In the recent days, I've had a lot of discussion with my friends about what they call a "resurgent Indian cricket". My would-be-brother-in-law even called it "a resurgence because of removal of negative influence that was Ganguly".
Of course my opinion is different.
I don't think there's any resurgence in Indian Cricket. Anyone who has been watching these matches (instead of just listening to the commentary, or following it on cricinfo) would concur on a few observations here (because seeing the quality of Indian batting and bowling is different from just knowing the statistics and that they won). Sri Lanka came in this tournament in a bad form and injuries to key players like Jayasuriya. You could see them literally throwing their wickets away. I can not imagine anyone giving a lollypop return catch on the first ball to Sehwag, who is by no means a big turner of the ball. And what can explain Ajit Agarkar, who has always been clobbered around the ground by every major team in the world ending up with 5 wicket hauls in this series? Even some mediocre bowling by the Indians has been rewarded in this series. Clearly, the Sri Lankans were completely outclassed, but not because Indians were playing outstanding, but because they all happened to be out of form.
Some people ask me. How can an entire team go out of form at the same time? I ask them. How can an entire team find form at the same time? (Yes, I remember the thing about "the negative influence that was India").
In addition, I don't think Indians have been stretched to the limits in this tour. So the point about Dravid proving his captaincy skills and Chappel proving his coaching skills doesn't arise. In the India tour of Sri Lanka, Dravid was the Captain, and Chappel was the Coach, yet we beat SL and lost to NZ. What's it different now that we are going ga-ga over? We then beat SL in their own backyard, and we still beat SL in our own backyard. So what's the big deal?
Now the acid test. I think South Africa is a team in fair form at the moment. They have had a run of successes in recent past. Of course playing on Indian pitches would be difficult for them, but I think in the past they've had a decent run on Indian pitches. Lets see how Indian team deals with them. Also remember that NZ got the better of India in the India tour of SL, and SA got the better of NZ in the recent times. So though cricket is no mathematics, India would do well to note that now they're going to face a real enemy. Not a team that's struggling to stand on its feet at the moment.
I am writing this a couple of hours before the first match between India and South Africa. Of course if India wins the series, I must eat crow. But if my thoughts and precedents are anything to go by, I'd remain a vegetarian :)
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Monday, November 14, 2005
The drama that is India
I thought this happened only in the movies. But Bihar proved me wrong. The very movie-like incidents in which a whole city was beseiged by Maoists who entered a jail, shot dead the jail warden, rescued their comerades and shot dead their opponents were a case in the point.
It also speaks volumes about the authority's complicity in the entire matter. I refuse to believe that such a large operation, involving hundreds of men, was carried out in utter secrecy and the intelligence did not know about it. Also, it is utter callousness on the part of the government to leave a city so woefully unmanned and vulnerable. The Election Commission has to own up part of the blame, if it "forces" administration to deploy a rather large chunk of its forces on election duty, Maybe getting a greater chunk of forces on election duty from outside the state is the solution. But whatever it is, it is a management failure, rather than anything else.
As has happened so many times in the past, this incident would soon be forgotten, the records remaining only in the memories of the people who've lost their near and dear ones, and some old dusty files in some government offices.
Solutions? Although I can come up with a zillion solutions, by this time I've become so hopeless and pessimistic towards India, that I don't think any of it would ever be implemented.
India, and Bihar in particular is on its way to the same fate as Tom Cruise's sungasses in Mission Impossible - "This device will self destruct in 5 seconds".
It also speaks volumes about the authority's complicity in the entire matter. I refuse to believe that such a large operation, involving hundreds of men, was carried out in utter secrecy and the intelligence did not know about it. Also, it is utter callousness on the part of the government to leave a city so woefully unmanned and vulnerable. The Election Commission has to own up part of the blame, if it "forces" administration to deploy a rather large chunk of its forces on election duty, Maybe getting a greater chunk of forces on election duty from outside the state is the solution. But whatever it is, it is a management failure, rather than anything else.
As has happened so many times in the past, this incident would soon be forgotten, the records remaining only in the memories of the people who've lost their near and dear ones, and some old dusty files in some government offices.
Solutions? Although I can come up with a zillion solutions, by this time I've become so hopeless and pessimistic towards India, that I don't think any of it would ever be implemented.
India, and Bihar in particular is on its way to the same fate as Tom Cruise's sungasses in Mission Impossible - "This device will self destruct in 5 seconds".
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