No, no the cricketers are quite safe. In quite a daring move, the Indian selectors have chosen to leave out the three big names from the list of probables for the 20-20 world cup. In the absence of further information at this point, let us feel free to speculate on why:

1. The Indian selectors are far thinking and want to groom the next generation of cricketers. In a move in that direction, they have decided to test out some new blood at the world cup.

2. The older players’ styles are not suited to the requirements of the wham-bam cricket that is 20-20. You need aggressive and extremely agile cricketers which the older guys are not. So, they have been dropped from the team.

3. This is actually a suggestion by one of the leading players of the team. They are interested in grooming the next generation or have ad shoots during that period. Hence this move.

4. They haven’t actually been dropped. This is a warning to the senior players that the selectors wield power too. After massive public outcry and criticism from other older players, these players will be included in the team.

Readers, please feel free speculate on the issue.

Yet another absolutely meaningless series has come to an end. But with one small difference, the Indian team came out on top. Congratulations to Rahul Dravid and his men- they have managed to win something after a long time! Plus, the series was won in alien conditions, against a tough squad and after losing the first game.

There were some real positives from the series, most notably-

1) That great man Sachin Tendulkar finally remembering that he was once a decent batsman who could make ordinary bowlers like Andrew Nell look well, ordinary.

2) Yuvraj Singh finding the form that made him one of the best finishers of 2005

3) Piyush Chawla showing us that he has the potential to lead our spin attack

However, the question remains, was this a missed opportunity to test some new blood? Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly are all 34 and will retire in another couple of years or possibly (considering the grip they have on Indian cricket) will play on till 2011. That is the top three in one-day internationals and the entire middle order in the test matches (Laxman is not too much younger either) Yuvraj has made one position his own but there is hardly any competition so much so that Gautham Gambhir seems to always find himself in the team.

We pick a player like Rohit Sharma and don’t give him the opportunity to show his potential. What has been learnt about his batting skills? Nothing. The poor lad came to bat in the 47th over of the only game he got to play. He managed to score 8 runs in 8 balls before being bowled. Chances are that if the Indian team fares badly in the test matches in England, Virendar Sehwag or Mohammed Kaif will be brought back for the seven match one day internationals. And who will take the fall? Rohit Sharma.

It begs to be asked, do men like Dravid and Tendulkar have the cricketing brains that we always seem to give them credit for? I am not questioning their commitment, just the fact that they couldn’t recognize that this was a brilliant opportunity to blood some some new faces. Or considering the amount of clout they have, can’t they impress on the board, the need for a very comprehensive A team policy?

Imagine a kid who has just failed in his examinations and has his report card reviewed by his parents. The parents - naturally angry at his poor performance - decide to clamp down on the kid in order to straighten him up. The easiest way they believe, is to deprive the kid of all his privileges and they think that the longing for them will make him do better next time around. So, off goes his allowance and his free time - he gets grounded. But they ignore that maybe a systemic change might have been better off.

So similarly what does our cricket board do when it reviews the performance of our players? It decides to show them who their daddy is and clamps down on the players. While I can see the intention behind the moves, I have issues with the way the board has tried to implement it.

For example if the logic is that due to endorsements, the players don’t get enough time to focus on the game - there was no need to undemocratically limit the number of endorsements for the players. Simply increase the number of mandatory camps the players must attend. Increase the number of domestic matches the players have to play compulsorily to be selected to the team. Create blackout periods where only training and cricket is focussed on but allow the players a specified time where they can go earn money from endorsements to the highest of their capabilites. Market forces will anyway ensure that money earned is proportional to performance on field.

The fact is that we have no bench strength and it can only be built through ensuring competetive domestic matches - which means that international players have to be routinely involved in these matches. How else will we know just how good a player really is? India A and U19 tours abroad hopefully will also help the cause. Finally I do hope the BCCI actually implements fast green pitches in as many locations as possible for domestic cricket - so that we have players who can actually play. Having said that as long as Kumble still plays test cricket, please have spinning beauties for Home test matches. No one wants to see a Nagpur green pitch while playing against the Aussies - the word i think is suicide.

The board might do well to realise that they support cricket which includes the players. Having anti-player diktats just smells of appeasement politics - hardly a surprise given that politicians run BCCI anyway. Maybe we can have control handed over to the players yeah?

They say that to spare the rod is to spoil the child. But to use the rod excessively is to have a child who will kick the parents out when its his turn.

Greg Chappell has resigned. And what a way to go: the entire nation barring Rahul Dravid (and the youngsters?) maybe seems to be against the man. A mixed reign would be the verdict: we did have successful run chase streaks, a test series victory in WI, a test match victory in SA, ODI setbacks in WI and SA and the debacle at the World Cup. But the Chappell era will be remembered more for the controversies- Ganguly affair (the Bengalis must be feeling all smug after getting the entire nation behind them now!), the constant interviews with the press and the like.

It is true in Indian cricket more than anywhere else: the more things change, the more they remain the same. The team’s nucleus remains pretty much the same, the fielding and fitness levels or mental strength haven’t seen any drastic upward trends, we continue to travel poorly and more action continues to happen off the field than on it. Chappell was and is wrong in making public the issues he had with individuals, groups or the team in its entirety. In answering questions during interviews - while it might go against his natural instincts- it is in everyone’s interests to “well-left” certain issues. And in imitating Chappell’s actions, the senior Indian players have shown lack of maturity too. Why should Sachin choose to say things in public now- something he hasn’t for 17 years? Makes one wonder whether these guys are no longer capable of actually going out on the field and showing us that the attitude issues that are being bandied about do not actually exist. Is there some truth in what Chappell is saying and are our players afraid that this time their actions on the field will actually lead the public to believe the coach? Is the media the last resort to extend flagging careers?

But I come here neither to praise Chappell nor to bury him. I don’t know the answers to any of the questions I raised or to any malaise afflicting Indian cricket but this much I know for sure: we have too much media involvement in our cricket and it isn’t good for Indian cricket to have dirty linen washed in the open like this.

India’s first steps into this new territory start today. I know for sure that the South Zone and East Zone tourneys kick off in Vizag and Kolkata respectively. So, I guess all the other zonal 20-20’s will also start on the same day.

Thanks to India’s loss, most of the Indian team personnel should be playing in it. Ideally the team for the World Cup in South Africa in September should be chosen based only on the performances at these tournaments and not based on records as 20-20 is quite a different ball game from ODIs. Dravid and Laxman aren’t playing. Uthappa, Dinesh Karthik, Sreesanth and Dhoni are.

News about this tournament has been scarce to find as our media living up to form has concentrated more on the meeting on the 6th to decide the future of our coach, captain and maybe even some of the senior members of the team. More lines on Dravid’s trip to Kovalam than this. Contrary to some foolish hopes that I had, India’s loss hasn’t changed things on the ground too much afterall.

Even Neo Sports disappoints. There is no live telecast.

This is another post on the same theme – the theme that asks for supporters and not fans. Every time I feel disappointed with the Indian team’s performance – the coverage on the news channels (alright – I get just Sahara Samay here, and its bad but I am sure its representative of the kind of coverage that goes on) and the kind of reactions expressed, just drive me to want to support the Indian team.

1. Cricket is a sport – a game. Its not a question of life and death. We, as fans/supporters have every right to feel cheated/disappointed/angry with the team’s performance. We however have no right to abuse their personal space and their families. The police having to spend resources to protect the houses of our players is ridiculous – not for the action but for the need arising to do it.
2. The players are not in the game to fulfill our fantasies and dreams. It’s a career for them. It’s what gives them their daily bread and luxuries. They can make money only over a limited timeframe – a shelf life shall we say? It is absolutely valid for them to earn money from other avenues like promotions and advertisements. To suggest that their advertisements are the cause of their poor performance is sheer stupidity. Does your work get affected by your dealing on the stock market or investing your money in banks? Or for that matter by your working for your local Rotary Club or heck even by your watching a movie? The board and the coach arrange for sufficient matches and training camps. As long as the players attend these – we have no right to cry foul.
3. Saying that the players should be banned from advertisements is completely unfair – as is suggesting that their performance should dictate the amount they get paid for advertisements. It’s a statement unfair not only to the players but also to the companies they represent in the ads. Let the market decide what they should pay whom. Also next time we read a report saying that a player’s sex life affects quality of performance on the sports field, will we go ahead and regulate his sex life too?
4. The players DO NOT work on tax-payers’ money. We do not pay him his salary. Just like we don’t demand that Amitabh Bachchan should only be paid if we like the movie, we have no right to demand that the player should only be paid if we like what he does on the ground.
5. Also while a loss in the first round is shameful and unexpected – it does not mean that the team is shit. TV channels seem thrilled to get opinions from viewers that literally use these words about them.  It means that our performance was not good enough this time around. If we have doubts about the quality of their performance – we have the option to stop watching their games altogether – without wanting them stoned/burnt or worse killed.
6. “India Great” when we win a match and “India Worst” when we lose a match – and have these emotions swing wildly every match is not a done thing. Just like everyone else, the players too will appreciate stability of emotions. Either hate the team and do not follow them or support them and bear the low performances. Do not be like the creepy friend who only sticks to you when you have the money to spend on him. No one wants the wild swinging between heavens and prayers and then effigy burning and stoning.
7. The MPs and MLAs demanding a probe into the performance will be better off allowing the CBI to conduct the probes into them in a free and fair manner. And would you mind being not corrupt for a change please? And minding some slightly more important business about running the country?
8. Can the channels and people concentrate their efforts on tracking down real villains and criminals rather than attack the soft targets that the players are?
9. Finally what are we really pissed about – the fact that we crashed out of the WC or the fact that rich cricketers crashed out of the WC ?

I know I have repeated my points over and over again but then so do the newschannels.

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Dear Rahul and Team,

I must thank you guys for sparing me the agony of at least six more sleepless nights over the next one month. I must thank you for saving me and my friends the countless hours spent at work talking about you guys, and which of you will do well and how. I must thank you for saving my evenings, which can now be spent in ways more productive than just watching some boring one-sided cricket on TV.

I must thank you guys for saving all the dinnertime conversations with friends and family and relatives. Cricket, I think was taking up too much space there, and we weren’t talking enough about other (and more important) things. Normalcy should be restored now.

There are some less trivial things i must thank you for. You guys were being used in some really awful ads, and I’m happy that those guys are going to lose out now. Sachin’s sunfeast ad, the egg ad with the Bombay team, Rahul in Sansui and Bank of Baroda, and most importantly the really irritating and awful Pepsi ad. Now that I won’t watch much more of the world cup, I’ll also be saved the agony of watching all these things. Hopefully the awesome Nike commercial should still continue.

Best of all, I must thank you for initiating the bankruptcy of the awful Sony Entertainment Television. As I had described in my previous post last week, they would stand to be one of the largest losers thanks to this loss. Hopefully this setback means they will never ever try to bid for sport again. What with their 5 ball overs, and ads during every possible break, and no proper highlights package, and really really awful pre-match and post-match shows.

I might be repeating myself but I thank you for ridding us of that Mandira. She thinks she looks good, but she sucks at cricket. Just can’t speak. Myabe your loss will inspire her to abandon her noodle straps and whatever else Satya Paul designed for her, and go do another Shanti. As long as she stays away from sport, I’ll be forever indebted to you.

And last but not the least, I must thank you for putting in your best efforts and trying to give us a good world cup. Unfortunately, sport being sport, there will always be upsets and you guys are returning home sooner than expected. Just chill for a while, spend some time with your families and maybe play some football. And don’t even think about cricket till the selections for the Bongla tour are due. A break was long overdue, and you have it now. Make the best use of it.

Thanks again for everything, and hope you will be protected against those imposters who, claiming to be fans, will stone your houses, burn your posters and maybe even try Escobar one or more of you. All the best for everything in the future.

Thanks and regards,
SKimpy

Cricket is a religion in India. The players are treated like Gods. When we attack temples and mosques that represent the real Gods - why would the treatment be any different for the sporting Gods? We are a country of hype - no one would ever deny that. We are a country of extremes - no one would deny that either. But it seems that we are a country of fanatics too. For, who gave us the right to attack a cricketer’s house? Who gave us the right to pelt stones at the their families? Who told us that we owned the cricketers and we could treat them anywhich way we wanted?

Cricket may be a religion, it may be a passion, it may be a first love for many - but why do we insist on forgetting that above all else it is still a sport. Not a battle of life and death. A sport in which victory and loss are fickle guests for every team. A sport which is made exciting by its cliched but true glorious uncertainties and twists and turns. If everything went to plan and the stronger team were to win all the time - not only would the game be no fun - India wouldn’t ever have been the World Champions in 1983.

The Indian team has plenty of fans - nay fanatics but seemingly just a handful of supporters. It’s almost as if an army of Team India -Baiters (News Channels, Ex-Cricketers and Fanatics) just wait for a chance to start abusing the players and to push them off the pedestal they stand on. But hold on a minute - who put them on the pedestal? For the life of me, I can’t remember a Sachin or a Rahul proclaiming that they were sporting Gods and should be worshipped as such! That their place was on a pedestal! If we put them on the pedestal, let’s atleast respect their personal lives just that little bit. Criticism? Sure. But let it involve a balanced view. Disappointment? Ofcourse! Frustration? That our right. Attacks? Hell no. But amongst all the rambling - my expression of thoughts is not even a patch on Rudyard Kipling’s classic - “And if you can face Triumph and Disaster - and treat those two imposters just the same - you will be a man my son!” About time we accepted the lows of Indian cricket with the highs.

The expected thrashing was handed out to the Bermudans. The reason I don’t write much about the glorious return to form of Sehwag or the batting of Yuvraj and Sachin is that we now need to focus on the SriLanka game. Here are some of my requests to the Indians.

• Sourav Ganguly, please rotate the strike. He was unable to get the ball away against Bermuda but during the entire period, was hardly looking to get the singles.
• Sehwag, when you need to get to that ball outside the off-stump, please move the feet. Bermuda is one thing but against Vaas, it will be trouble.
• Indian fielders, more commitment on the field please. I see other teams with old guys throwing themselves around when needed while we still believe in “safe” fielders.
• Indian bowlers, ball on the stumps to tail-enders please (not on  the leg stump). We could have got them out for less than 130 yesterday after 110-8.
• Batsmen, we know what you guys can do but consistency would be appreciated.
• Dravid, on the Port of Spain wicket Sehwag should probably be used a little more and even brought into the attack earlier (Sachin and Yuvraj too).
• Team management, Kumble over Harbhajan. I have never believed Harbhajan is a great bowler but we might need him to bowl tightly if we do go through.

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