Not the start India wanted, but the one it needed…

The most awaited T20 tournament in the world, arguably after IPL, is upon us and we have had quite a few moments already that would definitely go on to make the highlights package of the tournament. The debutants, Scotland and Namibia, stake a majority claim on those moments. Looking forward to seeing more of them during the course of the tournament and afterwards.

India played Pakistan in their opening match last night. After having cruised to victory in both their warm-up games, India started as favorites going into the match. Their arch-rivals, mercurial neighbors, Pakistan, have always been the underdogs, well, atleast since the turn of the century, but even more so in a World Cup match. Having said that, they have always had the knack of causing an upset, but it is never known which Pakistan would turn up on the day. And that makes watching them in action all the more worthwhile. Sadly, India found itself at the receiving end right from the word go, and always seemed to be playing the catch-up game thereafter.

Having won the toss, Babar put India in to bat first. Pakistan were brilliant with the new ball. Shaheen pitched it right up, hit the right areas and allowed the ball to swing, something which the Indian counterparts did not. Three quick wickets early in the game pushed India onto the backfoot, as a result of which they struggled to get any sort of momentum into their innings. Pant, being his maverick self, did bring out his one-handed swipes for sixes and accompanied Kohli to restore some stability. Despite the continuous loss of wickets from one end and an elongated tail, one would feel India did well to post 151 on the board. Pakistan were equally good in the field. Apart from ‘that-one-overthrow’, they were pretty disciplined otherwise.

Indian bowlers werent as effective with the new ball, largely owing to the line and length they bowled. The positive intent showed by the Pakistani openers didnt help their cause either. Rizwan and Babar dispatched the lose ones to the boundary and were able to rotate strike regularly, making sure the scoreboard always kept ticking. It was as clinical a run-chase as any could get, wherein they did not give a single chance to the opposition. The fact that they won by a 10 wicket margin is a testament to India being completely outplayed.

India have a week’s time to get past this and I am sure, they will put up a better performance when they turn up next on the field. They were beaten comprehensively by a team that played better cricket. On a lighter note, I feel we should be relieved that the ‘one-bad-game’ has been done away with early in the tournament rather than having it in the knockouts. And hence, the title of this piece. I know nothing is as good as ending up on the winning side, but as they say, ‘Failure will teach you more than success ever will.’

Rewriting History, Down Under!

Well, the past couple of days have been the most gratifying for Indian fans and players alike. To put things into perspective, this Indian Team has achieved what no other team from the subcontinent before could manage. India came tantalizingly close to winning the series once, in 2003/04, but Steve Waugh’s stern resistance in his last test match at the SCG meant India would have to come back again and try their luck in another series. In all, 71 years and several disappointing tours later, Team India registers its first-ever series win against Australia in Australia.

For the first time in so many years, India went into a Test series in Australia as favorites and understandably so. This was touted as our best chance to win against Australia Down Under. If the previous two away tours were anything to go by, India looked well poised to at least put up a good fight and challenge the Aussies in their backyard. As it turned out, we outplayed them completely in all the three departments in three out of four test matches. That Australia was without two of their best batsmen and it made things easier for us is an argument Aussies would love to put out, but the fact that they could not find suitable replacements all throughout the year reflects poorly on their bench strength.

Everyone had their eyes set on Prithvi Shaw and Virat Kohli for this series. Prithvi, sadly, had to bow out before the first test, having twisted his ankle during the only warm-up game. Throughout the series, on almost all instances (barring the third one), the openers made way for Pujara pretty early into the innings. The Indian No. 3, then, steadied the ship and more often than naught made sure the team was out of danger, rather, in a position of strength. The discipline and determination with which he has batted could be a lesson for a lot of youngsters in the art of batsmanship in the longest format of the game. He scored over 500 runs and was rightly adjudged the Man of the series for his stupendous performance with the bat. Others, including Kohli and Rahane, batted around him and helped India post decent totals on the board. Mayank made his debut in whites in the second half of the series and to be honest, he looked like he belonged there. He had to wait to get his chance in the sun, but when he did get one, he made sure that he made it count. Pant got starts throughout the series and he ended the tour on a high as he scored a quick-fire century in the first innings of the last test match.

The bowlers have been simply magnificent, to say the least, on this tour. We have consistently managed to get 20 wickets and that has been one of the major reasons for our improved performance in Tests since past 12-15 months. Bumrah, Shami, and Ishant have been lethal with both, the new ball and old. Jaddu, Ash, and Kuldeep have had a part to play as well but the early breakthroughs with the new ball and the sustained pressure from the quicks have been instrumental in India gaining the upper hand. The bowlers made sure that we were always there or thereabouts and never let the game drift away from us. They have had a great impact, especially in low scoring games, like the first one in Adelaide.

Test cricket, dear readers, is well alive and kicking. Contests like these reinforce its importance as the mother of all formats. Sure, the skillsets required to succeed in Tests may not be the most sought after or fashionable in the modern day and age, but it in the process of attaining those, we discover our true self and therein lies the beauty of this game.

This series win is a memorable one and the whole country is proud of our boys. There have been several great players from the previous touring teams who couldn’t realize this dream, but Kohli & Co. have managed to do something incredible here and they deserve every bit of success which they have achieved.

Here’s to more success and dominance overseas.

Women in Blue: A force to be reckoned with!

The Women in Blue were at it yet again. They made the whole country proud with their performance in the first-ever standalone Women’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies. They have been absolutely brilliant especially in multi-nation ICC events since past couple of years. For the first time ever I feel, people were looking forward to watching our women’s team play the World Cup and the exponential increment in viewership on the digital platform as well as the attendance in the stadiums are testimonials to the rising popularity of women’s cricket world over.

Before the start of the tournament, India did look good enough to be amongst the top four at least. It was always going to be difficult nonetheless. They started the tournament on a positive note with the captain Harmanpreet Kaur leading the way with a spectacular century in double-quick time against the White Ferns. The sixes were massive and most of them were deposited into the stands. This win set the tone for the rest of the tournament and Indian women looked unstoppable from thereon. In the next couple of games, India registered comprehensive victories against Pakistan and Ireland. The slow bowlers had a big part to play in these victories in the first and second innings respectively while Mithali and Co. batted the opposition out of the game.

Mandhana, who had had a quiet tournament up until the last of the group stage games, came to her own and completely demolished her Aussie counterparts. Her knock of 80 odd runs and the partnership with Harmanpreet in the middle of the innings helped the team post a competitive total on board. Indian spinners were just too good for the Aussie women in the second innings and they fell short by 48 runs eventually. Indian women were sitting pretty at the top of the points table at the end of the group stage and had booked a place for themselves in the semi-finals. Had Indian women stuck to their plans and executed them perfectly, they would have had their shot at the World Cup trophy in the finals! But as the game progressed, the elusive trophy seemed to be getting further away.

It was a disappointing end to a tournament in which the Indian women were on top of their games for most parts of it. They seem to be getting close to the trophy but somehow manage to blow up their chances, come the knockouts. The experiment to open with Taniya Bhatia failed miserably. She had a good outing behind the stumps though. Jemimah Rodrigues, barring the first game, got starts but failed to convert those into something substantial. Veda was brilliant in the field. She got decent opportunities with the bat but couldn’t make the most of it. Fast bowlers struggled as well. Poonam, Deepti, and Radha were the most effective and together dismantled several batting lineups in the tournament.

The Indian women will return with a mixed bag of emotions from the Caribbean Islands. They played wonderful cricket right through but had one day off and found themselves knocked out of the tournament. But that’s the very nature of this sport and T20 in particular. One cannot let the game drift away even for a moment. One must stay ahead of the game all the time. You let the opposition come in a little and the next thing you know is that you are knocked out.

The Women’s T20 World Cup was a massive hit and things look rather bright for women’s cricket in general. ‘Supporters’ have now graduated to become ‘fans’ of women’s cricket. We are incredibly proud of the fight shown by our girls in the World Cup. We’ll take every loss in our stride and grow along the way.

To me, they are champions already. Here’s to not giving up and getting back up again!

India end English tour with a bagful of ‘If Only’s’

Right, so another overseas assignment has been done away with. And, much to our disappointment, the series scorecard is a pale reflection of everything that transpired during this English summer. Not that the Indian team played bad cricket and lost, it was competitive all the way; it was just that we could not capitalize on occasions which, in hindsight now, were match-defining moments.

In a way, this is a rather tricky piece for me to put together because unlike other away tours, we actually did pretty well. In most of the games, in the test series especially, barring the one at the Lords, India always looked to be in it with a chance. The beauty of Test match cricket was for all to see. There were runs for the batsmen and wickets for the bowlers. The Duke ball did what it does best, trouble the batsmen, ask questions of him, his technique, and reward the bowler for his consistency and immaculate line and length.

India, however, would return with an unsettled top order. The top order has struggled right throughout the series and except for a couple of occasions, they allowed the English bowlers to draw first blood pretty early into the innings. Vijay and Dhawan, I believe, have slim chances of playing in whites again. Rahul showed glimpses of what he is capable of as a player, and in the last match, played an innings that reaffirmed the faith shown in him by the team management. But consistency is the key when you bat at the top of the order and there is ample scope of improvement there. Pujara looked short on confidence, to begin with, but showed great maturity and character as the series progressed. Kohli, yet again, was the standout performer for India. He has made a habit out of it and here’s hoping he continues to do so. He amassed close to 600 runs as he shunned away all the ghosts of the ‘Christmas Past’.

The biggest takeaway from the 4-1 series loss is the heart with which India’s fast bowlers bowled. They ran in hard and bowled fast. Ishant, Bumrah, and Shami either kept us in the game or changed the course of the game, in our favor. The Indian quicks clocked better (read: higher) speeds than their English counterparts; a rare occurrence. Ishant looked dangerous after long and his stint there in county cricket has surely helped. English conditions rendered Ashwin ineffective for most parts of the tour. He could not contribute much with both, bat as well as the ball, and this could well open up a slot for another spinner in the side. With all due respect, Ash just wasn’t able to make the most of the conditions on offer. Moeen Ali has more wickets in the series, and he has played half the number of matches that Ashwin has. This should set the alarms off for him (Ashwin)!

This test series, like the one versus South Africa earlier this year, was high on promise, low on returns.

Statisticians would say, numbers don’t lie, but the final scoreline of 4-1, does (very) little justice to the level of competitiveness which this series was played in. Although there is a lot to ponder upon for Team India, this does not, at all, call for sweeping changes in the side. There is undeniable quality in our squad. If only they can match it with a right frame of mind and temperament required to succeed at the highest level. Here’s to better times ahead.

Welcome aboard, Afghanistan!

Wait. What? Who? It is India vs? Whoa! Afghanistan!!! That is right friends! India will be hosting Afghanistan for its first ever Test match. They have (consistently) done well enough to earn itself this status. What a moment it is for all the cricket fans around the world, especially the ones back home in Afghanistan, to see their players, representing their country in the greatest, if not the grandest format of, what I believe is the greatest sport in this world.

Afghanistan will be playing its first ever test match in Bengaluru at the Chinnaswamy stadium. I am sure everyone in that squad will be pumped to go out and do their best. They are coming on the back of an incredible series whitewash against Bangladesh, in their adopted home, Dehradun. They have quite a few match winners in their lineup. They boast of some exciting talent and it will be a big opportunity for them to get a taste of test match cricket at the highest level against the number one ranked team in the format, at their home!

There is no doubt that India will start this one-off battle as the favorites and that they should win it comprehensively. However, having said that, one must not take any opposition lightly.

Afghanistan’s bowling is good enough to trouble Indian batsmen. I won’t be surprised if the track at the Chinnaswamy does not support the spinners. Because, if it does, then, well, let’s just say we will have a good game at our hands. I am not discrediting the Indian batsmen, but Rashid, Mujeeb, and Nabi are a force to reckon with. Rashid and Mujeeb in particular, simply because of the fact that they have so many variations up their sleeve. Also, they have become street-smart cricketers with the IPL experience which they have had over the last couple of years. They have developed an ability to read the game pretty well.

As for India, they will be missing the services of Virat for this game. Ajinkya will lead them in this test match. Dinesh Karthik will be seen in the whites after quite a while. His would be a comeback of sorts. Other than that, I don’t see any change with the playing eleven. Lokesh Rahul too is someone I am hoping would be amongst those who take the field.

It would be an enthralling and an action-packed day of cricket. I would love to see this game last the full five days. It is called Test match cricket for a reason and it would be great to see how the Afghans fare in this format. They have been the best amongst the associate teams in the recent years and this elevation is richly deserved.

Ultimately, it is this game that has benefited the most. It is up to those higher up the ranks to promote and market this great game of ours. This would bring in the audience from the ‘deprived’ sections of the world, who for far long have been cut off from experiencing the richness of this sport. It would help cultivate heroes for the young kids to look up to. People would turn to this sport to derive some inspiration out of it. Lastly, it can be a source of great joy and happiness for the fans, who so strongly root for their team, to come together, and celebrate this wonderful game.

Here’s wishing you all the very best in your first game, Afghanistan!

Let the good times roll!!

In just a few hours from now, we will witness the opening ceremony of, what can unarguably be called as the longest running festival in the Indian subcontinent. Yes, I call it a festival. Here, we celebrate cricket and the coming together of the world’s finest. The Indian Premier league has cashed in on the growing popularity of the shortest format of the game ever since the summer of 2008. The first installment of IPL has been a huge success and if it is anything to go by, the upcoming season promises to be all the more exciting.

I wouldn’t say it has revolutionized the game of cricket, but it surely been the catalyst that has brought a tremendous change in the way the players approach their game. Batsmen now have the license to go after the bowlers right from the word go, and see every ball as a run-scoring opportunity. Gone are the days when batsmen used to get their eye in, assess the conditions, the nature of the pitch etc. Bowlers too have become smarter and are using the variations to good effect.

The IPL has inspired a whole lot of young cricketers who dreamt of playing at the big stage. For those, who couldn’t make it to the national squad, it was a good platform to rub shoulders with the best in the game. It was also a great way for the legends to give something back to this sport. Shane Warne did exactly that. He inspired confidence in that young Rajasthan Royals team, who went on to win the inaugural edition. Gilly did the same with Deccan Chargers the following year. The big takeaway was that these two teams were underdogs at best but they were able to overcome all odds and get their hands on the trophy. It is this aspect of the IPL that has been the most endearing.

What IPL has done so successfully over the years, and by the way, this was the prime objective of having such a league in the first place, is that it has helped talent meet (the right) opportunity. With only four international players allowed in the playing eleven, it was imperative for the franchisees to make sure that they roped in the best of the domestic talent in their squad.

For the fans, it meant that they could relate to Pollard almost the same way as they could to Rohit or a Harbhajan for that matter. The franchisees were successful in cultivating a popular fan base and people could actually identify themselves as being part of the team, so much so, that they may even support an international player against an Indian player when the international player played for the franchise they were supporting! Deafening chants of MALINGA and ABD are a common sight.

IPL has also changed the whole dynamics of T20 cricket. Players now get found out pretty soon into their careers and with a lot of information being exchanged as a part of franchise cricket, players have to work hard on being up to the mark (always). While on national duty, players from different teams could almost second guess each other’s moves simply because of the fact they had spent so much of time training together in the IPL.

The team owners must also be thanked for actively participating and investing heavily in BCCI’s youngest child. Of course, cricket comes first, but the Indian in Indian Premier League is somewhat incomplete without the glamor and class of Bollywood and Corporates respectively. The way they have taken care of the players is commendable. Even with a lot riding on the team, they always make sure that it is the game that comes first and their commercial interest takes a back seat.

Cricket in India is more than just a sport, it’s an emotion, it’s a way of life, it’s a religion! The current crop of players is as good as any that there has been and the future too looks to be in safe hands. Here’s hoping the eleventh edition of the IPL lives up to its expectations and we get to witness magic on the cricket field for the next month and a half.

A Final to remember!!

He came. He smashed. He won us the game. That was Dinesh Karthik for you today, ladies and gentleman. Fizz had just bowled the over of the tournament, tormenting young Vijay Shankar who failed to put the bat on the ball and had the wicket of Manish Pandey, who was just about loosening up, on the very last ball of his spell. Many would have believed that Mustafizur had done India in and 34 off the last 12 seemed a rather improbable target to achieve given the batting to follow. Karthik, however, had different plans for tonight and rest, as they say, is history.

The Nidahas Trophy final was played between India and Bangladesh after the latter pulled off an amazing chase against the hosts in a do or die battle. The match was well poised at one stage and kept further going away from Bangladesh if it were not for Mahmudullah’s heroics, who played a couple of sensational shots in the final over to seal a spot in the finals. It was however marred by controversies and ugly scenes in the middle. I will stick just to the finals and will leave it for another post. There is something about India vs Bangladesh encounters going into the final over. India seems to have the upper hand at the moment and they have successfully stretched their unbeaten record against Bangladesh up to 8 games now.

Having won the toss, India invited Bangladesh to bat first and the bowlers got us off to a good start, sending back both the openers inside the powerplay. Wickets kept falling at regular intervals as the result of which, the run rate was always under control, except for the last four where the Bangladeshis were having a swing at everything. A brilliant innings from Sabbir propelled their score to 166, something the bowlers could defend. India started off strongly with Rohit taking Mehidy Hasan to cleaners in his very first over. The Indians showed positive intent throughout their innings until the middle overs arrived and soon boundaries dried up. The Hitman was holed out at long on trying to up the ante and Pandey was finding it difficult to get his timing right.

Vijay Shankar did not have a good night with the ball. He would have hoped to make up for it with the bat in hand though. He couldn’t manage to get going right from the word go and that over from Mustafizur made matters worse. The Fizz was difficult to put away and score off and he gave away just the one run and picked up Pandey’s wicket.

Out walked DK and it seemed as if he had been knocking a few from inside the dressing room. He smashed Rubel all around the park and in no time brought the target within reachable distance. The crowd had something to cheer about and they were rooting for India all the way. With 5 remaining to get off the final ball, the part-timer, Soumya, bowled it wide of off at length and Dinesh sent the ball sailing over the covers region for a maximum!!

That was a shot of a man in form, of a man high on confidence. He held the nerves when it mattered the most and provided the innings the final impetus that was required to get us over the line. He is in a very healthy frame of mind and would like to carry this into the IPL as well where he has been named the captain of the Knight Riders franchise for the upcoming season. Thank you, DK for giving us one hell of a final to remember.