My first hand experience of crime in US - my brand new Honda 200RX bike got stolen from the parking spot outside my apartment in broad daylight. It was there, early morning, as I set out for office. It was gone late evening, by the time I returned.
Whoever said that it happens only in India? It happens in US too [:P]
Recently Michael Atherton has called for Sreesanth to be banned for a test. No doubt, beamers are reprehensible, and Sreesanth's behavior was intolerable. But, I dont recall Atherton ever making such a hue and a cry over beamers bowled by other bowlers from, say, England.
And, its not as if bowlers from England never ever bowl beamers. One can easily recall Darren Gough's beamer which actually hit Ambrose. And yeah, Atherton was actually playing in that match. If he didnt ask for Gough being banned, why does he cry for Sreesanth's head?
Another instance of a beamer was from Caddick to Yousuf Youhana in a ODI, and incidentally Atherton was playing in that game as well. Why didnt he ask for Caddick being banned then?
Indians, too, have been at the receiving end of beamers. But, nobody raised a hue and cry when Walsh's beamer broke Prabhakar's nose. Dhoni too has been at the recieving end of a beamer from Shoaib Akhtar, and in that case, there wasnt even an apology from the bowler.
Seems to me that the cry baby nature of the England entourage is emerging now. And it feels bad to see Mike Atherton, who, by all accounts, was a warrior with a heart for battle, resorting to such cribs. Having lost the test comprehensively, and been involved in the stupid jelly beans issue, they need excuses. And talking of jellybeans, Ian Chappell, in a coulmn in cricinfo, has actually gone to the extent of comparing it with pitch tampering. No prizes for guessing what Atherton's take on this is going to be.
Amongst other things, you can also lodge an FIR against a monkey. yay!! 'tis called justice.
Seems the cricket world has caught on the trend of thrid personitis from The Rock (WWE superstar wrestler). Here's a sample quote from The Rock:
"The Rock says, know your damn role"
A sample quote from Paul Collingwood (the new England ODI skipper):
"Hopefully this role will bring out the best in Paul Collingwood".
Professionals, we are told, dont need to warm up. Here is an excerpt from Harsha Bhogle's column in Indian Express.
"India's captain has asked for three games before the first Test in Australia, a perfectly valid request since India have always struggled with the bounce when they go there after having played in our conditions just before. Instead, the captain has been told by the secretary that, being professionals, they should be able to adjust with the one they have been provided.
I am flabbergasted. If I was Rahul Dravid I would have bowed and said "excuse me sir, I play for India. Whose side are you on?" I suspect Dravid is trying harder to win in Australia than the secretary!"
BCCI has been shambolic and thoroughly unprofessional in their search for team India court. Its high time that these bunch of jesters (read BCCI officials) had their bottoms whacked black and blue. Am glad Graham Ford did that. After a 2 month search, BCCI ended up inviting Ford, knowing fully well that he hadnt even bothered to send his resume on its own, and that he had an existing contract that runs for another year. Ford came, saw, and rejected the BCCI offer.
The board had already reduced the selection process to a farce by eliminating Dav Whatmore from the race, for reasons only best known to them; Now the logical step should be to appoint the other contender, John Emburey as the caoch. But I have a feeling (as do many), that Emburey was just an eyewash, and Ford had been the selected man all along. Emburey's coaching credential seem embarassing to say the least. It would be interesting to see whether BCCI appoints him, or learns a few lessons, and start a professional search for the coach afresh.
Gawd!! No wonder Indian politics resembles as trash can standard pantomime. The average politicians being probably worse than our esteemed BCCI chief, what else do we expect. Pawar's doing great as the BCCI head. The best BCCI chief in history of Indian cricket. I cant helping Jagmohan Dalmiya falling off his chair in a fit of laughter at this farce. Indian cricket needs a shrewd and professional administrator like Dalmiya, more than Dalmiya needs to be the BCCI chief.
Q. What is the similarity between a train and an ambassador car?
A. Both can be push started.
Read The Telegraph's report on how a train was push started by passengers. It happens only in India I guess :)
An interesting quote by Bill O'Rielly the former Aussie leg spinner at cricinfo -
"You remember when two kids would toss a coin in the park," he'd start off, "and then they proceeded to take turns in choosing another ten guys. Well there were always a few blokes left over," he'd continue, "and they were the coat minders." With a chuckle he'd add, "And the coat minders go on to become members of the Australian Cricket Board."
Gavaskar's take on offering Greg Chappell e National Cricket academy (taken from cricinfo):
"It's never easy sacking somebody, however incapable and inefficient he/she may be ...but to give another job and that too one which deals with the future of Indian cricket after the mess the present of Indian cricket has been landed into, makes one wonder if we will ever get out of the inferior complex syndrome."
Saturday will be a special day. It will be a day for farewells. Duncan Fletcher, England's strong and resolute coach will step down. Brian Lara, the priceless gem of Caribbean, will play his last match. The Bajans will be in Kensington Oval in full force. The Caribbean carnival feeling will be in the air.
Whatever happens, I hope Lara does well. With West Indies out of the world cup, and the fans calmouring for his head (due to some admittedly "strange" captaincy) he resembles a king without a kingdom. One hopes that he wont do a Don Bradman and be dismissed for a duck in his last international innings. If there has been one batsman who has carried the entire team on his shoulders in the recent decade, it has been Lara. Andy Flower comes a close second though. However, in terms of a pure exhibition of joyous batting and entertainment, Lara remains unmatched.
Thanks for the memories, Brian Lara. Hope you have one last hurrah, and score a one day double century tomrrow to tread where no foot has ever trod before. That would be the most fitting finale for the king of Caribbean islands.
