Goodbye, Jumbo!

The "Nicest Gentleman" to ever play cricket has bid adeau to his beloved game!

Anil Kumble, the ever-fighter and the warrier who never stopped trying, the thinking cricketer who always put his team duty above himself, the only bowler to have bowled with a broken jaw and a finger with 11 stiches for the sake of his team, the mild mannered cricketer who respected others and earned respect from opponents all over the world, who never raised a brow or had an altercation in the field, who always was there untiringly trying and trying and trying for another wicket with every ball he bowled, has decided that it is time.the

It is time for us to salute one of the true heroes of the game to have ever played the game the way it is supposed to be played - in the right spirit, always with more than 100% committment and always ready to put duty above own rights.

Jumbo also timed the goodbye decision declaration in a way that his team mates had nothing on their minds except that they were playing against the Aussies and that they needed to win.

Goodbye Anil, we will miss you.

Take a bow, Jumbo!

(Image courtesy: Google Images)

Dada says Tata!!!

Last week, Tata said Tata to Bengal and today the Bengal Tiger said Tata to Indian Cricket!!!

This one was a bolt out of the blue - It came out of nowhere as a 'and by the way....' sheepish announcement from the man himself.
I am sure this is a huge news! Not only for Kolkatta, or Bengal, or India but for the World Cricket! The whole cricketing world is already talking about it and whether it was a forced retirement or a voluntary one.

I did not like the way he announced "This is my last series... I have decided to quit". He looked stiff / bitter and sounded glum till he let out a small wry smile at the end of the sentence.
But still, I want to believe that Dada took his own decision looking at the overall Indian Cricket situation and I like it! I like it that he took this brave decision and I am sure this decision is going to make him look good in the average cricket fan's eyes. A masterstroke from Dada?
The man has had his flaws, but so has every man who lived on this earth and enough dirt has been thrown on Dada in public by the amazingly unforgiving Indian Cricket Fans and media.

All said and done, the most aggressive captain India has ever seen, is saying farewell.
Time to say "Thank you Dada" for many great memories, victories, pure cricketing joy and an all out entertainment for almost 15 years!

Happy Durga Puja!
PS: And I thought that Sachin is going to announce his retirement after Australia series after giving it his best shot....

Sachin: Failure in SL

OK, where do I start?
I hate to say it, but Sachin Tendulkar has failed in the 3 test series. He has failed not the fans or the country but he has failed himself.
It is not his poor average of 15.83 that makes a compelling case to support my statement. Neither it is the fact that he has not scored more than 31 in any of the 6 innings he played on the sub-continent pitches. Every batsman goes through a phase where runs dry up and things go wrong even when you try your best. And who knows it better than someone who has played the cricket at highest level for over 17 years!!!
But where I think he has failed himself is the way he played.
Here is why.
He had two Sri Lanka LBW appeals being turned down in just last over where he did not play a shot.
Both went to a review (I agree with Mahela for taking the chance, it was worth it) and yet, in the very next over, he attempts to not play a ball on turning pitch only to be given out this time and rightly so.
What in the god's name was he thinking????????
When the team is down in dumps, when you know that the floodgates will open if you depart, when the team's / country's future lies in your hands, when opposition thinks and understands all this, and yet when you have had 2 close LBW shouts going for you just 2 minutes ago, you take this risk of not playing the ball!!!
This is another instance of a legend who looks like he has mentally decided (and declared to the whole world) that "I am not 25 anymore and I am 35. So don't expect any superhuman stuff from me." Once any sportsman thinks this way and imbibes this thought in his mind, he begins to lose. And Sachin has lost it.
And I am sure that this is not the Sachin Tendulkar that he would have wanted to grow up into.
Sigh...

Update: A cricinfo comment: "Since 1999, India has won 36 test matches. Most surprisingly Sachin Tendulkar was not man of the match in a single match. It shows he is not a match winning player. On the other hand man of the match award in these winning matches have gone to: Kumble -7, Dravid - 5, Harbhajan - 5, Sehwag - 3, Ganguly - 2, Laxman - 2 and Zaheer Khan - 2."!

Smith: The man who was never a boy!

Graeme Smith has been an epitome of what a Team Captain should be like over the years that he has captained SA. For me, he has always been Captain No 1 in this era.
He has led from the front many a times and this time he almost outdid himself in leading from the front. Smith hit 154 not out when chasing 283 successfully (they were 93/4 and 171/5 at one time) and beating England in England to win the test series! What a moment to take the bull by its horns! What a super-achievement!!! All this at the age of 27 years!!! He is sure to leave his imprint in the Cricketing Greats of all times!
Take a bow, Graeme Smith!

India - Galle Test Victory

I think Team India played some excellent cricket in the second innings to win the Galle test match.
I think that although you need high class bowlers to win a test match (remember the opposite side has to be bowled out twice to win the match?) Sehwag rightly got the MoM award becuase his both innings (and more importantly his approach) is what made the difference between two teams. Ishant bowled superbly aided well by Zaheer and theduo set the victory up for India. I would have felt miserable had India not won the match after such a great start, but Bhajji and Kumble did well to undo the pedesterian bowling in the first test. In fact, the pitch and conditions suited the spinners and they did their job. What I loved was the way Ishant kept hitting the deck ball after ball.
However, I felt sad with the way the Lankan warrior Mahela actually threw his wicket away at the crucial juncture with an aerial shot straight to Dravid. Not to take anything away from Indian bowlers and fielders who did a fantastic job thoroughout the match.
One exception was Kartik though, and India should not continue with him in the third match. Although he is an excellent batsman to have in the team at that position, he was poor in his wicket keeping skills. When everyone knows that one missed catch can cost you a match, think of what happens when you drop two or three in a match! I think strong signal needs to go to Indian fielders and this is the right time.
I am looking forward to the third match -I am sure that Lankans will be back strongly - they might get a fit Fernando in the match as well.
Super Sehwag continues to dazzle and one statistic after his first inning was that this was his consecutive 11th hundred that he had crossed 150!!! Hats off! I think this is one player who India should persist with at all times, irrespective of his inconsistency at times. Another player who needs to be in the team according to me is Irfan Pathan The guy needs a relook at his career and do what he has always done best - bowl, bowl fast and swing the balls. He is a great asset with bat too and that confidence must be given back to him somehow by the Captain and the coach.
With the current team though, it is essential that the think-tank sorts out Medis and Murali threats and have a game plan for their deliveries. Otherwise, just hope that Sehwag is at it again!
Well played, India! Keep it up!

Bhajji

Just when I was about to sing "Bhajji can't bowl saalaa", he comes up with this !!!

The Mystery Man Mendis!!!

He came, he saw and he conquered!!!
Ajantha Mendis might become the man a lot of Indian olympians would like to thank. The emotional cricket followers of the country just might desert the sinking Indian cricket ship (while the Mendis-phobia lasts for the famed Indian line-up) and watch the Bejing Olympics instead! Wishful thinking? May be, but the Indians are playing the spin in such a way as if they have never encountered spin before.
Yes, I feel that while the Indian batsmen appear to have forgotten how to play spin, the credit does undoubtedly go to Mendis and the way he made all the great batsmen around him crumble, time and again. My verdict after watching him (not so closely) Ajantha Mendis is that he is good. May not be as good as Murali (who can be?), but he is here to stay and he is a real threat on SL pitches more than anyone else. He is cool and he is a killer. He has a clean action and nothing to fear. Call it the carrom ball or anything else, Mendis rocks!
As far as the 2nd test Day 1 goes, Sehwag rocked too! And how? This was anotherSehwag special and this went on to prove how Sehwag should always be inm the team, irrespective of his failures at times. Just like Sehwag, another player who should be in playign eleven for India is Irfan Pathan. Someone needs to get that lad back to where he started.
Well, what can one say about Dravid, Ganguly and Tendulkar? Two failures on a trot doesn't mean much in the long journey of cricket that they have played, and they are definitely going to hit back sooner if not later...but that does not take away the shine from the Mendis-Murali combo rocking the Indian boat led by Kumble.
For me, the real failure in test 1 was that of Indian bowling on the same track where Murali-Mendis played havoc. Kumble with all his experience and Bhajji with all his aggression (and nothing else, really - I continue to wonder why he is in the Indian team for so long at all) came out a complete zero!!! :-(
Let's wait and watch how the 2nd test goes!