, Test match | Leave a CommentTags: Bangladesh, Cricket, Dhoni, Dravid, India, Kaif, Laxman, Manish Pandey, Pujara, Raina, Sachin, South Africa, test cricket, Vijay, yuvraj
Dravid and Laxman were both injured during the test series in Bangladesh
When the selectors meet tomorrow to pick the squad for the upcoming home series against the South Africans, they have quite a few headaches. The injuries to Laxman, Dravid and Yuvraj has created quite a few vacancies in the squad. Even though Laxman hasn’t been ruled out yet there is a possibility that he might not make it. This series is one of the most important one for India as they have to at least secure a draw to retain their number 1 ranking and South Africa has to win the series to snatch it from the hosts.
The good news for India is that Sachin was in the field on the fourth day of the second test match against Bangladesh, which means that he will play. In the absence of Dravid and Yuvraj, the selectors need to fill two vacant spots in the batting order. It’s safe to assume that Vijay will occupy one of the spots but there are quite a few contenders for the second spot in the lineup.
So the options are Kaif, Raina, Badrinath, Pujara, and Manish Pandey. I will rule out Raina as he is more suited to the shorter format and also due to his well known weakness to short pitched bowling he might struggle against Steyn & Co. Among the other four, I will eliminate Manish too. In spite of his good showing in the domestic season, he is too young and lacks experience for as important a series as this one. So that leaves Kaif, Pujara and Badrinath. All three of them have been in great form and have been knocking at the door for some time now. I would personally prefer to have either Pujara or Badri in the squad as selecting Kaif would be a backward step for the team.
The bowling department needs a replacement too with the injury to Sreesanth. I hope that the selectors tryout either Tyagi or Mithun in the squad rather than going back to Munaf or RP Singh, who have failed to grab on to the opportunities given to them. Irfan Pathan also is an option as the third seamer as he would give the team an all-around option. He has been performing well in the domestic season. I am thinking that the spinners who played against Bangladesh will be retained for the home series too. All in all this is going to be an interesting selection.
India’s 2-0 win over Bangladesh has extended Dhoni’s unbeaten run to 11 (out of which India have won 8 ) tests now. I hope that his dream run continues against the saffers too. South Africa is in quite a quandary themselves now with the sudden resignation of Coach Mickey Arthur, after which the Cricket South Africa sacked all their selectors.
Education is a rat race in India
January 18, 2010 at 4:12 pm | In General, General Lunch Time talk, Languages and Politics, Real Life | 1 CommentTags: Teachers, Schools, Students, Education, Indian society, Marks, Rank, parents, Aamir Khan, Chatur, 3 idiots, Suicides
Education in India is not for the faint hearted. In the last week alone we had three students killing themselves due to the pressure of education in India. It’s really unfortunate that these kids had to resort to such extreme at a very young age. Education in India has always been this way, pressure filled. There are counseling sessions in India for the 12th STD students right after the results are announced to stop them from taking any extreme measures. The kids are made to believe that their life hinges on those scores and the system makes sure it does.
Kids are pushed harder and harder which makes education like taking a cough syrup in India. Lots of kids in India just despise education because of the pressure involved. The system is designed in such a way that the only thing which matters is the marks and the rank you get in classes. If what my teachers during my school days thought about me were true, I wouldn’t be where I am. Every kid cannot be the same and the parents and teachers should realize that. What can we make of an education system which awards the student who mugs up the text books the most?
Teachers praise those students to no end. So who is to blame for this outdated system? Is it the government or the parents who don’t realize that you don’t have to win every race to become a champion or is it the teacher who thinks the kid who best vomits the contents in the book on to a white paper is the most brilliant student. Kids get judged based on the marks they get even outside their schools. If someone fails in couple of subjects he is considered to be a bad influence on other kids.
Education is India’s wealth, we are known all around the world as brilliant people, techies and what not which makes me proud but at the same time we have to consider the fall outs too. Education is very important but it does not take precedence over a human life. There is place for everyone in this world to survive and succeed. You don’t have to be the most brilliant student to achieve greater things in life.
Teachers can help the kid to get better which not many of them try. Good teachers know to bring the best of their students but unfortunately we hardly have a hand full of them throughout the country. It’s not the system but the society and culture in our country which keeps kids in schools. If given an option India would also have similar situation to one in the US.
Lots of things have changed with time and that’s how it has to be. People and system evolve with changing times; the education system needs to evolve. Education should make kids curious, experiment, be creative and learn with interest which is hardly the case in India. Instead we teach our kids jealousy, competition, hatred etc at a very young age.
I watched “3 idiots” recently and it got me thinking that our system creates more Chaturs (A character in the movie who symbolizes most students in India) rather than aspiring to create more Aamirs (I can’t recollect his actual name in the movie). When that happens, our education system would be a better place for everyone no matter what marks and rank they get.
India will play more tests in 2010 – Dhoni
January 4, 2010 at 8:59 am | In Cricket, Cricket and Sports, ODI, Test match | 1 CommentTags: BCCI, Cricket, Dhoni, Gautam Ghambir, Haroon Logart, ICC, mace, ODI, Series, South Africa, test championship, Tests
India's cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni poses with International Cricket Council's (ICC) test championship mace
Indian captain Dhoni said that India will play more tests in 2010 to have a chance in defending their number 1 rankings in test cricket. After receiving the mace for ICC (International Cricket Council) test championship from Haroon Logart (ICC Chief Executive) Dhoni said,
“Quite a few Test matches are on proposal and I don’t think that we will play only four Tests next year. We will play more than that”
On becoming the number 1 ranked team in the world he said,
“It is a special feeling to receive this mace. I am taking this on behalf of the team and the BCCI. Being an Indian, it is a proud moment. We have really worked hard as a team in the last 14 months to get to this position. We want to remain here longer and everything depends on our performance,”
It’s brilliant to see that the BCCI have woken up to the fact that India needs to play more test matches in 2010. The CSA (Cricket South Africa) have already agreed to alter their upcoming series against India to include 2 test matches which is a welcome relief. Even Gautam Ghambir echoed his captain’s sentiments by saying that India needs to play more test cricket.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni Calls Fielding in India-Sri Lanka Match ‘Fishy’
December 16, 2009 at 9:46 am | In Champions League, Cricket, Cricket and Sports, General, ICL, IPL, ODI, Sports, Test match, Twenty20 | 2 CommentsTags: catches, Cricket, Dhoni, Fishy, India, IPL, ODI, Series, Sri Lanka, T20
India's Fielding was a concern to the Indian captain in spite of a comfortable win
In the post-match presentation after India beat Sri Lanka convincingly, Mahendra Singh Dhoni said that it was “Fishy” the way both the teams fielded in the second T20 game at Mohali.
“I have never seen a team dropping so many catches. But there was something funny going around, something fishy. Sri Lanka also missed so many run-outs. We have to improve our bowling, apart from fielding. Not only in T20s, but also in ODIs,” Dhoni had said after the Mohali tie.
He said that top sides don’t make so many mistakes in the same game and he felt something was not right.
This comment was made as both teams fielded awfully in the game as India dropped as many as 6 catches and Sri Lanka missed a bunch of run outs adding to couple of catches they dropped as well.
Even though Dhoni’s statement above might have been an innocuous one, I hope that it does not stir up any controversies. Dhoni later said that it might have to be something with the ground or lights which may have caused such appalling fielding by both the teams, but his choice of words were really interesting. Hopefully, this won’t cause more reading between the lines and turn this into another match-fixing saga.
Best time to popularize test cricket in India
December 14, 2009 at 9:09 am | In Champions League, Cricket, Cricket and Sports, Entertainment, General, IPL, ODI, Sports, Test match, Twenty20 | 1 CommentTags: Australia, BCCI, Champions League, Cricket, India, IPL, ODI, Series, South Africa, T20, Tests
Indian team became the number one test side after defeating Sri Lanka 2-0
India recently have been crowned as the number 1 test team in the world in the latest ICC rankings after their impressive 2-0 win against the Sri Lankans earlier last week. Even though I am really proud of the achievement I am also little bit frustrated by the fact that the Indian team isn’t playing any test cricket till October of 2010 after their short series against Bangladesh earlier next year. BCCI have canceled the test series against the South Africans which was supposed to take place in the month of February next year to accommodate the IPL.
It’s really baffling considering that India will still be playing the ODI series. Sachin Tendulkar has already expressed his displeasure over this situation. The Indian team has worked really hard over the past 18 months to achieve something which has been a dream for every Indian fan but it’s unfortunate that they don’t have an opportunity to maintain their position. While all the other nations have their itinerary packed with test matches throughout the year, India will be playing a bunch of ODI’s and T20 games.
So after the ODI series against the proteas, India will be playing the IPL at home followed by the T20 WC in West Indies, ODI series against the Aussies and then will be playing the champions league later the same year before they host the Black Caps for a full series. I would have been happier if the BCCI had canceled the ODI series against the South Africans and just played the three test series as that would have given an opportunity for India to widen their lead over the second placed team in the rankings if they had won the series. Unfortunately that will not be the case for Dhoni and his men at the moment.
BCCI has been rightly criticized in the media for their decision to cancel the test series to accommodate the IPL. The criticism seems to have worked though as suddenly the BCCI have discovered the necessity for India to play more test matches as they have requested both Australia and South Africa to consider a revision in the schedule to reduce the ODI games for couple of test matches. Even though it does seem like a ploy to clear their name in the media and the bad press they have been receiving for the past few days, I am at least happy that they are trying something. This is an excellent opportunity for the BCCI to popularize test cricket in India as we are now the number 1 team in the world.
Motera wicket was disappointing
December 1, 2009 at 10:07 am | In Cricket, Cricket and Sports, General, General Lunch Time talk, IPL, Languages and Politics, ODI, Sports, Test match, Twenty20 | 2 CommentsTags: Ahmedabad, Cricinfo, Cricket, Dileep Premachandran, India, IPL, Kanpur, Mahela Jayawardane, Motera, ODI, Rahul Dravid, Sambit Bal, Sourav Ganguly, Sri Lanka, T20, Test
The India-Sri Lanka series touted as the race to number one rankings had a disappointing start with the first test match in Motera ending in a dull draw. The test match in Ahmadabad is all that is wrong with Indian cricket. When there have been calls to save the oldest form of the game around the world, BCCI have dished out boredom to drive the fans away from the grounds. Its seems like BCCI is only worried about the money they can make out of sponsorships and IPL and not a bit bothered about the state of pitches in India.
Sambit Bal last year wrote an article on cricinfo blasting Pakistani pitches after the Karachi game but the pitches in India are not that far behind. Sambit’s intentions may have been good by singling out pitches in Pakistan was not the right way to go. Reading the recent article by Dileep Premachandran, it seems like there is not much of a difference between the pitches in Pakistan and India. India has one of the worst percentages of results when compared to other cricketing nations.
According to the article, India has hosted 24 games in the past 60 months out of which 11 have been draws. This is a pathetic statistic for a team who is trying to become the best side in the world. With ever increasing T20 leagues in India I guess the BCCI have to take more interest in improving the quality of test cricket in India. I don’t think that anything of that sort has been even tried yet by the board. As Sourav Ganguly rightly mentioned in his column, even though Rahul Dravid and Mahela scored those brilliant hundreds the Motera pitch was a real disappointment.
No one wants to watch a game where the bowlers are just mere participants with not effect whatsoever and the batsmen are running the show. The unfortunate part is that the grounds men in India are in so much pressure to make matches last for 5 days for the BCCI to make money out of TV rights. Already we have seen paltry crowds for test matches in India and with these sorts of pitches ardent lovers of the format like me will also be driven out of the stadiums in the future.
Test cricket is still the premium form of cricket around the world and efforts should be taken to improve the quality of pitches around the world. The ICCI should crack down heavily on boards that encourage pitches like Motera for International fixtures. Kanpur (Venue for the second game which concluded last week) test was heading the same direction as Motera after the first day’s play but was saved by the result.
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