After the dismal show against Australia, India continue to prove that they are laggards when playing abroad. India not only lost to NZ, it lost badly. Barring the fight in the 3rd ODI when some fine knocks by Jaddu and Ashwin helped India tie the match. India could just bite dust in the entire series. The team lacked maturity and discipline in all the departments. The bowling was mundane, it felt as if the bowlers were just not applying themselves, they were just hoping for some miracle to happen, which unfortunately did not!
The top order was pathetic in the series. They were usually slow and were never able to give India a solid start. The middle order also fumbled in most of the games. Barring a couple of good innings by Kohli, the trio of Kohli, Rahane, Rayudu/Raina just could not deliver. Indians also allowed free flow of runs in the middle overs which further aggravated Indian problems. NZ on the other hand were composed from the very start of the series. Their openers were solid, middle order was specially impressive – Williamson and Taylor played some excellent innings. Lower order of Luke Ronchi and Corey Anderson was just phenomenal, they provided that late push to NZ innings whenever needed. NZ must be feeling really high after the series. They were No. 7 in the ICC rankings and India was No. 1 before the series; I would rather say the ranking system is flawed! India has moved to No. 2 after the series loss.
The only positive for India in the series was that Ashwin can bat! However given the kind of pitches we have in NZ, Roger Binny could have been given more chances. Irfan Pathan might also have been effective with his slower cutters. Anyways, India has seen enough of NZ pitches now and its time to prepare for the 2 test matches. First match starts on 6th Feb at Auckland. Given the current form of the India team, it is going to be really tough for the team. Pacer Ishwar Pandey has also been included in the test squad. Plus there are players like Pujara, Vijay and Zaheer Khan who can help team India fight against NZ. Here’s wishing team India good luck for the test matches. Hope they won’t disappoint the fans this time around.
Indian cricketers have historically maintained very quite private lives. Barring a few celeb romances like the linkup of Azharuddin with actress Sangeeta Bijlani, Indian cricketers have remained quite shy. Dhoni’s wife Sakshi did hog a lot of limelight, but that is because of Dhoni’s popularity.
Virat Kohli – Anushka Sharma
However, due to the commercialization of cricket, there have been quite a few celebrity linkups these days. Some of the popular ones are Harbhajan Singh – Geeta Basra, Yuvraj Singh – Deepika Padukone etc. The latest affair is Virat Kohli’s linkup with Anushka Sharma. Apparently there is news that Kohli has moved into Anushka’s apartment in Mumbai.
However, the luckiest cricketer, if you may call, who has the sexiest (in my opinion atleast!) WAG is Dinesh Karthik. Yes, he might have lost the wicket-keeper spot to Dhoni, however he has none other than the hot and sexy, star squash player, Dipika Pallikal, as his to-be wife. Dipika will be Dinesh’s 2nd wife. He divorced his earlier wife – Nikita in 2013 after 6 years of marriage. There were rumors of alleged linkup between fellow cricketer Murali Vijay and Nikita Karthik which lead to the split.
kartik-pallikal engagement pic
After the split, Dinesh ended up training under the same fitness coach as Dipika Pallikal and it’s there that he discovered his lady love in the ace Indian squash player. Both of them gelled well and somehow managed to succeed in keeping their affair out of the media’s eyes.
Dinesh Karthik, 28, and Deepika Pallikal, 22, got engaged at the Taj Grand Hotel in Chennai in Nov, 2013. Here is wishing the couple some great times ahead…
We are going to do complete coverage of the South Africa Tour of India from a different perspective. A perspective that was not possible before.
Now, since the Indian team has finally come out of the tall shadow of now retired from all formats of the game, Sachin Tendulkar, it will be interesting to watch and observe how they perform. It does not in any way an effort to diminish the achievements and contributions of Sachin Tendulkar to the team. Only that the probable outcome of a match if Sachin was there in the team would no more be discussed, hopefully. Although he was not on the Indian ODI side for quite some time, his name still used to crop up now and then if the team did not perform well. That I think was more due to the glimmer of hope that many of his hard core fans had about his probable return to the team. That is finally gone, for good or for worse only time can tell.
Much has been said about many players on the current ODI side. Some of them have even been compared to all time greats of cricket. It will be great to see them in a different light. It will be interesting to see if they are really as great and comparable to the all time greats as they critics have commented in recent times. Expecially, comparing some batsmen to Sachin Tendulkar has become a fashion of sorts. So, taking that forward, we will compare the performances of the batsmen without Sachin being on the side.
Confessions of a Cricket Atheist – one who doesn’t believe Sachin is God of cricket
The past few days and the coming few days are very important for the world of cricket. Well, that is what you would feel these days, if you switch on your TV and go to any news channel in India. Every time you would come across news related to just one event that you would feel, will turn the world upside down. This event that is about to take place a few days from now, is being considered one of the most important events to have ever taken place or that will ever take place in the world of cricket.
Although such an event is not an irregular phenomenon, it is being made out to look extraordinarily special. Rather, I would say, this event is so common not only in cricket but in all walks of life, that it sometimes becomes not even worth mentioning. So, what is this event I am talking about here in this article?
Sachin Tendulkar, the God of Cricket retires
Yes, that’s right. Even if you are a small time follower of cricket, especially Indian cricket, you must have by now guessed what is the event I am talking about. If not, then let me explain it to you. Yes, it is about God. God is retiring. Finally….
Sachin Tendulkar had recently announced that he will be retiring from test cricket. India beat West Indies in the first test match played in the Eden Gardens at Kolkata. This test series being played on the India tour of West Indies is being touted as the farewell series for Sachin Tendulkar. Although the result of the match was in favor of India, Sachin Tendulkar was not able to impress the fans on the second last test match of his prolonged career.
Why is Sachin’s retirement so important
Do you think the brouhaha being created by the Indian news media around the retirement of a cricketer is justified? People have to retire from their professions at a time either they or their employers deem appropriate. But this event is being made out to look more important than anything else going around in the world. Retirement comes to all professionals alike. For some, it comes early and for others, at the fixed retirement age, but for players the day depends on their ability to continue performing at the top of their level or be booted out because some one better than them arrives on the scene. Similar is the case of the over hyped retirement of Sachin Tendulkar.
Sachin’s retirement from Test cricket is the only topic being discussed around all news media these days. Even the BCCI agreed to accept to arrange for the last match played by Sachin at his desired venue. Was this so important?
Well, the answer to this question is very straight forward. The one answer that you are most likely to hear from any Sachin fan is that, “he is the God of Cricket, and so all of this is justified”.
Is Sachin really the God of Cricket?
Till recently I was of the opinion that it is wrong to call Sachin, the God of cricket. Why should we call him God of cricket? Do we not undermine the contribution of all other great cricketers who have contributed towards the game’s popularity? Do we not undermine the contributions of other Indian cricketers who have done this for the game too?
Well, maybe we do, but, who cares. We are all fans of Sachin Tendulkar. We love him. He is the one who gave hope to our imaginations and dreams when the game was in a very bad shape in the country. He carried the responsibility of a whole nation on his shoulders for so long. Sachin has inspired a whole generation of cricketers in the country. He is a great player. He is the greatest batsman ever born. He is even better than Sir Don Bradman, Brian Lara, Ricky Ponting, any other batsman to every play this game, and who ever you may think of. So, it is always justified to call him, God of Cricket. Well, this may be the argument of a typical hard headed Sachin fan who calls him God. Now, let me tell you about how Sachin came to my life and how he influenced my life as he did to zillion others.
My first encounter with Sachin Tendulkar
Going back in time, when I try to recall the moment when I first became aware of the existence of this person called Sachin Tendulkar, my memory becomes hazy but that moment clearly stands out as remarkable. The first time ever I heard about this cricketer was when I was in the 1st or 2nd grade in school. This was through my father who used to listen to all the cricket commentaries on the All India Radio, if time permitted. Radio was the best medium those days, as all cricket matches were not telecast live on the only available TV channel, Doordarshan. My father would usually talk about the World Cup 1983 winning brigade, the likes of Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, and Ravi Shastri. So, we would listen to the radio typically on Sundays. On one such occasion during the winters of the year 1990, while we were enjoying the warmth of the sun on the roof of our house, I heard the name of Sachin Tendulkar for the first time. I immediately asked my father, who was lying besides me on the cot, his face covered with a angochha (light towel), who this player was. His response was that of an excited fan, yeah he is a new player in the team. He is very young and has played some great cricket at the level of school and the state. He seems to be very talented. Well, my tiny mind at that age, would not have even known what talent was.
Another moment I can clearly recall about my association with Sachin, is one when when I watched Sachin play for the country in a one day match. Yes I would take the liberty to call it an association, as he has been part of our collective lives for too long, for us not to be associated with him. It was against West Indies. By that time, I had started to understand the nuances of the game. Although I am not sure exactly when, but, I still remember I was still a primary school kid, and Sachin also looked very young. As I watched Sachin bat, I was awe struck. I was simply amazed at the way he was facing the menacing bowling of the West Indian fast bowlers. The West Indian bowlers who had bodies of gigantic proportions when compared to that of lanky boy that Sachin was at that age, were not able to intimidate Sachin and could not deter him from scoring the runs precious runs that India required. Although I do not exactly remember what the fate of the match was or how many runs were scored by him, the fact that he was facing those bowlers with such courage and aplomb had a big impact on me.
Sachin Tendulkar is indeed the God of cricket
Many batsmen have played the game of cricket at the highest level possible and have contributed to the game immensely. Many famous cricketers have retired, but never before the retirement of any other player has become the point of discussion in so many news articles, and so many debates on television, and so many discussion on the street corner tea shop and in so many class room.
This talk has been going on for quite some time now or rather for a few years now. The thing that surprises me is not the number of people and the number of times Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement has been discussed not only by fans but also cricket analysts and even veterans of the game. The thing that surprises me is that, over all these discussions, how was that little man able to avoid the temptation to hang his boots and keep his bat on the side and say, it is enough now. How was he able to keep his interest for the game going and the fire inside him burning. Keeping on doing the same things again and again for over 24 years now.
Sachin Tendulkar is not just a great batsman, he is a symbol. A symbol of greatness. A symbol of excellence. A symbol of hard work. A symbol of perseverance. A symbol of humility. A symbol of everything imaginable a great cricketer and a great player should be. That makes him the God of Cricket indeed.
There is one thing common among all the fast bowlers playing for England this season. Their height. They are all of above the average height or more so giants. England seems to be strategically playing multiple fast bowlers against Australia.
Monty Panesar despite being given professional help and being included in the ashes side needs to prove that the professional help has actually helped him and he is a reformed person. He needs to prove that he is past that episode in his life and is good enough for the team not only as a performing player but also as a person.
Gareth Cross has been released by Lancashire. It has increased the possibility of signing on Jos Buttler from Somerset. In 13 Championship games Cross made 409 runs at the average of 24.05 with one hundred and two fifties. He tweeted that he is going to start afresh somewhere else and he needs to prove some big points.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board has failed to start the hearing of its anti-corruption tribunal. It was supposed to do that within the stipulated time frame of 40 days from the day charges were issued against the players accused of fixing during this season’s Bangladesh Premiere League.
In a cricket game, we are usually so much attached to end result that not much importance is given to the loosing team. Similar trend is followed for giving out the Man of the Match awards. The MoM award is usually given to a player of the winning team. However, if there is an exemplary performance by a player of the loosing team, then he might be considered for the award. At times, the MoM award is also shared between two players, one from each team.
The post looks at the those players who have won the maximum percent of MoM awards when their team has lost the match.
ODI Cricket:
Sachin Tendulkar leads the chart with 6 MoM awards. But he has been a part of 200 ODIs which India has lost. The winner of this category is TLW Cooper from Netherlands. He has been a part of 17 matches which Netherlands lost and won the MoM award 3 times. Great ratio!! The following chart plots the MoM awards/Matches played being on the loosing side. A criteria of having won at-least 3 MoM awards is considered.
In tests, Sachin Tendulkar, Wasim Akram and Mohammad Ashraful have been awarded MoM 3 times despite being ending on the loosing side. However, the winner in this category with the best ratio is JR Ratnayeke from Sri Lanka. He has won the MoM award 2 times and been a part of 12 lost test matches. A criteria of minimum 2 MoM awards is used for the comparison.
The Supreme Court of India could not spare some time for hearing the BCCI v Cricket Association of Bihar petition as it was tied up hearing other cases that were listed earlier in the day. The case was listed to be heard on Wednesday afternoon by the two-judge bench that comprised of Justices AK Patnaik and JS Khehar, but the court fell short of time.
Score: Ireland 99 for 1 (Stirling 50*) trail Scotland 138 by 39 runs. Ireland were able to play just 21 overs on day two in Dublin as they could not get the chance to build a solid first innings lead over Scotland.
Although Zimbabwe mostly dominated the third day by taking a 64-run lead and then building on it, Pakistan took three wickets in the last nine balls of the day. This brought Pakistan back in the competition and rekindled some hopes of winning the match.
Brian Vitori seems to have made a solid comeback during his career’s second innings as the 5 wicket haul gave a strong position to Zimbabwe against Pakistan. He has been performing like his first spell and looks like the rest has done more good to him and the team.
The third one day international between Australia and England at Edgbaston in Birmingham could be played only for 15.1 overs due to heavy continous rain. The umpire called off play for the day.
Younus khan, scored an unbeaten double century in the first test to set up Pakistan’s 221-run victory and a half century during the first innings of the second test. He became only the fourth Pakistani batsman to pass 7,000 runs in tests.
England one-day coach Ashley Giles made a statement that the English one day side has the right balance ahead of Wednesday’s third one-day international against Australia at Edgbaston. [/dropshadowbox] [dropshadowbox effect=”horizontal-curve-bottom” rounded_corners=”false” width=”99%” height=”140px”]
Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor led Zimbabwe’s batting on the first day of the second test against Pakistan to put together a 110-run partnership for their team. Zimbabwe reached 237 for eight wickets at stumps on the opening day of the second test on Tuesday. [/dropshadowbox] [dropshadowbox effect=”horizontal-curve-bottom” rounded_corners=”false” width=”99%” height=”140px”]
Graeme Smith is back in South Africa’s touring party for the series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) starting next month. He still confirm his full recovery from the injury he had suffered in his ankle due to which he was out since May. [/dropshadowbox] [dropshadowbox effect=”horizontal-curve-bottom” rounded_corners=”false” width=”99%” height=”160px”]
AB de Villiers, the ODI captain of South Africa, was named Momentum ODI Cricketer of the Year and the South Africa Players’ Player of the Year. During the same event, Hashim Amla became the third South African to be named as Cricket South Africa (CSA) Cricketer of the Year on two separate occasions. Amla had won the award earlier in 2010. [/dropshadowbox] [dropshadowbox effect=”horizontal-curve-bottom” rounded_corners=”false” width=”99%” height=”150px”]
India batsman Gautam Gambhir is set to return to Essex to play the remainder of the county season for the team. He had returned to India on 2nd September due to family reasons. Gambhir will rejoin the squad on Tuesday in Canterbury, where Essex play a Championship game against Kent from Wednesday. [/dropshadowbox]
