Chanderpaul Stands Firm

April 9th 1994
In his third test, Chanders is in a star-studded West Indian side
They've crushed England and taken the five match series 3-0 already
But in the 4th test England fight back, and the West Indies begin to collapse
Chanders enters at number 6, with the score on 126
Gus Fraser rips through taking 3 wickets at that score
The English snarl, "Get out little man"
But Chanderpaul stands firm
He battles and battles, and ends up with 77 and takes the Windies to a respectable 304
The Windies lose the match, but it would not be the last time Shiv glued an innings together

May12th 2003
The Windies and Australia have an identical 240 on the board after an innings each
Australia then roar to 417 after centuries by both openers
The Windies are 4/165 when Chanders comes in as Lara is dismissed
With Sarwan, with whom he would share many brilliant partnerships, he stitches together a century
Its too much for the snarling Australians as McGrath gets into a famous heated spat with Sarwan,
At the end of the day, Sarwan is dismissed for a century,
but Chanders stands firm and is unbeaten on his 100
The Windies complete a memorable win the next day, the highest chase in Test History

June 10th-11th 2007
Chasing an improbable 455 to win against England at Manchester
The Windies are reduced to 3-88 in the 32nd over of the second innings
Chanders walks in, as the English sledge "Just leave little man"
But Chanderpaul stands firm and he bats and bats and bats,
100 overs later, the Collymore is dismissed and England win by 60 runs
Chanders is unbeaten on 127*, Runako Morton's 54 is the next highest score
The West Indies failed in the first innings too, Chanders was the only batsman to cross 50

April 10th 2008
Sri Lanka collapse and recover in an ODI to post a respectable 235
Chanderpaul walks in with the Windies placed comfortably at 3/109 off 28 overs
And watches them collapse, he is still there when No.11 Fidel Edwards walks out
The score is 219 and the Windies need 17 off 7 balls, he slams the last ball of the over for 4
The wily Vaas concedes 3 runs off the first 4 balls as the Windies need 10 off 2 balls
"Give it up little man" but Chanderpaul stands firm
He smashes a 4 past mid-off and and then hits a full toss into the stands at mid-wicket

14th November 2008
Chasing 232 against Pakistan, Chanders comes in 2/14, after both openers are dismissed for ducks
Along with, who else but again that man, Sarwan he steadies the ship,
But Sarwan falls for 45 and the West Indies are failing again
For 44 overs Chanerpaul stands firm, defying the Pakistani bowlers
Wickets fall around him, as they have so many times in the past
As they will continue to fall around him in the future
When Gul bowls Lionel Baker, the Pakistanis triumph by 24 runs
That the Windies had hopes until that moment can only be because of Chander's defiance
He's not out on 107, more than half the team's total score

May 2015
In the dying light of a spectacular career, Chanders watches the West Indies in turmoil
But it isn't just their batsmen this time, its their administration
As it has been for over a decade
The legends ask him to retire, "Its time to leave little man"
But Chanderpaul stands firm, defiant to the very end
He will not retire and leave the team in the hands of those who will fail again
They drop him, but Chanderpaul still stands firm
After all those years, maybe it is the only thing he knows

Read more...

Return

Is CSK too old to Rock 'n' Roll?

The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) players' average age: 30.2 years. The Mumbai Indians (MI) players' average age: 28.3 years. The average age difference was barely two years but it seemed more like Daddy's Army vs Pappu's Paltan. And while Michael Hussey (nearly 40) was instrumental in getting CSK across the line in the eliminator against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), by the time he opened in only his fourth innings this season, doubt if there were any realistic expectations of him to go at over 10 runs per over. With Brendon McCullum back on national duty, CSK appeared to be AWOL. Unlike that impulsive Kings XI Punjab bunch that tends to dismantle rather quickly, CSK's chase was akin to a slow bleed - it was painful viewing, an innings lost in its sole mission to somehow drag the game to the 20th over.

No outrageously mistimed heaves floating between four fielders within the 30 yard circle, it was more about settling in, to suck the joy out of the contest, to rob us of the perverse pleasure of watching the mighty CSK explode. By the time Dhoni walked in at the fall of Dwayne Smith's wicket, it was clear, any chase would be led by an off-colour Suresh Raina, and to a lesser extent, by the new kid Pawan Negi. CSK didn't just seem old, it appeared bored, and far too rooted in the reality of an impossible chase.

Topping the table with this jaded bunch is even more incredible - it shows that CSK even when it's far from its best, pulls through as it has mastered the waiting game, which is pretty much Dhoni's calling in cricket. Add South Africa's T20 skipper, Faf du Plessis, old fox, Michael Hussey and jumping veteran, Dwayne Bravo, and you have hardened pros who can suck out the stress of a tricky chase. The chase on Sunday was far from tricky, it was all or nothing - yet CSK was hell-bent on playing it its way and lost without letting out a whimper.

Through the World Cup and this IPL, Dhoni has indulged Ravindra Jadeja. Even in jest the "Sir" doesn't rest easily on him anymore. He rarely bowled his full quota, batted lower than Negi and seemed inadequate when he came in. In spite of this, he made the ODI squad for Bangladesh, as the selectors did not want to tinker with the World Cup squad that made the semi finals. So what will Jadeja's role in Bangladesh be - a swift 12th man who'll fill in for a tired batsman?

Away from the immediacy of T20, in Bangladesh, Dhoni will look to slide back into his favoured format. His aura is intact, the CSK won a knockout in Ranchi, made the finals, it is still the most successful IPL team, but for how long? The power shift from Chennai has started in earnest.

For Mumbai Indians, it all started with a change at the top: Lendl Simmons for an injured Aaron Finch. Simmons' scores: 5, 59, 15, 51, 38, 71, 0, 38, 68* 14, 48, 65, 68. Add to that a starring role in the best bits this edition: the catching. Simmons was flying at point like an animated bunny on speed. Simmons was where the turnaround started in Bangalore on April 19: 59 (44), Simmons was where the job was finished in Kolkata on May 24: 68(45). It was his knocks on both occasions that allowed Rohit Sharma to go bonkers, with 42 (15) and 50 (26) and as we're often informed, "lead from the front".

In spite of all his runs and catches, Simmons tends to go unnoticed, there's none of that flash that comes with his West Indies' mates, Pollard, Bravo or Russell. He's almost quiet, nerdy in his approach, even when he hits them big. Mumbai Indians have done well to go with players like Simmons and Rayudu - one sets it up, the other closes it, almost incognito, while the opposition works away on Rohit and Pollard.

Not long ago, Dhoni farmed the strike in a stiff chase, preferring to trust himself than share the burden with Rayudu. Perhaps it's time for Dhoni to recalibrate some of his thinking on whom to trust and whom to relieve. Team India doesn't have to be a reflection of Team CSK. More than that, it can't afford to anymore.

First published here

Read more...

Return

Exit Dhoni. Enter Bhajji.

Are India’s team selections being choreographed?

Why has Harbhajan Singh been picked in the Test squad? His first class numbers from last season don't quite add up - he played three matches for just six wickets. None of those matches made prime time TV though. But that one over in the Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs where he dismissed Raina and Dhoni off successive deliveries made headlines. And that's the very nature of Bhajji-the-beast: he makes headlines. If those two wickets weren't enough, he threw in twin celebrations that sealed it. Followed by a dropped caught and bowled in that very over. Did you see the remorse? Injured finger? Hurt Bhajji? Harbhajan Singh, the once hugely successful soap opera, was back. What's the very purpose of soap operas - eyeballs, TRPs, roller coaster! What's the very purpose of Bhajji? Cricket may leave him but the melodrama never will.

It took two deliveries for the guy who dared to lift Nita Ambani off her feet to lift all of Wankhede. But does it warrant a Test spot? It's not as if Bangladesh had been invited to play Bhajji's farewell Test at his new home ground in Mumbai. His 16 wickets in 14 IPL games could have been the route to an One Day International (ODI) spot - but MS Dhoni is still India's ODI captain.

Harbhajan had not been picked in the ODI squad because the selection panel felt "chopping and changing or disturbing the combination" of the team that had reached the World Cup semi-finals was unnecessary - Sandeep Patil, Chairman of selectors (Read as Dhoni felt).

After Virat Kohli's ascent, it may appear that Dhoni's powers are on the wane but his turf remains as defined as ever - if anything, retiring from Tests may help MS strengthen his hold on the ODI and T20 teams. Way back to N Srinivasan and Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) earliest days, Dhoni's say in selection has been near absolute. The national squad invariably had his men, quite a few of them, CSK boys. To his credit, he handed his boys a rope long enough to play stress-free cricket. So for every Ravindra Jadeja that refuses to come around, there's a Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma who turns it around. Not to forget, Suresh Raina, always lurking on the sidelines of Test selection. For way too long, Dhoni's patience with Bhajji in the dressing room made another off spinner, R Ashwin cool his heels in the waiting room.

Harbhajan was once Dhoni's business partner. Perhaps they were even buddies. Very much doubt that's the case now. In 2010, Bhajji appeared in Royal Stag's "Have I made it large?" advertisement, set in his father's ball bearing factory. Soon after, Dhoni appeared in a spoof that showed a Bhajji lookalike being slapped by an agitated father. It didn't go down too well with either Bhajji or his family. They demanded the ad be pulled off the air.Here is Bhajji's "Make it large" ad followed by a spoof with Dhoni.

Bhajji last played a Test over two years ago in March 2013, under Dhoni. His inclusion in that home series was as much a surprise as is his selection for the solitary Bangladesh Test. In his last Test innings, he appeared to have been underbowled compared to the two other spinners, Ashwin and Jadeja. He went wicketless in his ten overs.

One of the reasons cited for the 34-year-old off spinner's return is the surfeit of left handed batsmen in the Bangladesh team. There's also the first choice off spinner, Ashwin and the two-Test-old leggie, Karn Sharma in the squad, but chances are that Bhajji will play. Is this a golden handshake for his long, dramatic service to Indian cricket: he made his Test debut in March, 1998? Bhajji, on the other hand, says he's ready to play for another four-five years. Question is, like in the IPL, will he bowl four overs in each innings of the Bangladesh Test? Bhajji's answer: One tight slap.

First published here

Read more...

Return

The untold story of this Virat-Anushka photograph

The IPL has achieved lofty, new standards in the 2015 edition. There's also an ACSU (Anti Corruption and Security Unit) in place. Under its watchful gaze, players cannot meet girlfriends during rain-breaks as, technically, the match is still on. It's in violation of the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) anti-corruption code. Did you know such a code exists - is there anything else under its purview? Something about bookies and match fixing, but why get into such frivolities when there's a Supreme Court.

The Virat Kohli-Anushka Sharma rendezvous was telecast live. It was on the fringes of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) dressing room, in the VIP enclosure. By now you know there was a Delhi Daredevils player involved - Yuvraj Singh. What was he doing in enemy territory? Yuvraj, when contacted, said in his fat Punjabi drawl, "DD has been trying to disown me ever since they owned me - my only peace is in another's dressing room, where they value my contribution to DD". When asked about the 16 crore price tag, he agreed it was a tad excessive, but did not want to be quoted on the same. "After the first few games, I really thought they would drop me and let me concentrate on my media commitments, but such was Guru Greg's faith in me, I did not want to sing Faith No More to him".

Asked if players should be allowed to meet their girlfriends during rain interruptions, Yuvraj blurted in no uncertain terms, "It depends on how heavy it's raining...and if the player and his girlfriend are not in see-through clothes and not got getting indecently wet, I think it's kinda OK." Reminded that it breached the rule of the minimum standards for Players and Match Officials Area (PMOA), he seemed disinterested and snapped, "Itni angrezi I dunno (I dunno so much English)". Next, Yograj Singh appeared on the scene, which is when both Yuvraj and the interviewer disappeared. Yograj could be heard laughing about Dhoni's first ball dismissal against Harbhajan Singh (first playoff) and something about how Punjab had prevailed.

Dinesh Karthik, always the other guy, almost went unnoticed in the much publicised Virat-Anushka snap. "I'm quite happy to get some much needed publicity. People have been asking, what are you doing in the RCB dressing room? It's only when I tell them that after Yuvi, I was the most expensive player at Rs 10.5 crore that they either shut up or laugh in disbelief." DK continued to ramble, "Virat and Anushka make such a lovely couple, and it's a shame that Virat has been pulled up for crossing into the VIP enclosure - he straddles both worlds, of an RCB player and a VIP and should be allowed to move freely from one to another. I can still understand if the BCCI had pulled up a commoner like me for being in the VIP enclosure..." DK was left rambling when we spotted Virat and Anushka.

At first, Virat nearly attacked us, mistaking us for a journalist who had caused him grievous harm. Virat explained that he wanted to move on from all the issues that he had so far been unable to move on from - "If you notice, I don't get angry with overseas' players anymore, they are our guests and for us Indians, guests are like God. It's just the Indian players..." he tailed off with a cheeky smile. When asked about the latest incident, he agreed as a captain he had crossed the line but a journalist who had crossed over from the Press Box into the VIP enclosure had instigated him. "Anushka was just wishing me well before I beat the sh*t outta that journalist bastard who wrote filthy scurrilous sh*t about us...it's only because of Anushka's warm embrace and Yuvi and DK's loving looks that I held myself back...otherwise that journalist who distinctly resembled that Hindustan Times journalist would've had hell to pay".

Anushka Sharma sternly said she would not like to comment on anything other than NH10.

(However plausible this might sound, this is a work of fiction.)

First published here

Read more...

Return

"Being bubbly isn't easy after so many defeats" - Preity Zinta

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," screamed Ravi Shastri, perched on top of one of the PCA stadium light towers in Mohali. His voice carried to nearby Chandigarh, and up the hills, shaking the quiet of Kasauli. "Pun-jaab has lost too many on the trot to play another IPL team again, they need to look for inspiration within," muttered a visibly frazzled Preity Zinta. She added, "Being bubbly wasn't easy with so many defeats." A manic Sidhu interrupted her - "She was starting to feel flat like bubbly that has lost its bubbliness quotient.

What good is Champania without the Champagne bubbles, she is no better than a beggar without a begging bowl!" Sidhu looked for an imaginary drummer, on not seeing one, he undertook a drum roll with his crooked fingers instead.

Even a normally unperturbed Sanjay Bangar (coach, Kings XI Punjab) claimed his team's IPL drought was beginning to remind him of his worst days when he ran out his captain, the Prince of Calcutta, never to play for India again. “I wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat...dreaming I have run out David Miller when he's smashed Ishant Sharma for seven consecutive sixes in an over (two off successive no balls, one for height, the other a front foot no ball)”. “Left needing six from the penultimate delivery of the over” chirped Laxman Sivaramakrishnan. Bangar frowned at Siva and then continued frowning at no one in particular - “I face the last two deliveries and manage just a leg bye to Naman Ojha who even ignores my single and throws the ball in the air, celebrating, further belittling my effort... It later strikes me that I could have run five leg byes and nobody would have noticed but instead I just walk off crestfallen. There is also a vague memory of Preity Zinta beating me up but maybe I was just imagining things.”

Dropped for the last few games, Virender Sehwag says somewhat nonchalantly, "It's bad enough being dropped in the Tests for Murali Vijay and in the ODIs for Rohit Sharma, but now to have some chokra called Manan Vohra take my place is destroying my sense of worth. I have forgotten how to sing at the crease. Luckily, I'm no longer at the crease. But even during my short stint in the nets I was besura...my son says his friends have stopped speaking to him because he is the son of a benched player. I spoke to Preity Zinta, she felt the cause of 'children of benched players' was always close to her heart and that she would put her personal problems aside and speak to her ex-boyfriend about an ex-player. She claimed she was even behind the rehab of another ex-KXIP player - Yuvraj - and that both Yuvi and Viru sound similar to her."

Finally, at an Extraordinary Executive Committee meeting, it was decided that KXIP will play none other than Kings XI Punjab. Not once, but twice. There will be a home game in Mohali and an away game in Pune. A toss of coin will determine which team will be referred to as KXIP and which one will be Kings XI Punjab. Ravi Shastri snapped, "Either way, little Bhajji will be in the house".

If this fails to translate into a win for either KXIP or Kings XI Punjab, it has been learnt that KXIP will rename itself as KXIPD. It was also learnt that the D stands for either Delhi or Daredevils.

(This is a work of fiction. No IPL players were intended to be hurt in its writing.)

First published here

Read more...

Return