India vs. Australia

A few months ago, I thought that Michael Hussey was the next edition of The Great One and Dhoni was another Brearley (except for the fact that, in addition to captaincy, he could also bat, keep wickets … and this I learned recently, take wickets!). Unfortunately, those hopes have now been officially dashed. Hussey has reverted back to normalcy and it appears that though Dhoni can still bat, keep wickets (and maybe take wickets too, if he gives himself a chance), he cannot captain or motivate the team. Sample this …

Before the latest match or two, Ponting had cried himself hoarse about the depleted resources at his disposal. [Sidenote: It is a testament to India's progress in The Civilized World that Delhi Belly, which used to be The Reason of Choice, was the only one among all tried-and-tested ones, that was not mentioned in reference to the players missing in action.] So, naturally, guess what our desi players do? Take away Ponting’s excuses.

While Australia’s best players were only physically missing from action, India’s “best” showed up but decided not to play. Sample these scores at the top of the order: Sehwag 6; Tendulkar 10; Gambhir 0; Yuvraj 6; Raina 0. Also, to fight fire with fire, we picked equally unknown batsmen to deliver the goods: Ravindra Jadeja 57 and Praveen Kumar 54 not out. Conspicuously absent among the run-scorers: Harbhajan 5-2 Singh 0! Oh, maybe Bhajji meant the full-strength Aussie team, not this rag-tag and bobtail outfit.

As if granting the Aussies a batting handicap was not enough, Dhoni also made sure that we were generous in the bowling department as well (though the low target might be claimed as the excuse): other than Gambhir and Dhoni, everyone else got a chance to twirl his arm over.

Conclusion: Australia might have beaten India, but it was only because they – Australia, not India, which even dropped folks who are too old such as Dravid (Tendulkar? Oh, he is all set to play in the 2011 World Cup. Can anyone say otherwise after that gem of a 175?) – did not have a full-strength team.

Takeaway for the day (Cricket) …

I hadn’t realized that only three batsmen can participate in the Super Over. Which means that if two batsmen are out, the Super Over is over!

Basic stuff that you miss if you are not really in tune with the game…

Suggestion for IPL …

In its second season now, the Indian Premier League (IPL) introduced a money-making plan by tacking on a 7.5 minute intra-innings break for both the innings of a match, ostensibly for extra analysis. Great players like Tendulkar have suggested that it breaks the players’ concentration.

In the beginning, I tended to agree with him, but I have since changed my mind. I now believe that great players must adapt to the game.

That said, I have not really seen any takeaways for the viewing public (and those following online) that result from the 7.5 minute break. So, drumrolls please, here is my innovative (hopefully) suggestion:

- extend the break from 7.5 minutes to 10 minutes

- give both teams the opportunity to make one change apiece in their teams (that would be two changes for the duration of the game)

- change must be made immediately after the break starts, so everyone has 10 real-time minutes to discuss the changes and the impact on the game

- change must not imbalance the team’s foreign/Indian player ratios (in the sense that seven players – or more – must be Indian players, before/after the change)

- if a bowler is removed from the lineup, the replacement can bowl only the remainder of his quota

- if a batsman is replaced after he starts batting, the replacement cannot bat (if the replaced batsman was batting at the 10 over mark, he will be asterisked “retired out”)

Note to Mr. Vijay Mallya: If his test team (in the guise of a Twenty20 outfit) reaches a score of 150, they should automatically be declared winners of the game. I leave you with an apposite quote from Bonnie “guess who I am” Blair that I got in an Internet forward this very morning: “Winning doesn’t always mean finishing first; winning means you are doing better than you’ve done before.”

PS: The way teams are playing, one would think that the Fake IPL Player belongs to Deccan. That is the one team that has been surpassing all expectations this season, as though every player is afraid that he’s the next one to be axed (like Aakash Chopra and Sanjay Bangar were for Kolkota).

What does a cricket pitch in the West Indies have in common with the US (or World) Economy?

I really like Tom Gleason and his report – he appears to be pretty well balanced in his thoughts on the financial sector. So, I read his monthly report on a regular basis (since I learned about him a month ago)! Here is an excerpt from his latest report that caught my attention:

Will all the spending result in inflation? If you pour water into loose, dry garden soil, the liquid is soaked up for quite a while. Then, suddenly, the water pools on the surface as the ground becomes saturated. The government will pour money into the economy until the inflow of cash catches up with the destruction of asset values. As some point inflation will suddenly appear and catch everyone by surprise.

And then, when I ventured to cricinfo yesterday and came across this picture of ground conditions in the West Indies, a thought struck me:

Our financial knuckleheads probably have nary a clue is that this is no ordinary land that they are trying to irrigate, but sand … quick sand. We are mired for the long term! Test matches can be abandoned; I wonder what can be done about the economy!

Cricket … or Chess?

Twenty20 cricket has come as a breath of fresh air, as a very exciting alternative to the world of Test and One Day Internationals. That said, Test cricket still retains its romance. Check out today’s game – the final Test match of the India-Australia series – which has developed into a veritable Chess match over the fourth day of the match.

As always, Australia’s main bowlers – pacemen all (despite an 8-wicket haul in the first innings for debutant slow bowler) – took too much time to bowl their overs. As a result, Australia was behind on their over rate; a situation similar to that of a chess player when contronted by a quality opponent, runs out of time. So, they resort to part-timers and allow India to score more runs, and at a fastish pace, to permit them time to set a good target for Australia in the fourth innings.

The Tale (Plight?) of Four Icons …

Rounding off the bottom, at #8 – VVS Laxman (can use injury as an excuse, might or might not resurrect a twenty20 career) and his Deccan Chargers

Managed to stave off the wooden spoon, at #7 – Rahul (not many excuses) Dravid and his Royal Challengers (NOT!)

Won a couple of “man of the match”es, might have a decent twenty20 career, at #6 – Sauravda Gangulyda “The Dada” (this might be a good chance to Ride off into the sunset for this (K)night!), and his Knight Riders

Still on the verge of #4 or the brink of #5 (whichever way you see it) – Sachin Tendulkar (has injury as an excuse, might still make it on the scene) and his Indians (and non-Indians)

They are BACK!

Yup, Bucknor and Hair are both back officiating in Cricket Tests. I request the ICC to ensure that these guys definitely do not officiate in matches involving India (I doubt anyone on the team likes either of these gentlemen), Pakistan (Shoaib Akhtar, if no one else) and Sri Lanka (Muttiah Muralitharan).

Heck, I think the only matches they should officiate in are: a) The Ashes b) Kenya vs. Zimbabwe c) England vs. South Africa d) Trans-Tasman series (those are the only series where I think these fellas might stay impartial, neutral umpiring be damned!). Plus, as needed, a random combination of those teams.