Ok – if you started to think of this as another blog on the Indian Premier League, I’ve got you stumped! By IPL, I meant Indian Political League this time!  But to give you and the way you think some credit, let me be fair – I will have some references to the cricket IPL as well, so it wasn’t as bad in the end eh!

I’ve had a lot of fun watching both these leagues unfold over the last few months. If the ride up to these events was fun, the actual events and the end result was very heartening to see indeed. Here is my take on five big lessons learnt from these leagues:

1. Planning & execution is the key to success:

The Congress pulled off a few rabbits off their hat. Sweeping the polls in states that have never been their bastion, the Congress clearly showed that planning and executing well is the key to success. The cricket league had something pretty similar to showcase too. Teams ranked 7 and 8 in the inaugural edition of the IPL played the finals and it was ironic enough that the tables turned and turned literally. The team that finished last a year ago was the winner. Gilly, the man behind this turn around has in interviews revealed the secret of this turn around – Some good planning, learning from mistakes and some smart execution.

2. There’s no place for “Left” overs:

The Left, a major opponent of development was ousted. In what I believe is a fitting message for them to change and embrace development, the Indian electorate showed that we want to move on. In subsequent interviews, the leaders of the Left, snorting under the message they received said that their party was out of touch with the ground reality! WOW! Did it need Einstein to figure this out?

Wasn’t Somnath Chatterjee saying the same thing a while ago? The story wasn’t different in the cricket league  either – Ganguly, the Lord who can’t field, run or bat was a poor shadow of himself. Being a passenger on the slow moving good train that was KKR, he for sure played his last ever game. Should I say I was fortunate enough to see him play his last? . Laxman, the rock star of test cricket and a spectator in T20 was asked to go home mid-way with the champion side. He was rusty to say the best and played his part “motivating” the team on the benches for a large part of the second half!

3. Charge of the “Youth” brigade:

While old is not necessarily out, youth for sure is in. From Rahul Gandhi to all those young chaps who’ve become members of Parliament, this is a new beginning. There’s for a moment no discounting the old hands here – but the guy’s who actually made it through are the finest and probably the fittest. While I’d love to believe that it’s the case always, there are a few exceptions too right?

How else can you explain an 81 year old with prime ministerial aspirations running the race and winning too? The sane can be said if a former Finance minister who won by the skin of his teeth – there’s a sect of people that believe he didn’t but, is controversy ever away from Indian politics? With the cricket, the Suresh Raina’s and the Rohit Sharma’s continue to impress driving home the fact that Indian cricket is in safe hands. If that wasn’t enough, the emergence of Kamran Khan and Manish Pandey is more testimony to this fact. Welcome to the future – the big turn is just around the corner

4. Failure is an orphan:

From being the toast of Indian cricket ( I still believe he is), MSD wasn’t a part of the dream team that the Chairman of selectors put together. At the expense of stating the obvious, I find it ridiculous that a semi final loss actually had such a steep fall for poor MS. Don’t worry MS – you hold all the keys with your young guns – this is a freaking domestic league at the end of it. Don’t let these distractions take anything away from you.. we need you and nee you in full flow for the other big things coming up. These spineless souls will soon be singing your praises! On the political side, the queen makers if you will, had such a fall. From being courted, wined and dined, they were all dropped like hot potatoes (don’t tell me they look like one now please!) from the moment the lead results started to come out. So much for loyalties and alliances eh!

5. Don’t burn bridges, especially by wagging your tongue:

The cake goes to out former Railway minister. After having a good 5 yrs at the helm, he fell apart with the leadership and went on record to say that the Congress will not win more than 3 seats in Bihar. He didn’t stop there, going on to criticize Sonia and the party that he has been associated with for a good 5 yrs. Guess what happened? Our friend won just 3 seats instead and had to eat humble pie – but to his credit, he came out and said he made a mistake! He went to Delhi with his tail between his legs saying I will provide my unconditional support! What does 3 mean when someone already has 300+ mate? What happened on the cricket?

The war of words on the proposed multi captain theory had its share of fallouts – While people love to talk and comment, this war broke an already divided house into pieces of garlic bread that everyone was content to just eat! From being the butt of all jokes to finishing last on the table, they saw it all. The extent of the damage that these talk have done is still being estimated ( hopefully, Fake IPL players predictions on changes to this team will seal it). The piece I loved the most was a commentator on TV saying, forget winning here – I understand… but look at the fair play awards list, KKR are last here too!! I can tell you one thing for a fact – this commentator has no role to play in any future KKR team. Will he want to is a different question though!

With these leagues over, I realize that my evenings are never going to be the same again. TV shows will be back in vogue – but what the hell, the cricket is just around the corner you see!

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I must admit to being embarrassingly biased about a lot of things, more so when it concerns my cricketing heroes. I grew up watching the likes of Pataudi, Gavaskar, Bedi, Srikanth, Kapil and later on Dravid, Ganguli, Laxman, Tendulkar etc., lording it over like mighty colossuses straddling various cricket fields. When someone like Dhoni or Yuvraj vie for space with these greats, I view it as a personal affront. As if to rub salt on my wounds, Nars in a recent India Special piece admonished our Dada of Calcutta for suggesting that the present cricket team may not be the best ever.

I want to yell at Nars and the millions of swooning fans of M.S Dhoni & Co., that this team is lucky to be facing opponents who are nowhere as menacing and bloodthirsty as those towering cricketing legends of earlier eras. That some of our cricketers of the past matched those legends and licked them at times, is stuff of cricketing folklore. I can conjure more arguments against these young pretenders, but the flow is interrupted by…..

Do I hear an incessantly chattering brat inside me, chastising me for those uncharitable words about Dhoni and his boys?

The brat is telling me unpalatable things like I am too dumb to see greatness in the present and can comprehend it only once it is history – in the comfort of hindsight. I retort that I write in India Special and therefore can’t be all that dumb, but the brat just shrugs and persists with its demand to give Dhony & Co., their due. Forced into a corner, I get ready to bat for Dhoni’s boys.

So, what is it that makes this team win nine games in a row and pummel opponents of all hues – the blacks, whites, browns and everything in between – very convincingly and at times very humiliatingly? They have even beaten the New Zealanders after 33 years.

Is it because Dhoni is so very positive and confident? Or, is it because he has got an enthusiastic bunch that does not have the burden of reputation or experience to defend? Then I think of our coach Gary Kirsten with his unobtrusive and understanding ways propelling the youngsters to higher levels of performance. May be the reason could even be Krishnamachari Srikanth, that cocky, confident chief selector who keeps infusing fresh blood and pushes the youngsters to play hard and hit the balls out of shape?

About two weeks back, Kevin Peterson attributed the phenomenal rise of Indian cricket to the emergence of T-20. He said Indian cricket went through the roof after T-20. It made every player realize that when it comes to the crunch, they could rise to the occasion and send the ball out of the stadium whether it is a T-20 or a one day game or a test match. Out of this shortest version of the game emerged the giants lying buried in most of the cricketers.T-20 was a huge paradigm shift in cricket.

Rahul Dravid has been my hero above everyone else. He gave everything to win and he never played for himself. I desperately wanted him to win as a captain and remain at the pinnacle of success. That did not unfortunately happen and his captaincy record is nothing to write home about. I ponder at the huge injustice done to this great sportsman and legend by God’s funny system of justice.

Then came Dhoni, with that careless swagger and don’t-care-attitude, captaining a bunch of upstart youngsters full of raw energy and enthusiasm. He seemed to be having great fun on the field along with the rest of the gang. He started winning games and imperceptibly his boys slithered into the winning habit.

I ponder at the contrasting ways of these two captains. Dravid was desperate to win and his visage on the field was one of anxiety, determination and intensity. Dhoni on the other hand is as cool as a cucumber and his demeanor betrays not a trace of fear. He is full of the joie-de-vivre and excitement of life. He seems to be just playing a game. I marvel at the profound wisdom ingrained in the words of my teacher

When you are desperate about something, it will almost certainly be delayed though not denied.

Why write about cricket and games, when I am faced with the reality of running a business through chaotic times? The economic melt down has caused a bloodbath in my company and am bruised all over from the cuts and thrusts of maneuvering through these rocky terrains.

I realize the old world order is giving way to a new, uncertain reality and the rules of the game have changed. I have to find the resources within to play a T-20 game and thrive in these times of turmoil. And I have to learn to play hard and find the giant within. There are some parts of the game which are not in my hands. At times I may be bowled or caught and may have to take the lonely trudge back to the pavilion. But I will play the game joyfully with carefree abandon and will return to play many more innings. I am playing to win!

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The recent 2 match 20-20 internationals between India and New Zealand were a “huge” let down for the cricket crazy Indian fans. Being so used to winning for a long time, the crash landing 2-0 score line had a lot of folks feeling bitter. The old habit of pulling out the daggers when the team does badly did certainly show up and the good old media at it again saying has India lost the plot. Add to this that a section of the media were asking a question saying was it the new uniforms!

What I fail to understand is the fact that that this was no big deal for most of us. These are T20 matches and true to their name, they are really 20-20. A result can go anyway and all that needs to happen to change the course of a game is 6 balls – A batsman can play out of his skin or a bowler can do the same and bingo, the game swings! The connoisseurs of cricket even fail to recognize that T20 is cricket!  To get into a difficult country where the pitches are fast, winds and wind chills have a huge impact and especially to play a game with literally no practice matches in hard.  People lose perspective to the challenges that the boys face when they travel around the world and expect them to perform at the same level always.

I happened to be travelling and caught both the T20 matches on blackberry – What surprised me was the kind of viewer comments that accompanied each defeat. I read all kinds of crap, the saddest being someone questioning Irfan Pathan’s commitment to the country when he bowled the last over and we lost the second ODI. Wasn’t it the same bloke who played out of his skin to win you a match that you had lost for God’s sake in Sri Lanka ? How can memories be so short lived??

I’m so glad the boys turned things around today to go 1 up on the ODI series. They did this with élan and showed that they are truly the team that is on the path to becoming the world’s numero uno. A few defeats here and there are bound to happen and one needs to be patient. This is a good team, not a god team that can win all the time. Winning and losing are part of the game and we must learn to accept defeat with grace. Pulling out daggers and knives is not a solution to an odd loss on the way. The path to greatness is never a bed of roses alone!

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Watching India win the series in Sri Lanka has been a visual treat. The smiling faces, Dhoni’s unwavering focus, disciplined bowling, the proud shoulders and the teamwork have been super to see, barring one aberration. Sachin’s dismissals in all the three matches.

Much has been written on the unfairness meted out to Sachin. Hindi news channels (led by Star News) even attributed Yuvraj’s ton in the last game at the RPS stadium as a befitting reply to the nincompoop umpiring against Sachin, apart from it being one big saazish. I myself thought it was very sad to see human errors plaguing the game even with the introduction with new error-proof technology in the wings. Whatever happened to the third umpire referral system the ICC had introduced not too long ago?

Sachin is the greatest batsman currently playing cricket but remember this: The withdrawal of the referral system has hit him the hardest, he was the first batsman to be declared run-out when the system was outsourced to the third umpire, largest number of times to have gotten out on 99 and many bowlers can claim to have clean bowled Sachin on their debuts. That may be sheer bad luck, but Sunil Gavaskar’s column in Times of India (3rd Feb 2009 edition) made me wonder if indeed it was bad luck that the Little Master is against. In his piece, Gavaskar briefly but succulently mentions that umpires don’t hesitate to give Sachin out because it shows that their decisions are not daunted by the greatness of the batsman whom they are judging. For the first time, I agreed with Gavaskar simply because the facts prove this. Gamini Silva has only just started umpiring and knows that Sachin is too gentlemanly to protest against being given out (unlike a Yuvraj who showed the umpire his bat when he too got an unfair decision).

It is the predicament of the great to forge a path of greatness without harping too much on it. Sachin, as usual has been quiet on this entire matter, letting other greats of the game and his billion disappointed fans do the talking instead. It must surely hurt when you know you can do better than the last time you were here (Sachin had a terrible series against Sri Lanka the last time around) and you are not allowed to do so.

His advancing age and aggravating injuries are signs that the body will give up on him sooner rather than later. A source at the BCCI office at Wankhede Stadium once told me Sachin will not even think of quitting before getting back  the World Cup in 2011. Traces of his fierce competitiveness were on display in the same match when his smile had the same opposite effect of watching Federer cry after losing the Australian Open.

So, what can he do? Since he’s not at fault at here, nothing much. But for starters, he should play along the line of the ball, so as to minimize LBW chances. And keep himself motivated positively. This is a bad phase which too shall pass, as he would well know.

Looking at him, no one ever thinks the amount of burden and pressure he carries. A chat with Ishant Sharma before he departed to play the u-19 World Cup in Malaysia in 2007 gave me an insight into Tendulkar.

“Everybody loves as well as respects him. He rarely gets angry and if he does, he tries to focus his anger on improving his game. Which other player in this age can do that?”

Indeed, who can?

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The daggers are out and people are drawing all the blood they want out of the recent fall of the Aussies to India and then to South Africa at home. Let’s face a few facts first up.

1. Australia have dominated world cricket for a long, long time. Until the Indian’s began to rattle them a couple of years ago, no one ever got so close to giving them a run for their money

2. Their dominance of the game was for all the right reasons. In Hayden, they had someone who could open up an innings at a scorching pace, in punter, the best world’s no 3 ever to have played the game, and with Gilly, someone who could do a Hayden with the tail. If these guys with the others held the batting together, in McGrath and Warne, they have two of the best bowlers in the world. With a side of this composition, you have a near 50% of your side being “stars”.

3. I happen to work with an Australian and someone who loves his cricket like most Aussies. He tells me that this is not chance one bit. Cricket in Australia is played so hard that you’ve got to be the best to even play for your state side and Sheffield shield. It’s the crème de la crème from these leagues that get picked to play for the country. This depth has been showcased time and again when they kept pulling one rabbit after the other outta their hats to fit in with these stars.

4. They played the game hard, hated to lose and were aggressive all out. When you have attitude like this, it shows and that explains why they were Numero Uno for such a long time.

Being Indian, I agree with Sunil Gavaskar and a ton of other countrymen who say that they were bad losers and bruised a side too many when they had their hay days. Their fall is hence being hailed & celebrated – no surprise this.

The vice like grip that the Aussies had to the game and the #1 stop in all forms of the game (except T20) and more importantly, the duration made the world look for options. Anyone going to Australia was bound to get hammered.

It’s a pity that until India and South Africa arrived, none of the cricketing nations would plot to match them stroke for stroke or word for word. The baselines were so high that most people gave up.  It was a foregone conclusion that going to Australia meant finishing up on the losing side.

It was Ganguly who first thought that this needed to be scaled,  Dhoni followed and looking at what we could do, Gream Smith jumped on to the bus.

It’s a new world order – if not, will be so in a month or so. But what got us to this? The supposing insurmountable baselines that the Oz had laid out and ruled the cricketing world with.

We’ve almost got a new baseline in today – If these baselines have to move to a higher level, someone like us needs to come along and do what we did better or easier still, we need to keep performing at a different level every day to create a new one.

I trust our young boys will live it up in the years to come – but what got the best out of us? The Aussies…

I still believe that the cricketing world needs the Aussies.. a good enough Australian team is just the right recipe for healthy cricket rivalry in the years to come. Who rules is something that I believe is determined by the saying – may the best team win / lead!

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I am back with Part II on our team’s evolution in year 2008. I could not stop myself praising India for year 2008 achievements. As luck would have it, Dhoni’s keep- cool-at-all-times attitude helped our team position better than in the past. Captaincy Crown in India was a jinx in the past. It caused burden on the player’s individual performance lot many times. But Dhoni broke all those jinxes and exhilarated the captaincy crown. Lets go back to some stats on what we achieved in second half of the year.

India Tour of Sri Lanka – Jul 2008 – Aug 2008
Mendis Maniac Continues…
1st Test v SL – SL won by an innings and 239 runs – Sri Lanka 600/6d; India 223 and 138 (f/o)
2nd Test v SL – India won by 170 runs – India 329 and 269; Sri Lanka 292 and 136
3rd Test v SL – Sri Lanka won by 8 wickets – India 249 and 268; Sri Lanka 396 and 123/2

The victory in Australia at the beginning of this year fore set high expectation to win series in Sri Lanka very easily. As the test series progressed it did not look like a cakewalk. Even the players seemed complacent and lost their first test in Colombo. Although Sehwag’s double ton in 2^nd Test won match for India, Mendis and Muthiah ensured the series was retained in SL. It was a brilliant performance by both spinners from SL. Mendis maniac followed team India right through Asia cup to this series.

The only saving grace in the tour for team India was to retain one-day series. Of course Dhoni’s leadership and some young blood made the difference to have 3-2 upper hand in one-day series.

Australia Tour of India – Sep 2008 – Nov 2008
Dada, Kumble’s Adieu and Arch Rivalry continues…
1st Test v India – Match drawn – Australia 430 and 228/6d; India 360 and 177/4
2nd Test v India – India won by 320 runs – India 469 and 314/3d; Australia 268 and 195
3rd Test v India – Match drawn – India 613/7d and 208/5d; Australia 577 and 31/0
4th Test v India – India won by 172 runs – India 441 and 295; Australia 355 and 209

This series has vouched two memorable events – adieu to Anil Kumble, the legendry spinner and Dada (Sourav Ganguly), all time favorite batsmen. Tremendous performance ensured India retains the Border-Gavaskar trophy at home and it was a pride fall for Australia. Apparently Dhoni’s leadership won 2 matches for India to win the series. This ended the long norm of different captains for shorter and longer version of the game.

If Zaheer and Ishant stumbled Australia, Dhoni, the king in white clothes, led the team from front to victory.

England Tour of India – Nov 2008 – Dec 2008
Gaining Consistency by leaps and bounds…
One who saw this series would have certainly amazed if it were India, which was playing cricket this way. Out of 7 matches we won 5 matches in a row, which I think by far the greatest performance in my knowledge. I almost thought we would do a clean wash in the series, and England did not have place to hide their face until the Mumbai blasts warranted remaining one day matches being suspended.

1st Test v India – India won by 6 wickets – England 316 and 311/9d; India 241 and 387/4
2nd Test v India – Match drawn – India 453 and 251/7d; England 302 and 64/1

Amongst lot of speculation, finally the test series continued amidst tight security force. We could see less of spectators and more of armed forces witnessing the games. But the winning and sportive spirit did not jitter with these incidents.

The whole team stood by their morals amidst controversies in Australia, renewed team spirits made India win matches and regain the glory. Some emotional moments for India seeing off Dada and Kumble, and in the end it was a great victory against England that cheered the whole nation.

What a way to end a year. I would like to “Thank Team India” for the entertainment provided for all the fans in year 2008 and wish them all the best for year 2009.We all would like to see India taking up the much-coveted top 1 position in this New Year 2009.

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India won the Chennai Test against England convincingly enough by six wickets. Sehwag once again proved that a solid start can change the course of the game and the psyche of opponents.

England was, for once, outplayed in the game and it did when it mattered most – the last innings of the match.

Sachin was brilliant. Scoring his 41st century speaks volumes of the cricket left in him, even at this age. He along with Yuvraj paved the way for an Indian celebration.

With that being said, are we now heading for the Top Spot in Test Cricket ?

We have a Captain Cool in Dhoni, a legend in Tendulkar, a Swashbuckler in Sehwag, A wall in Dravid etc who are raring to go and achieve the unachievable.

The question is even with these stalwarts on the side, can we still make it to the top ?

In my opinion we are just a few steps away from reaching the top. As per the latest ICC Rankings, India is placed 3rd only next to South Africa and Australia.

So, what would it take India to reach the top spot in ICC Test Rankings ?

A few wins. No losses – Slam dunk, isn’t it ?!

Let’s dig a bit deeper. What would it take the team to win matches after matches ? I have given a laundry list of “To Dos” which Dhoni & co can work upon…

1. Dhoni should maintain his cool, as he always has been
2. Sehwag, Gambhir & Tendulkar should continue the way they have been performing
3. Middle Order must be consistent even if it calls for a few heads rolling (Rahul – are you listening ?)
4. Zaheer, Harbhajan, Amit & Ishant need to set higher benchmarks and consistently perform
5. Get the team’s mind off from off-the-field issues

Off-Field Issues ?

• Security Guards are meant for your Security
• Who slapped whom & why
• Bollywood Dreams and
• Of course- Of DhoniLakshmi’s Kollywood Dreams

Unnecessary attention diversion, you see..

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India thrashed Australia 2-0 at home. That is the best cricket news that I’ve heard for a long time. To beat Australia in Australia is like a dream come true, but to beat Australia at home is no less than a dream.

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The Indian Test cricket seems to have come of age. Last 10 years could very well be called the golden decade in Indian cricket. How often would you see an Indian Test side beat Australia? How often would you see a young and energetic Indian team win a World Cup, in whatever form, for us? How often would you see a Fab Four deliver consistently for Indian cricket…for that matter, world cricket?

As the mantle passed on from Azhar to Ganguly, India saw the making of an aggressive, passionate and result oriented captain. We saw Ganguly bringing some of the best talents to limelight – Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan. We saw Ganguly taking India to the finals of World Cup ’03, an achievement for the first time in two decades. That we lost to the Champion Australia didn’t matter, what mattered was that we were the finalists. Indian cricket team returned home with its head high.

Then came the T20 World Cup. At a time when India was down and royally beaten in the 2007 World Cup, a new, young Indian cricket emerged that would change the course of Indian cricket – maybe forever. A young team led by the brilliant and stylish Dhoni won the T20 World Cup for us.

Seemed as if the good old days were back…

What followed was even better for India. BCCI formed the new Indian Premier League and hosted the first T20 championships with a lot of grit and glamour. Cricket suddenly changed from a gentleman’s game to a sporting extravaganza. Overnight, some of the lesser known cricketers became stars. Established stars became multi-millionaires, young cricketers saw more money in a month that they would have seen in half a decade. Cricket TRPs ruled the roost.

In short, Cricket took the nation by storm.

With yesterday’s win against Australia, a few things came to limelight  – A young Dhoni was made the Test captain for 2 tests, and both these tests he won. A young Ishant Sharma won the Man of the Series over-shadowing the contributions from Ganguly, Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan, Dhoni et al. Amit Misra paved the way for a few glorious moments in the first and last test matches. Zaheer Khan was at his best. Everything seemed to fall in place.

To top it all – India moves up in ranks to become second in ICC Test Rankings, only next to Australia…An achievement that we have seen after a very long time. 

I get the feeling that this would be India’s best cricketing decade, by far. What do you think ?

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Dear Dhoni,

Times of India reported yesterday that you are in the company of the rough and tough and the royals. What a privilege, man !

Not only are you the darling of the female cricket fanatics of the world, you have built enough reputation for the administrators in Jharkhand to give you what you always wanted – Z plus security plus a female entourage. No wonder, you have a plethora of reasons to be single.

I don’t know whether to laugh or to cry – I am confused !

Tangentially speaking, can you share your recent habitual bunglings in the finals of a tournament. You lost it out against Pakistan in the trination tournament – We didn’t complain. You lost it out against Sri Lanka in the recent Asia Cup final – We didn’t complain. But you lose out in Sri Lanka, my friend – we will have to start looking at your “G” version…..a.k.a Gony

That reminds me of the song from Amar Akbar Anthony. Here is my version..

Honi ko Anhoni kar de

Anhoni ko Honi..

Ek jagah pe khade ho theenon

Sony, Goni aur Dhoni

Did you like it ?

By the way, can you please ask your team mate Gony to start behaving – His mummy is complaining!!!

More blah blah later !

Yours truly,

Kandamangalam

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