Of rattled responses...

Of rattled responses…

Timeline of events :

August 20, 2007 : The “rebel” Indian Cricket League announces the signing of 44 Indian domestic players and six foreign cricketers from Pakistan and South Africa. On the very day, Abdul Razzaq, the Pakistani all-rounder announces his retirement from international cricket, in protest of his omission from the twenty20 World Cup squad. Several young talented cricketers, who represented India at various age-group levels join the ICL in possibly lure of money and an opportunity, risking their India future.

August 21, 2007 : The Board for Control for Cricket in India, reacts in its typical knee-jerk fashion announcing an increase in the per-day fee for players participating in its domestic tournaments. The prize money for winning teams increases almost 7 times. But, having lost what Kapil Dev claimed to be the “cream of the country” to the ICL, this was nothing but on expected lines. Also, the Pakistan Cricket Board follows its neighbour in stating that players who leave their shores to play in the ICL will face a life-ban. The BCCI, sticking to its diktat, sacks Kapil Dev as the Chairman of the National Cricket Academy. And Erapalli Prasanna’s role as Spin Coach with the Karnataka State Cricket Association comes to an end. Since India’s best off-spinner defected to the ICL as a Board member, this again was not a new development.

August 22, 2007 : The ICL makes claims of trying to rope in John Buchanan as the chief coach in the camp to be conducted for its recruits at this resort called Mayajaal in the outskirts of Chennai. The camp is expected to begin from August 29.

August 23, 2007 : The say of intense drama, to say the least, as both parties share the limelight, the BCCI a tad more. In a dramatic development, the BCCI announces its response to the ICL by launching the “PROFESSIONAL CRICKET LEAGUE” – based on the ICL format one presumes. According to a television channel based in Mumbai, Lalit Modi, the BCCI’s vice-president was scheduled to meet the IMG (International Management Group), a sports-event management company that organizes the famous Tata Open, apart from others in India. The discussions with the IMG would revolve around the format of the event. The television channel also claimed that the tournament will involve a mix of domestic and international cricketers. The TV rights would be awarded to aspirants through a bidding process and money being central to the event itself, every team would have a sponsor who would be contracted for five years. And the biggest bombshell dropped by that channel was a subber carrying “Its official. It is Gavaskar versus Kapil”, probably because Sunil Gavaskar is likely to head the PCL or whatever. How credible is that, one doesn’t know? I somehow agree with a television commentator who made a valid point about the manner in which the BCCI is reacting to this whole ICL as lending it more credibility than it probably should have got.

On the other hand, the ICL perhaps won the mind-games today to an extent when Bengal’s Sports Minister came out in support of the rebel league and made a statement allowing the organization to use the Eden Gardens to stage their games. Subhas Chakraborty, the minister in question, spoke to NDTV, a television news channel in India and said, "Whatever facilities we have, we will make available to the boys who have been punished, particularly by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB).” (Source: Cricinfo) Chakraborty, if one can recall was supposed to contest the CAB presidential elections last year, but his comrades intervened and was asked to pull out, and eventually the current CAB President Prasun Mukherjee won the race. And the premise may seem a bit anti-Sharad Pawar, as Subhas is known to be a strict Dalmiya loyalist.

What these responses and muddling have done is to bare the BCCI’s inability to handle situations of crisis. For all we knew about Sharad Pawar’s statement in his typical, “ICL is only veteran cricket. People will not come to see them play”, the ICL have reacted and threatened to deprive Indian cricket of some really talented cricketers. And this ego-battle is likely to continue, having taken note of how the BCCI has reacted to this new commercial venture.

Why does the BCCI have time and space for these sort of ventures that hardly cater to the development of cricket in this country ? I mean, if they stood by their cause, they better stick to it ! How many promises did Sharad Pawar come to the helm with sometime late 2005 ? How many have been fulfilled ? Where is the CEO? Where is the professional system that he and his team were about to bring? Or may be he has done it, by including the word “Professional” in his new attempt to capsize the ICL. For now, it wont be wrong to say as my professor in college would, “You are heading for a major disaster in life, font 18, bold and underlined.”

Go and ask the people on the streets and they’d say, “Boss, I don’t care. As long as Indian cricket is not moving forward with these steps, I just don’t bother”. Are these public mudslingings taking Indian cricket forward ? Is this Professional Cricket League or whatever they call it going to make India the number one in International cricket ? Why is there a drastic interest in twenty20 cricket in a country that called it names at the first place ? Is this the beginning of the end of Indian cricket ? I don’t know. But as far as I am concerned, apathy is what I am beginning to develop towards the game in this country.

The Follow-on tirade

The Follow-on tirade

A lot has been made of Rahul Dravid’s decision to not enforce the follow-on in the England second innings of the Oval test. The media, the former players’ union and the public at large have come out with their judgement on the “What should have been ?” and the “What could have been” of Dravid’s decision of batting on. To me, all these rants and raves look retrospective. The popular mindset, including mine and the others who couch along and stare the television felt that India should have enforced the follow-on, but rightly so, the public does not run the eleven on the field. And similarly, the former players have had their days at leading the team, and now, critiquing the current lot seems a very good occupation, sigh !

I had a very fierce argument with one of my relatives the other day about this decision. I was of the opinion that Dravid should have stuck England in on the fourth day morning, as I felt that “the pressures of playing in a follow-on situation are something different by themselves” and 319 runs were indeed daunting. He brought out his experience of watching the game for over three decades and in defence of Dravid said, “Boss, he did it right, he had to secure the series first.” After that is done, I ask myself, what looks prettier when my grandchildren revisit this tour, a 1-0 win or something bigger, by which I mean a 2-0 win. Of course, there are pros and cons to everything one does and says. And I do back my belief that Leeds and Kolkata do not happen every now and then.

Was it defensive captaincy or smart captaincy ? The answer to this question might be as complicated as the context itself. As usual, there was a slight tinge of complacency that had crept into the team by the time Monty was given out. It didn’t need a nuclear scientist (the rocket has taken off) to make out that the bowlers were lacking the intensity upfront. Their deeds smelt of the “chalta hai yaar, we have to just bat for a while” attitude. Now, that was wrong. A stroll in the park was all they thought and set-out with, but it turned out to be a planless effort. If the Indians were petrified with the thought of Michael Vaughan and his team putting 450 runs on the board on a fourth and fifth day wicket, Jerry would be laughing. Yes, knowing that we Indians do not chase down totals that seem innocuous (go back to Barbados 1997, when India crumbled with 120 to get or for that matter Chennai 2001, when India huffed and puffed with a target just over 150 against the Aussies), Dravid might have decided to take the other route.

Today, some section of the press came out with this rhetoric about Zaheer Khan making a statement saying, “I was not tired.” And one of the lesser-watched English news channels started tinkering with a possibility of Zaheer being a divisive force in the team. Questions like “Is he going to play the ODIs” propped up. An act of shameful seduction by the Press Trust of India, and with the Indian players so pathetically poor in media relations, they give out such ambiguous answers that become subject to personal and material interpretation. Obviously, they might have asked stupid questions like, “Did Rahul inform you ahead of taking the decision ?”, or more likely, “Zaheer, were you tired ?”, to which Zaheer would have said “No.” After all, he cant make himself sound stupid by saying, “Oh. Yes, I was tired after bowling X number of overs.” If that were the answer, question marks over his fitness would have just popped out of nowhere. This whole incident is nothing short of being dramatised and cashed in upon.

Utter non-sense I say. A man who ended up with 18 wickets is the matter of discussion in a totally non-existent context. Zaheer’s statement was perhaps misconstrued, misinterpreted and played with accordingly to suit the press’ needs. There was no damning need to make this a major issue.

It is so easy to sit and comment. I made the blunder of vehemently putting forth my point, but I think I justified it with facts, history and situations, unlike the media, which is just going hammer and tongs about something that “never should have been” under the scanner. Now you have one answer to the question posed right upfront. In the meanwhile, the tirade just continues...

Bikini Cricket : Not so skinny after-all

Bikini Cricket : Not so skinny after-all

Twenty20 cricket is coming of age, most certainly. After four years of realizing the phenomenon, a game that started off as twenty overs of slam-bam-whack-shack cricket is increasingly becoming a tactician’s trial and a captain’s test. It still reminds the boys or the men to cling on to the cliché of “stick to the basics”, but there is a lot beyond just that. Four years of constant experiments and investment has indeed paid off, so much so that teams are opting to be the meticulous over the callous.

People often say that it is a different ball game altogether, and twenty20 certainly is. The rules are pretty much post-modern that mostly seem daunting to the bowlers and perhaps tempting if you are batter. But what gets lost in all of this is the method. After generating enough curiousity and achieving its material objective, twenty20 is becoming a thinker’s game, more than any branch of cricketers. Yes, the rules are slightly different and rightly so, after all this is Bikini cricket. A front-foot no-ball costing two runs makes the bowler think more than twice before planting his giant strides forward as a free-hit beckons, where the batsman can be out only one way – run-out. The boundaries are brought in, so that the runs are in the game and angles start playing a big part in field-setting. Instead of the usual banter about this game being a batsman’s business more than a bowler’s toil, twenty20 takes care of every dimension.

The big twenty20 finals day in England was a much needed lesson to people playing this game or even the captains of the various teams heading to South Africa. There are finer trade secrets, which were revealed by some of the English players, most notably Jeremy Snape who won this championship twice with the Leicestershire Foxes in 2004 and 2006. One of the more fascinating findings was the role of a dugout in the innings. As you know, twenty20 has taken to this footballesque concept of a dugout or a bench, where a few of the team members are seated, along with the coach. As Geraint Jones walked out to bat for Kent against Sussex, Jeremy quite rightly said, “If someone is in the dugout, he is not just there to sit and watch the batsmen play. The dugout is all about warming up – getting used to the atmosphere, knowing where exactly the runs may come from and which bowlers to line-up. You start playing your innings from the dugout. Plan it there and execute it in the middle.” These were quite startling at first glance, but as one got more into the game they seem more practical than just mere commentary points.

The other important component of a successful twenty20 line-up is the spinner. A dying art, the purists might claim, is indeed coming to life in this version. While following twenty20 cricket, right through its inception to what it is today, the spinner has had plenty to say as far as the direction of the game is concerned. They could either become a target of slaughter for the batsmen or may dictate the pace in which the game goes. The theory doing the rounds at the moment in England is, “slower the bowler, slower the pace of the game”. In a twenty over match, it is so easy for the players to get carried away by the quick pace of the game, and this is where the spinner comes and slows things down to a large extent. Martyn Ball, who recently retired from First-Class cricket, was a master at this during his twenty20 days with Gloucestershire. Nayan Doshi, the son of former Indian spinner Dilip Doshi, played a very crucial part in Surrey’s making of a very good twenty20 side. The left-arm spinner is the leading twenty20 wicket taker in England with 53 scalps in, and would have been a sure fit in any international team designed for this version. India might have missed a trick or two at not even considering him, or even England for that matter. Graeme Swann of Nottinghamshire is another such example and even Murali Kartik, the forgotten spinner in the Indian books, bagged a consolation fiver for his county Middlesex recently. If one had a closer look at the recently concluded twenty20 Cup in England, the spinners bowled boldly at the death, showing enough courage to face the onslaught. So, a batsman’s game, says who ?

As a captain, if you thought your plate was full and heavy, think again. The clock ticking over at the bottom-right of the electronic scoreboard indicates the allotted time within which the twenty overs have to be bowled. If the last over is not bowled within one minute of the allotted time, the fielding side is automatically handed a penalty of six runs to be added to the batting team’s total. No monetary cuts, no over-reduction, just six runs that could turn pivotal to a team’s result on that day. Will this ensure a bit more responsibility on the part of the captain to get his overs bowled on time? No one knows. But with the six runs at the back of his mind, it could just trigger a willingness to get the job done and dusted before the clock decides to beep.

One of the basic queries regarding twenty20 cricket is why teams resort to playing specialists. The term “twenty20 specialist” is a slightly inexplicable term, because the general consensus is that if someone can play Test cricket or even one-day cricket, he should be able to adapt himself to twenty20 cricket, which is a justified argument. But, the twenty20 game has seen a lot of evolution, and the players who have been successful in this short version of the game have to put up with tags of specialists. Ian Harvey of Australia, twenty20’s first centurion is by-far the best in the category of specialists and an ideal twenty20 cricketer - someone who opens the batting, has a dash at everything, comes back bowls his four overs with a lot of variation in speeds, mix-ups, lengths. For instance, South Africa does not play Albie Morkel, Johannes Van Der Wath and Roger Telemachus in their preferred one-day team, but they sport the dark-green stripes for the Proteas in the twenty20 competition. England has named a squad for the twenty20 World Championship filled with players who do not play Test or ODIs for them. Luke Wright, Darren Maddy, Jeremy Snape and James Kirtley (who specializes in bowling at the death) are all considered “twenty20 specialists” and rightly so. Though only time will tell how this novel concept of specialists will turn out to be, and it’s first big laboratory is South Africa.

Twenty20 cricket might be entertainment alright, but along with keeping that E-factor in mind, teams must not compromise on the way the game is played – from the dugout, in the mind and on the strategy-board. All this theorizing may sound complex at first reading, but unless teams could learn from characters like Jeremy Snape, theory could just remain that. Yes, at first go, twenty overs sounds a decent run out for the teams, but as the twenty20 game has evolved and progressed, there is just a lot more method to it than the crowds and the cash.

(More to follow, India’s taste of Twenty20 cricket)

Its time for Bikini Cricket

Its time for Bikini Cricket

“Twenty20 [twen-tee twen-tee, twuhn-tee twuhn-tee] – noun, adjective - Noun- a version of cricket introduced in England in 2003, specifically to bring in the English family of mom, dad, kid and dog to the games. Also refers to a version of cricket played between two sides over 20 overs each. Twenty20 cricket is typically characterised by a football style dugout/bench and on-field cricketers wired to the commentary box. Adjective – If its cricket in England, it is Twenty20 (as Sky Sports calls it these days).”

That’s how you’re thick and fat Oxford Unabridged would describe twenty20 cricket. I choose to call it Bikini cricket. Ask me why, and I have a metaphorical answer to it. If limited-overs cricket was known by the colloquial as Pyjama cricket, stripping it a bit more would reveal nothing more than a Bikini. Another analogy could be a common term in Bollywood – the Item Number. Enough of the explanation, time to move on to the core of this game.

As mentioned before, this rather short and cute version of cricket was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board in 2003 to bring in the crowds as they felt cricket was a dying sport in the country. More so, because cricket in England was and is believed to be an Elite sport. Involving the masses was critical for cricket in England. The administrated resorted to a game that was designed and packaged to entertain. Four years old today, Twenty20 cricket has hardly looked back since then. In fact, it’s grown beyond expectations. It has managed to do what it set out to – pull in the crowds, with some whack-whack entertainment and emerged a big cash cow for the ECB and other cricket Boards since then. And with the ICC looking in to include Twenty20 as a formal cricketing version and a World Cup to acknowledge its impact, Bikini cricket is here to stay.

After seeing the impact and the interest this carnival generated in England, other countries did their bit to initially experiment and later adopt this product. South Africa, in 2003-04 was the first country outside of the United Kingdom to take up to it and today, twenty20 cricket is considered to be a big hit there. Sri Lanka led the way as far as the sub-continent is concerned with the inaugural edition in 2004. Bangladesh re-launched their much-famed corporate league as their version of twenty20. Pakistan followed suit with the ABN-Amro Cup in 2004, almost converting the cricket field into farms and zoos, with teams named as Lahore Lions, Rawalpindi Rams, Karachi Dolphins, Sialkot Stallions etc. One area where the Pakistani edition scores over other Asian countries is where they ensured that their stars took part in the tournament. I remember watching Inzamam-Ul-Haq taking guard for Multan Bears (aptly named one would suggest) and Shoaib Malik playing for Sialkot Stallions. Australia played their first domestic twenty20 tournament in 2005 with KFC as their main sponsors. Sir Allen Stanford’s vision gave the West Indies a sighter of what Twenty20 cricket really meant to the world. Crowds pouring in, drums back in motion, the atmosphere in the Caribbean were nothing short of a carnival. These teams have in most ways seen the twenty20 as a major area to revive the lack of public interest in domestic cricket.

Whilst other countries associated and affiliated with the ICC gradually started realizing this fantasy into a reality, India, the game’s sleeping-yet-overactive commercial giant­ saw this as a major infringement to their ambitions. Former BCCI Presidents, across factions made statements like “Tomorrow someone will start a 10/10, does it mean we start that too ?” and “Twenty20 is not real cricket.” One might not blame them, as after 75 years of the Board’s existence, they do not have a system that can call itself World Class, beginning with the top of course. And one of the highlights of India’s withdrawal syndrome in this case is that India played its first twenty20 International in South Africa (Johannesburg), even before they staged a domestic twenty20 tournament, which is rather bemusing. To confound this a little further, India won that game, thanks to Dinesh Karthik late heroics. And budge, they did ! To growing pressures within the ICC, where their always-trusted Asian “fraternity” supported the ICC’s Twenty20 vision, leaving India as the loner ! India hosted its first ever Twenty20 domestic tournament in 2007, an absolute shocker by itself. Even though state associations in India have managed to capitalise on the twenty20 waves through the Bradman Cup (played in Bangalore annually and hosted by KSCA and the ANZC) and the DY Patil Invitation 20/20 Cup (played in Navi Mumbai at the DY Patil College Stadium), the Board never took this seriously.

The Indian Board, by their own admission did not have a fantabulous response to the event, especially with the domestic season almost over and most national players just having returned from that infamous World Cup exit. Drooping public interest in the game might have been one of the causes, maybe. But some however, chose to make amends by their participation and eventually, a young Tamil Nadu side led by Dinesh Karthik ran out as worthy winners. And to not have it televised was an acute disaster by itself. The Board could have searched for better excuses than saying, “Our contract with Nimbus only extends to Ranji Trophy matches.” and if one is not mistaken, the deal was struck to promote First Class cricket and not to discriminate between the versions. The reluctance of the Board to tow the global line meant that a women’s twenty20 match between Asia XI and the Africa XI was the first international of the kind to be played on Indian soil.

Internationally too, twenty20 seems to have made its mark. The Asian teams have not really seen the potential of the game, but the Australians, the South Africans, the Kiwis and the English don’t mind a twenty20 international or two wherever they go or whoever visits their land. Again, shorter boundaries, more hits to the fence, and three hours of full-fledged action. The boring jerseys take a break as New Zealand tried putting on their Beige sleeves and sporting the retro moustached look. The Aussies gave their long-spellings a break by trying something different in the Ashes Twenty20 clash last year. Gilchrist got rechristened as Church, Clarke as Pup, Ponting as Punter and so on and so forth. Quite refreshing indeed.

The purists may deem this form of the game as an absolute nonsense and they do have their right to, having seen many an intriguing contest between bat and ball. But, as I mentioned earlier, Twenty20 is here to stay, be a nimble ant and take little baby steps towards giving cricket a modern look. However, I still am of the firm belief that while cricket can be played in Pyjamas, or as I say Bikinis, the Whites and the Baggy caps will and must go nowhere.

(More to follow, on why twenty20 cricket is not as easy as it looks)

Dude, Whose the coach yaar ?

India has been known to be a country of suspenses and surprises. Some of the more recent ones include - "Will Tulsi finally die ?", "Will the Gujjars stop fighting ?" and well, something more relevant to me - "Dude, who will be the next coach yaar ?". The former two have got decent and satisfying answers, but the last of the three questions is going nowhere but to Timbaktoo as far as the Indian board is concerned.

As I entered the Chinnaswamy Stadium for the Afro-Asia Cup games, there were some young men in their 20 somethings engaging in a serious debate about India's next coach. In Kannada they conversed through and through and when it stopped making any sense to me, one of the guys raised a question that seems to puzzle every Indian fan, and even the Board officials. One guy suddenly stood up and in a typical Indian fashion popped up this question to his mate, "Dude...just tell me who will be the next f***in Indian coach." And spontaneously, his friend replied, "We wont know until the BCCI decides." Was that the answer I was looking for ? Not quite to be honest. And as soon as he tried pacifying his friend, a man who knows everything about this process emerged from nowhere - Sunil Gavaskar. And what more than these two guys giving their lungs a run for their money by screaming "SIR, WHO WILL BE OUR NEXT COACH ?". Known for his ducking, Sunny gave their concerns a major slip and left the question to destiny and the BCCI.

I seriously do not understand the process the BCCI has initiated for the appointment of the next coach, for there is not one. Some of these officials travelled to Bangladesh with an intent to watch our heroes return home with glory and some revenge as it was being advertised as. Drifting from the post, NEO Sports carried a pre-series advert with the copy as, "It takes the whole of India to beat Bangladesh". Aptly so, it reflects the shoddy state of Indian cricket. Coming back to this coach-crunching, Niranjan Shah made heavy statements like "Whatmore has a bright chance of becoming the coach of India, but we will see." A fortnight later, he is out of the fray. Thats the level of indecision that is doing Indian cricket more harm than good. And now, its down to two men, with relatively meek credentials for perhaps the toughest assignment concerning the game - Graham Ford and John Emburey. I have my own take on these two "gentlemen".

To begin with, lets bisect or trisect Graham Ford's coaching abilities, stints and achievements. The man has not played international cricket for South Africa and is presently the director of coaching at Kent County Cricket Club in England. He had a very successful tenure as the coach of the South African team, when he took over the reins from Bob Woolmer as soon as he was sacked after the 1999 World Cup. Almost all the Indian media have been ranting airwaves and print-space about how good a coach he was - especially tickers on prominent news websites and channels carrying a copy saying "South Africa won 9 out of the 11 series when Ford was coach". Thats blind reporting for you. There is a dark side to this man, especially because he was in charge when Hansie Cronje was involved in the match-fixing saga of 2000. Now, to say that Ford had no knowledge about the happenings would be clearly stupidity. He has come out and denied his stake in the imbroglio, but thats what you do when you are in the race for the Indian job. As the coach of Kent, all he did was to import talents from South Africa in the form of Andrew Hall and Martin van Jaarsveld, who have been scoring rather heavily. I have not yet come across a quality homegrown talent to come out of the county since he took over some years back. If you say Geraint Jones is one, I am afraid it sounds bulls*** to me. Oh, how can one forget the disastrous stint he had with Kwazulu-Natal Dolphins, a state franchise in South Africa, where he resigned after a year ? Thats about it about Ford - he comes across as an ideal candidate for the BCCI. A man who can shove things under the carpet supremely.

Now its over to John Emburey - in some people's words an average spinner who was rather lucky to play a decent number of games for England. Yes, everyone is honoured to be a part of the Indian coaching setup, but this man in his fifties is honoured to the tee. His coaching report card shows just red and more blues. What the hell are his credentials ? A coach who got relegated with the counties he managed like Northamptonshire and Middlesex ? If thats what we need, get him ! And the man has begun his PR ever so efficiently. He spoke to a news channel in India and made tall claims like "If I were given the job, my immediate priority would be to help India get to the No. 2 spot", something that every coach has on his quotesbook. He furthered his claims by saying, "I have taken note of whatever happened before and I am willing to work with the players and its all about exchanging respect". Again a claim with castles in the air than realizing the ground reality.

Oh, did I say India have missed the bus already by saying a no-no to Whatmore ? Oh yes, they have big-time. During my research interviews for the book I am working on Sri Lankan cricket, the interviewees felt that Whatmore was the best man-manager in the business today. And the strong foundations he laid in Sri Lanka have been expanded into towers today. He brought in Alex Kontouris with a clear vision to help Sri Lanka improve its fitness and the testament to that would be injury-free Sri Lankan bowlers playing today. If our post-mortem of the World Cup was going anywhere, these two areas were of utmost priority for India as a cricketing team. And I am afraid, by ducking out Whatmore for whatever reasons it could be, India have surely taken three steps back in the coaching market. Yes, he spoke out of turn, but who does'nt ? And the Indian media, who are occupied with TRP/Readership boosting sensationalist moves, declared him as the next Indian coach even before his name came up officially. And the Board fell for the heapload of crap published by the media.

And lets dwell into this crisis a bit more. I read somewhere that the Indian team for the tour of England and Ireland will be named on the 12th of June. Maybe that date would change soon. Our so-called coaches selection committee meets on the 9th of June to hold "discussions" with the two candidates. So expect a week more for the final outcome to sneak out. So here we are going to have a man, who does not know who he is going to work with, till he is appointed and will virtually have no say in the selections, for he does not know the potential of an RP Singh or a Rohit Sharma and goes by mere reputation and newspaper reports and all that is going to end up in is UTTER CHAOS !

Look at the Sri Lankan scenario and you feel ashamed of being Indian cricket. They have invited top level Australian coaches to take their cricket forward and we guys are still held up with some names that should'nt have come up at the first place. Be it Terry Oliver or Trevor Bayliss - these guys know their cricket much better than Graham Ford and John Emburey. Thats where the difference is. And thats where the difference is going to show in the next four years.

As I sign off, I will also ask the same question those two guys did, "Dude...just tell me who will be the next f***in Indian coach ?"

'A' Team Concept - Needs a look in !

Sans A Team, India Benched - Hindustan Times - 2nd April 2007

Once upon a time, when the world of Indian cricket was a happier place, India A tours were the way ahead. And once upon a time wasn't so long ago either. For instance, in the time that Sandeep Patil became a more or less regular India A coach, after leading Kenya to the 2003 World Cup semifinals, 17 players from A tours went on to play for India, others played for India again. And most (see the box for the roster) did well enough.

Suddenly, despite all the talk of "processes" and the "need to groom youngsters" that we have been hearing these past two years, India do not seem to have a proper, dependable bench strength. Why? For starters, the world’s richest Board doesn't seem to want to spend time and money on organising India A tours anymore.

Strangely, in the year that the BCCI reportedly broke the billion-rupee barrier in revenue, India had just one A tour, to Australia, in July 2006. So how are fringe players supposed to prepare for the Indian team, or be ready to step in at a moment's notice if they are not being given the experience?

"It is a serious problem," says a top BCCI official, who did not want to be named, as his views, if aired publicly, would not be appreciated within the BCCI. "There was an imbalance last year, when there were three under-19 tours (to England, Pakistan and New Zealand) and only A tour to Australia. This imbalance began when India won the u-19 World Cup in January 2000, but at 19, most boys are too raw and will suffer if thrown into international cricket."

So why didn't the Board do more? "The problem is that the Board depends on reciprocal arrangements, so a five-year plan for A tours is the need of the hour. Somehow, that hasn't happened." Well, the planning has to start somewhere, so why not at the BCCI meet over April 6 and 7?

"I think the BCCI has no choice but to organise as many A tours as possible if they want Indian cricket to succeed," said former India cap Ashok Malhotra, who has been both a National Selector and the India A coach."While three-four years in domestic cricket makes you street smart and gives you experience, you need to play outside India to be groomed for international games. So the real yardstick is India A tours. The likes of Gautam (Gambhir) and Aakash (Chopra), Irfan (Pathan) and others have come up through the ranks, that way. From u-19s to A tours to India."

The Board official agreed. "All our focus is the India team. The training methods and physio are focussed on those 15. The other players are not in that system, so they suffer when thrown into it. There is a feeling within the Board that we should have a larger pool of players who will travel as much as the seniors and gain experience.”

If it doesn't, then there's trouble ahead. "I'm really worried that Indian cricket will go the hockey way," said Malhotra. "We will stay obsessed with Pakistan and gradually be left behind by the others."

This was an article written by Hindustan Times Sports Editor, Kadambari Murali.

I had my own take on it. It was posted through an e-mail to the author.

Hi Kadambari,

I came across your article on the A Team concept today and would like to make my observations regarding the same.

The A team concept is undoubtedly critical for a team's future. But as we all know, this has just been shoved in India. My observations are regarding other teams who have approached this concept with a very open mind and are implementing the same to ensure that at any given point of time a pool of players are available to step up to the upper level i.e. international cricket. I am working on a book on Sri Lankan Cricket, and this concept has been exploited to the tee by that country. Having understood that their level of first-class cricket isn't the best in the world, Sri Lanka Cricket has been very active in the creation of A Teams and Developmental Squads. Whilst other teams were busy focussing on the World Cup, Sri Lanka A and Bangladesh A quietly played a series in Sri Lanka, whereby people who were omitted from the World Cup squad were handed an good run to impress the selectors all over again, if the situation of impending retirements has to arise. And the results of the successful A Team execution in Sri Lanka are there to see. Russell Arnold, who was missing from the scene for not less than 15 months, went through the grind of second team action to force his way back into the national scheme of things. Similarly, one of Sri Lanka's emerging one-day bats, Chamara Silva played his last game for Sri Lanka in 2002 in the Natwest Series before he came through the A Tours of New Zealand, India, West Indies and Bangladesh. The whole idea of an A team is perhaps based on the lines of a "Reserve XI" in football clubs, which is the way it should be. I suppose every team should have an A team which must play at least 75% cricket in every calender year, so that come the new season - the selectors are not faced with an eternal conundrum so as to make inflammatory statements like "We have no talent." Perhaps teams like Australia, New Zealand and South Africa do not need this sort of a back-up team as they churn out world-class talent year in and year out. But, to recount this, Hashim Amla made his way back to the SA team thanks to his dream run of centuries against a New Zealand A team. And perhaps, these teams send follow the Developmental Squad system - whereby they send 15 young players to countries where conditions are foreign to theirs, probably with one-eye on the future. And another way these teams do this is by sending them to participate in County cricket. Micheal Clarke played for Hampshire way back in 2004 and similarly Cameron White has been with Somerset for the past year. I reckon this could be the way forward for international teams to develop their talents. I also read an article yesterday suggesting that Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh are participating in a triangular Developmental Squad limited-overs trophy in Bangladesh. Why isn't India playing that tournament ? Was the World Cup such a big shock for Indian cricket, that it cant move on ? Or do we not have simply any talent as Vengsarkar once famously said ? I really wish we had participated in that tournament, with Sharad Pawar's India Blue team, because not only does it give them a good know-how of the conditions before that BIG, I mean BIG tour of Bangladesh, but also throws some names in the selector's notepad ! Why are we not a proactive nation when it comes to developing talents ? Or do we depend upon our great National Cricket Academy in Bangalore to produce some really World Class talent ? Or do we have enough money, that talent matters no more. All of these are absolutely unanswered questions.

And guess what ? Sri Lanka Cricket has taken an absolutely progressive step by awarding CONTRACTS for their A Team players and have a coach on contract - Chandika Hathurusinghe. We do not need to look at Australia to learn our systemic improvements. Look down South, and you'll have all the solutions.

I really hope, someone of your calibre as a cricket writer can help me and the country find out about the overall failure of the Board in taking such futuristic initiatives, so as to benefit Indian cricket.

Regards,

Venkat Ananth

Looking back in Anger

Call it a disgrace, a disaster, a debacle or perhaps even the death knell, no word in the Oxford English dictionary can perhaps stand up to describe India’s performance in the World Cup 2007 in the Caribbean. It was certainly a rude shock to a nation that expected its cricketers to go past the first stage, at least. India’s exit from the World Cup has certainly raised several questions, which to the best of my knowledge will remain unanswered, as that’s the way our system works – specifically, the BCCI.

Yes, this is a game of cricket – aptly described by purists as one of “glorious uncertainties” and frankly speaking, India was at the receiving end of the adage. But what followed the exit is more interesting than the short stay in Trinidad itself. The public ire against the team the day after was well documented by the media, without realizing that it was they who ballooned expectations into dreams and when shattered, shirked responsibility for the same and turned into bashers. Some of the images that we saw was indeed natural, but could have been avoided considering the fact that it was just a game of cricket and not a war that we lost.

Greg Chappell attributed this loss to a “collective failure” and I somehow can’t stop myself from calling it a systemic failure. It is all well to sit and criticize the team for their shocking performances, but at the end of the day – the BCCI has not yet come forward and taken equal blame for their role in this debacle. People are still keen on completing their two-year terms, without realizing that the future of the game is in question. On expected lines, Sharad Pawar came out the next day and rubbished claims of his resignation by calling it “an utter nonsense”. And, as per my observations, the BCCI is looking for scapegoats, who they could deflect the blame on. First they took an aim at the senior players, followed by the media and realizing that both parties were not standing up for themselves, blamed it on the World Cup format. What Ricky Ponting stated the other day, might evoke some instant reactions from eternal patriots like Sunil Gavaskar, but by doing that, they are running away from the grim reality of Indian cricket. Has Dilip Vengsarkar come out and put his papers yet ? Why ? As a Sharad Pawar loyalist, he’s getting his due mileage.

Perhaps, in hindsight, the appointment of Dilip Vengsarkar as the Chairman of Selectors was a move directed at chopping the wings of Greg Chappell. The very objective with which Chappell was drafted in as the coach was defeated, when they realized that the “free hand policy” had to be chopped or may be to satisfy some of Pawar’s detractors. That is how the BCCI functions anyway. If we go back to Kiran More’s stint at the selectoral helm, Greg Chappell was given enough autonomy to choose the team he felt could win matches, rather than external compulsions. Reading between the lines, Ganguly’s return also smells of Pawar’s intentions to mute Chappell’s growing influence within the team. But to Saurav’s credit, the man redeemed himself. When the time was ripe to take some harsh decisions, the BCCI turned into lambs. This is where we lost the World Cup and not against Sri Lanka. Veteran cricket writer Rajan Bala equally vindicates this claim, as Greg was disappointed with the make up of the World Cup squad. For a man who used to regularly come out and frankly state “Ignore youth at its own peril”, he was given a squad of old men, who had no more bones left in them to match the standards set by other teams. I am not saying if Suresh Raina or Mohammad Kaif would have won India the World Cup, but if selected back then, they would’ve certainly given their 200% on the field, where India looked absolutely hapless. And the way the Indian selection system functions, even crystal ball gazing would not predict our future.

Culturally and in cricket, we still suffer from the colonial hangover. Foreigners are perhaps ridiculed for whatever they’ve done and we associate ourselves with everything Indian, without realizing that we lag by 10 years than where they are. Which is why it seems easier to blame a Greg Chappell or an Ian Frazer for the World Cup loss than one among our own? What can Greg Chappell do if he’s presented with a bunch of perennial chokers? What can he do if his words have no weight age among selectors? What could Greg Chappell have done if the system turns against him than stand by him? And it seems extremely convenient for the media to turn him into a villain when the team loses and fail to credit him during the more successful days. That’s the double standards that we Indians are known for. And now, there are talks of an Indian coach. And the possible candidates – Sandeep Patil and Mohinder Amarnath. An Indian coach has always been known to bring some regional bias into his operations and this time it would be any different. After all, an Indian coach would have understood the system by now, enough to exploit it skilfully. I have nothing against them, but from what the past says – we’d be changing them like underwears. If great sporting teams like Manchester United have the guts to stick with Sir Alex Ferguson even after a trophyless season, I am sure Greg Chappell can be treated similarly. Coaches do not come with magic wands, sigh.

The media is another active participant in this whole game. The news media have just succumbed to their own expectations and cricket journalism in this country has never hit such a low. The debates in the mainstream news channels and newspapers are quite primary and do not seek credible solutions from their experts. When some channels flashed news about Sachin Tendulkar’s possible captaincy move, all they did was display statistics of his previous captaincy record and not a single channel, I repeat, not a single channel questioned the credibility of these reports. Some of the panelists for their discussion shows reflect a lot of dumbing down. For example, having a Sharad Pawar loyalist on any show means the BCCI keeps mum about some issues and justification of their claims or lets say, some actors and actresses. All of these augur well for the TRP. The well-respected Indian cricket intelligentsia is almost kept in the dark. And where is the objectivity? Yes, India is out of the World Cup – so what? The show must go on. This is where the English channels are placed relatively better than their Hindi counterparts. People like Madan Lal and Yashpal Sharma do not really lose their sheen as World Cup winners, but their opinions cater to the most basic and primary instincts of the audience, more simplified than others. The Hindi dozen brings in former cricketers, presumably from Delhi to analyze the game and their analysis revolves around “Should Gambhir have gone instead of Uthappa?” C’mon guys, mature up!

The advertisers play their part in building this hysteric balloon that we all are so used to. Pepsi have come up with a jinxed campaign and ever since their ads were on air, Team India is seeing a Billion Blues than otherwise. Personally speaking, I am not against celebrity endorsements one bit, as they have the right to it, but only after they realize that cricket comes first. Every cricketer in every country does it. Be it Adam Gilchrist for Castrol, or Muttiah Muralitharan for Lanka TVS – but for them, cricket comes first. Barring a few good men here, it’s the other way. If I am not mistaken, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has close to 15 products in his pocket. Why can’t these guys come up with the same performances on the grounds? Reality is that, they somehow like living in their own myths!

Indian cricket somehow needs to stand up and stare reality in its face. That’s the only way we can move forward. Getting rid of the coach and the captain would be a knee-jerk reaction on the parts of the power men. Instead of these peripheral issues, address the more integral one. To conclude, I’d rather be a Manchester United by sticking to Sir Alex Ferguson than a Real Madrid who regularly change their nappies !

Down Under the Doldrums...

Defeat and Australia do not share the same equation when it comes to sport, not least the game of cricket. But, their Trans-Tasman rivals, New Zealand would have a different viewpoint on this aspect. Having successfully chased totals of well over 300 in consecutive matches, the Kiwis have rubbed some serious salt on the already existing wounds of the Aussies. The defeat means that the reigning World Champions relinquish their No.1 spot in the ICC ODI Rankings to incumbent South Africa and fly into the Caribbean with rock-bottom confidence and their pride at stake.

Its not common that an Australian outfit would surrender to their own problems this meekly. But thats the sad part of it. After having had a fantastic summer in Test cricket, the sort of confidence or call it arrogance that did them in came to the fore in the CB Series finals, where they failed to beat England, their little fancied rivals, not once but twice. Injuries is only one part of the problem. Not having the likes of Andrew Symonds and Brett Lee hurts for sure, but with a majority chunk of the Chappell-Hadlee squad being the World Cuppers, defeat was certainly something that could've been avoided. So where is the problem, are they over-estimating their own worth ? Or have other teams raised their level of intensity to match the Aussies. Well, its a vicious circle to which only time will have the answer for.

Ian Chappell in his column in Cricinfo writes, "Thanks to a dangerous mixture of arrogance and stupidity during the Commonwealth Bank Series, Australia fiddled rather than found their best combination." I would tend to agree with him on this, especially since it was a final of a major tournament at home, and any captain would've preferred fielding his World Cup combination minus Lee and Symonds to see how they handle big-match situations. It was really disappointing from a more Australian perspective, since they are known to do such things. Sadly, this attitude extended itself to the Chappell-Hadlee series, and the results are there to be seen.

If you ask me a couple of areas where the Aussies are going wrong, my view would be in terms of selection. What on earth is the best Australian fast bowler in the summer, Stuart Clark doing by playing for New South Wales in the Ford Rogers Cup ? He should probably be in the flight to Jamaica. Such selections are more of the touch-and-go kinds, but the Australians are feeling his absence for various reasons. The bowling line-up that will probably feature in the World Cup is going for 340 and 350 runs respectively in the two matches. Where is the mean and the miserly attack the world would be in awe of ? According to me, the second area of concern would be the lack of quality spinners in the line-up. The whole world knows the fact that the wickets in the Windies aren't the same as probably three decades back, and this team has only one spinner named - Brad Hogg. And as irony would have it, he's had to sit out the bulk of the Commonwealth Bank series doing twelfth man duties. Oh yes, the fielding bit - its just getting from bad to worse. We have been used to the Aussies setting high standards especially when it comes to fielding, but these days the sheen has come off a fair bit.

The only the saving grace at this moment today, is the batting line-up. Yes, there could be some cracks emerging there too, but as of now it is looking good with several in-form batsmen. The top-order seems to have gelled properly, with Gilchrist and Hayden leading the way. Ponting at three seems daunting for many an opposition and to consolidate the domination - Hodge, Hussey and Clarke. Shane Watson's injury-marred progress as an all-rounder is a concern but apart from that, Australia's best chance of hiding their blushes would be to put good scores on the board and HOPE that the bowlers defend it ! After all, an unbeaten 181 from Haydos wasn't good enough to see them through the Kiwis today.

It is certainly back to basics time for the defending Champions. Ideally, they would have preferred avoiding this situation from arising, but now that it has, finding answers and solutions is the only way ahead. Mike Hussey claims the spirit of the squad being intact, which sounds superficial for starters, but with the Aussie teams, you never know. Having dug a hole for themselves just ahead of the World Cup, only confidence and not over, only common-sense and not stupidity (as Chappelli would have it) can help Australia resurrect their worst slump in almost over a decade.

A Slap on Indian Cricket

It was exactly a week ago, when the whole of India came together to fight its image, pride and global identity through Jade Goody's antics against Shilpa Shetty in a television show. Exactly three days back, an irate Indian fan showed how intolerant a country we can be when it comes to foreigners. It may have been a slap on Greg Chappell for not including any Orissa cricketer, but the larger issue here is how choosy we can be when it comes to race and identity. In fact, Biranchi Maharana, the culprit is as good or as bad as Jade Goody, as going by what he says, he "chose Greg Chappell because he was Australian". Through the uproars last week and this incident barely 72 hours ago, India has taken one step forward and five steps back.

The incident should not have taken place in the first instance and now that it has, it reflects poorly on Orissa as a secure state and its public's frustration over something they do not control. If I remember right, the Chief Minister of Orissa, Naveen Patnaik was rated as the best CM in a poll conducted by a television channel. This is not the first time that an Australian became a casualty in the state. Perhaps, the Oriya public are somewhat allergic to Aussies, for reasons they themselves know. Circa 1997 was when an Australian missionary Graeme Steins was charred to death by certain extremists of the Bajrang Dal who were against Christian conversions.

Security is another concern that bewilders me. We take extreme care to protect our superstars like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, but do we really care about the support staff ? Or is it just too foreign for their liking ? The Orissa Police may have been embarrassed through this incident, but it certainly raises questions about intentions of the Government. In 2005 and 2006, I witnessed this whole security affair myself at Pune and Mumbai. At the Taj Blue Diamond Hotel in Pune, some of the senior players of the team were walking through an intense security cordon, surrounded by cops on four sides, whereas younger players like Suresh Raina and RP Singh were left unguarded. Not to mention, Ian Frazer and Greg Chappell. Even during the 3rd test against England in Mumbai, the situation wasn't any different. Why this double standards when it comes to this team ? Is it because they are foreigners and should be treated differently ? The Board alone knows.

Another issue that was exposed through this barbaric act was the state of Orissa cricket. Honestly, I couldn't care any less if a guy from Orissa is not playing for Team India. Yes, Orissa has been playing some decent cricket for a while now, but how many of their cricketers have it in them to play for the country ? The answer is none. Some of them came, promised and faded away. Debashish Mohanty is in most ways the torch-bearer of Orissa cricket, but what has he contributed to Indian cricket ? Sanjay Raul was another guy who managed to don Indian colors, but did he do anything significant ? No. Shib Sunder Das was perhaps the most impressive cricketer to come out of that state. However, he too faded away after Wasim Jaffer and Deep Dasgupta grabbed their chances in the West Indies-England tour of 2002. Since then Orissa cricket has been languishing in the Plate League, and having qualified for the Elite Division for the next season, it is upto them to get noticed and satisfy the likes of Biranchi Maharana. To add on, Ranjib Biswal from the Orissa Cricket Association had a stint as a national selector from the East Zone. If he himself couldn't identify enough talent in that state, how can one irate maniac ?

To sum up, the wild demeanour of one individual shouldn't be the benchmark for judging a state or a country. A banner by some Orissa fans in the match at Cuttack yesterday which said "Greg, We are Sorry" is a reflection of how the people of Orissa and India see this incident as. One hopes that such incidents won't be repeated all over again. It is indeed an eye opener for many - the administrators, the fans and the security authorities. For now, with India having won the game at Cuttack, the wounds of the slap might have healed, but one cannot hold back himself by calling this act as a "slap on Indian cricket" !

My Second Coming Too..

Raving about Saurav Ganguly's determination and grit does not stop me from apologizing to my readers for the lack of substance that was visible on the blog. I was handling some major professional and academic assignments that did not make it easy for me to slot in time to write on the topics. I am sure, in the coming days and weeks - the blog shall see a splurge of articles on various issues, largely concerning Asian cricket.

Cheers,
Venkat Ananth

The Rebirth - Ganguly's Second Coming !

This time last year, the sacked Indian captain Saurav Ganguly was yet to recover from the saga that perhaps stunned Indian cricket - his sacking. Speculations were rife over his future and instead of gearing himself for his cricketing assignments, the man was facing mordacious balderdash from the Indian media. Sympathy surrounded him and even his daughter couldn't refrain herself from questioning his non-presence in Team India. Somewhere, the prowess conflicted itself with the hunger and things did not work his way. Time decided to move on and so did Indian cricket. Change did it for him, perhaps.

Today, life has indeed come a full circle for Dada. Change did it for him, again. The selection committee's decision to include him for the South African tour did raise many eyebrows but having seen the first Test, Dilip Vengsarkar was spot on ! There were shades of freshness in the way he went about his business, having seen the dynamics of what Team India missed due to his absence. There was a certain method, largely unassociated with the Ganguly game. The pair of eyes were lensed with a never-before determination and application followed. The flamboyance took a back-seat and all that he'd learned or unlearned in the past 10 months was put into practice. To be on the franker side of the divide, I was quite skeptical of Ganguly's selection, let alone inclusion. But thanks to a string of big scores for both Bengal and East Zone, he put himself on the selector's notepad, and then it was a mere formality. This was the Ganguly I was expecting, not the one who lived on his past laurels or political proximity or for that matter the captain's job ! The difference is the mental psyche with which he approached the game. For a world-class player who was on the wane, talent was never going to be an issue. If any, how he took the setback in his stride and worked his way in shows the mental effort on the part of Saurav. For people who feel that Ganguly's selection is the biggest slap on Chappell's face or ego, think again. In hindsight, such tough decisions could define Indian cricket.

I for one recall a newspaper report, highly Kolkattan by nature, talking about how Dada used his privileged club membership at East Bengal during these beleaguered times to return as a fully fit cricketer. However degraded the Indian football league maybe, the emphasis on fitness in football is n-times more than what these cricketers go through. Injuries formed another cloud in his sky, with claims of "tennis-elbow", but he saw it with the straight face of the bat and proved himself all over again. During his pre-sacking days, merit distanced itself from the man and there was an environment of change that he found uncomfortable dealing with. The coaching staff, the administration and even the functioning styles of these two entities was something he could not handle, and as Chappell says, "We felt that a time off from cricket was the best thing for him." Even during the county stint at Northamptonshire, under Kepler Wessels, Saurav did not exactly set the County circuit on fire, but at least ensured that he resorted to better regimens of fitness and emerged a much focused cricketer. To be honest, I don't think Saurav would have learned more in his 10 years of International cricket than this 10 months in virtual hibernation.

As a cynic, I made this statement not so long ago to my friend "You do not make comebacks at 33", but Ganguly proved me wrong. If his contributions start gaining more meaning within the setup, it won't be before long that he would have booked his ticket to the Caribbean. For now, the passion seems to be back, the hunger for success is well on its way up the graph and the desire to claim this re-birth with both hands on an all-time high. Cynically speaking, Saurav has proved no one wrong, including Greg Chappell but proved him right. I am sure his colleagues Zaheer Khan and VVS Laxman will agree. Scores of 51* and 25 will remain longer in public memory than some his earlier knocks. After all, along with Team India, it was Saurav's grit, patience and determination that won the first Test.

Why John is (W)right !

Why John is (W)right !

As soon as it was launched, I managed to pick up a copy of Indian Summers, the memoirs of John Wright’s stint as the coach of Team India. I wouldn’t call it the most authoritarian work on Indian cricket, but with the premise being largely personal, it gives us a worm’s-eye view of how cricket is seen by outsiders. It makes good reading for the understanding of how the system functions, the chaos, the politics and the power. Wright reinforces the commonly held belief of a defunct zonal selection system stronger than ever and even as I say, it is time to rid it off – question marks have risen over a few selections for the Champions Trophy, especially one pertaining to Sreesanth.

To be very frank, I read this book as more of a journey than a mere turn of pages – where John tried to remind me about some of the key moments of his tenure, through a lively description of the games, which makes interesting reading. I have myself resorted to some criticism of Wright’s stint, but this book gives an in depth insight into how he had to fight the dark holes of the Indian cricket system and yet delivered. I find it hard to believe that towards the latter part of his time as the Indian coach, he was at the end of some rather unwanted criticism from the media, public and of course the “former players union”.

After reading the work, John Wright has quite aptly listed some problems that need to be sorted out sooner than later if Indian cricket has to make it to the next level. It certainly did not need a book to remind our moneybags about the state of Indian cricket. When John writes about an unknown person (possibly a journalist) from Kolkata calling him to inform his appointment as the Coach of India, it was a shocker – it sounds aghast to see no levels of professionalism from the Board. Second incident involved not giving John a contract. I mean how on earth can you hire, especially a foreigner without giving him a contract to work under? Sounds absurd, but that’s Indian cricket for you. Often, the off-the field wrangles generate more interest than the matches we play in. Oh and yes, the fact that he had to put up with the mega Board elections by doubling up as Manager and coach for one home series shows how dependent the system is on votes and loyalties. What’s worse, it was his first series as coach of the team.

I remember interviewing a former media manager of the Australian team, Jonathan Rose and he made a very valid point when he said “Your cricket team is a mirror image of how your Board is. Cricket Australia believes and practices professionalism thoroughly and so does our team”. Put it in the Indian context and you’ll probably fill a page with question marks. Professionalism does not merely mean install a CEO with strings tied over his head. In the Indian context, it seems hard to define. It may not also mean having a website. It could probably refer to building a conducive environment where everyone is taken care of – the players, the administrators, the fans, the officials. Cricket Australia practices this to the T. How shocking is it to know that common fans like you and me form just 10% of a ticket sales during a one-day international in India ? Ask where the rest of the money goes, and the answer is “loyalists, police commissioners, big politicians” etc ! Oh, have you heard of truck owners being managers of a cricket team ? Probably yes! John Wright mentions about a Maharashtra heavyweight, who became manager of the team, but by profession was a truck owner ! Why don’t we get it ? We need a full-time manager, someone in the mould of a Michael Tissera from Sri Lanka, Steve Bernard from Australia or even Goolam Rajah of South Africa. These guys have been around for ages ! Wright sees it as an award for the loyalty shown by the association towards the powerhouse, which to a large extent is true and unfortunate. I may draw some flak from the BCCI for this, but both me and John Wright know that we are correct.

How about opening another can of worms ? The selection system ! Mention it and you get thoughts like “Arghhh…they did it again !”. Here too, Wright makes valid points worth notice. He says that selectors discuss about who not to select for hours together rather than who to select. The North-South divide often makes more talking than Team India ! The Zonal system was, is and will always be prone to bias, especially with the reputation of the association at stake. But is this the way we select champion teams ? The answer is a loud NO. The pressure on these selectors, often middlemen, is absolutely inevitable. For example, if Kiran More was asked a question on dropping Sreesanth, he’d probably give the same boring answer saying “He is certainly in our minds for the future. We have decided to rest him”. Its time the Indian public gets tired of this shutout and there is a need by the media to create public opinion about the professionalization of the selection system. This has been the demand ever since eternity though. But who wants to lose out on votes ? If their player does well, it means approval from the association and hence a big fat job in the Board. Who says it’s a tough job ? John Wright doesn’t !

Oh ! And who can forget the brigade of former cricketers. This seems like an obsession all over the world, but the brigade is much much stronger in India and the subcontinental countries. They become best friends when the team is succeeding and turn their backs on you when things go haywire. How can you function in such a system ? Some of these guys have coached the team before and hence try and suggest things and maybe boost their candidature, but unfortunately they cant ! its more of an ego problem than anything else. Some of the fiercest critics of Greg Chappell now have been these television experts and its so absurd seeing them change weather from the last six months, when the team has turned out leaner than before. If they knew what to do with the team, why don’t they make good coaches ? It becomes so easy to say “Sehwag should have batted like this, played a shot like that” but did they do it during their tenure ? No ! And yes, seeing a foreign coach as a white-skinned-man who has come to make India his own and some of these experts bringing the strong jingoistic claims of a need for an Indian coach is often seen. I do not know if these airwaves will stop sometime, but that’s the problem in a democracy – you often get away with whatever you say ! I mean how could you condone Sanjay Jha’s public outcry of Chappell last October by calling him a “Godzilla” ? Atrocious, I say !

John Wright may have not given us the results we desired or expected from him, but has certainly shown us the way forward. I used to call him the “Naïve New Zealander”, who believed in going about the job in his own way, his own pace, but this book brings a no-holds-barred approach from the man, which should be lauded. It’s a must read for fans, who look at cricket beyond the 11 demi-gods and are willing to know the harsh realities of the system here. This is not advertising of any sort, but a genuine recommendation from a critic of Wright himself. Its time this book finds a place in the library of every cricket association and the bookshelf of every Board member. That’s the only way Indian cricket can quite “literally” move forward !

Extraaa Nonsense : Where Cricket Weds Crap

Extraaa Innings is back on air ! This seems to be the nth time I am making this statement, but all thanks to Sony Entertainment Televisions's ridiculous policy, it wont stop until the 2007 World Cup is over - thats an assurance ! The only difference this time is that the crap has got crappier and Mandira and Charu have become too inane to switch on the TV sets. Its time cricket gets rid of these elements who seek gracious time to punch their visibility and seek roles. I mean, let cricketers analyse the game not some airhead chicks who did not know what cricket was unless they were offered a ransom by the television channel. Oh, and what on earth is someone like Rohit Roy doing there ? I tend to think he's an absolute disaster at whatever he does (refer Nach Baliye last year) and his constant concern at Dada's exclusion from the team just adds a bit of murkiness about the whole guy.

Now lets get to the show. There is this audacious tarot card reader, who always seems to get it wrong. This was the same lady who predicted India's win in the World Cup of 2003, and the rest is recorded history. Alright, they have the astrologer there, but what dominates the conversations is questions like "Will Mandira have a good Bollywood future ?" ! Holy heavens, are we watching a cricket preview show or weird attempt at trivializing the game ? Absolute rubbish ! Oh and the Maruti ride with Mandira and Charu, seems quite misplaced. Such visuals at best are condemnable, one feels ! How can the Indian audience, the so-called intellectual audience which knows to measure trash and sense accept such a comical approach to cricket ? Shocking!

What is even more unnerving is the India element. I mean, the high emotional ground these anchors gain when they chant the word "I-n-d-i-a", which to a large extent, pisses me off ! It gets too emotionally wound up, that a semblance of objectivity is almost cancelled at the first go, which is absolutely unfortunate. Compare this with a Channel 9 or an ESPN-Star Presentation and you'd probably know how inanely designed show this is. No doubt there is some element of patriotism in these shows, but where Extraaa Innings distinguishes itself is through the use of absolutely unrequired "in-studio jingoism". That brings me into questioning the use of female anchors for cricket. Sexist, as it may sound to readers, I do not feel the need for oomph in cricket and especially when these so-called anchors read through a whole chunk of Cricinfo updates all through the night and come up with questions that sound rather stupid. Oh, no doubt it is one more shot at bagging a Bollywood role for all you and I care (and it sounds better than casting couches too). Mandira's use as an ad-doll also seems rather stupid. All she does is lend her squeaky voice to some of the ads that sponsor segments. I bet, she might have come up with 50 "brought to you bys" in one episode. Her cleavage or whatever she seems to wear attracts more attention than what she tends to talk - such is the low sinking nature of cricket presentation these days. I am sure the Harshas and the Wilkins' must be tearing their hairs apart (if any).

Charu Sharma, who started off as a promising presenter has also a huge part of the blame to share. He was perhaps seen earlier as a man who could restore some sense into the proceedings, but as it has progressed from time to time, Charu has fallen into the trap of bringing in these emotional rants about India and more or less wraps his thoughts with a degree of plasticity. Even in his show the Fourth Umpire, he morphed his thoughts with some elements of extreme patriotism, which exposed his credibility to analyse matches as an expert. Its getting to a stage where, the viewer can almost predict the script given to him, which makes it dull ! Beating around the bush is his forte, he talks too much about things that are absolutely inconsequential to the match and he whatever he talks makes sense only to him ! I mean who gives a f*** if he spent his childhood days in Rajasthan or Sikkim, as it does not justify a good cricket match. He's just nailed himself on the presenter front. As someone who was seen as a decent competition to Harsha, Charu has just taken five steps back ! If he has to get any closer to Harsha, he better get out of shows like Extraaa Innings and the Fourth Umpire. The only time I found him to make sense was during the couple of tennis tournaments he did for Star Sports and Ten Sports respectively. Though, that jingoistic element didnt get off him, especially when he made repeated remarks about Sania Mirza, he sounded effective if not pleasing.

Its time cricket presenting takes a serious step forward. We do not need ladies who just make appearances to attract the cricket-watching male or twist their libidos during a cricket match. All we need is a host of good analysts, who take the viewer beyond the happenings of the game and put in real perspective in whatever they are talking. Bias is as inevitable as Mandira showing off her cleavage, but if these hosts can keep the bias away in their homes, it will make cricket watching a good experience. We need to learn from other countries with this regard too. Cricket presentation is serious stuff. Cricket itself is entertainment, but more importantly its a sport. If we are equating cricket to entertainment in the real sense, we are wrong. Cricket is more unpredictable than what could happen in a prime time daily soap. It can never wed entertainment. But, as Extraaa Innings has proved over the few years its been on air, cricket is made to wed crap and crap of the highest order !

Statutory Warning : Please switch off your television sets from 12:30 pm to 2:30 pm to avoid this show. Ignorance of this warning could lead to a mental disorder that would take years to get out of !

All Opened Up !

Yes folks, the Champions Trophy is up and running. Despite the certain reservations I have had about the intentions behind the tournament, it is slowly moving towards a climax that would rather seem unpredictable. With 8 teams vying for glory in this tournament, it now seems very difficult to pick a definite winner ! Some of the results that the tournament has witnessed has surely justified the nature of one-day cricket, which is now "On-the-Day" cricket. Australia succumbed meekly to some intensified West Indian pressure, while Abdul Razzaq's gusto finish made all the difference between a bigger setback and a victory for Pakistan. Pundits have gone through the various permutations and combinations to see who goes through from their respective groups. It will be a case of luck, on-the-day performance and calculations that will take four of the 8 teams through.

More on Champions Trophy to follow...

Voila...ICC Champions Trophy 2006 Beckons !!

Finally, the drought of a big tournament has ended ! After spending 10 years in wilderness, it is now India's turn to play host for the 5th edition of the Champion's Trophy. It is indeed ironical that the country which mooted this concept in the first place gets its due after the tournament has managed to create a niche for itself. When it started off, perhaps the intentions of the ICC were sounding straight and clear - to create a common platform for all teams and use this to catalyse their future. But now after 8 years, things have taken a 360-degree turn and its more of the commerce that rules the roost and not competition. Its not been a smooth ride after all, considering the marketing and endorsement chaos of 2002. Perhaps, those were the first signals of a long and well-planned commercial venture the ICC invested into four years back then. It may not completely turn into a farcical event just yet, but faces a pretty bleak future in the days and years to come, especially with the invasion of 20/20 being a good money-spinner for the Boards and the ICC.

As far as preparations are concerned, India has been on the dot, since the very day the clearances by the Government and subsequently the tournament was announced. But what should seem murky, is the law that the ICC has chartered, which does not allow "sponsored" stadiums to host any ICC-oriented matches. Which is why quality stadiums like the Chinnasawamy Stadium and the Chepauk have felt the ditch this time. Having said that, it does give an opportunity to other good stadiums in the country to prop up their standards and create an international feel about them. With Mohali being voted as the best stadium in the sub-continent and listed as one of the four centres for the Champion's Trophy, expectations will surely reach the limit, and it is about time Indian stadiums realize the need for recognition, especially in spectator management and hardcore infrastructure. It will give an opportunity for these stadiums to be rated and know where they stand on the international radar. Another positive to come out is the revival of the Brabourne Stadium at the Cricket Club of India, Mumbai. It has been 11 years since the last game was played there and a place that used to be regarded as the Lords of Asia, will soon bear the new look, with bucket-seats and floodlights simmering over the action ! Perhaps an indication of how tradition can merge itself with the needs of change, especially in the new age.

One of the major grudges that foreign teams have when they come to India is the business of traveling. To some extent, their grievances have been looked into by the BCCI and the ICC while the selection of the venues. The tournament will bear a more Western look as teams will shuttle between Ahmedabad, Mohali, Jaipur and Mumbai, cutting across four states that figure in an almost straight line on the political map of the country. So lesser connecting flights, more time in the nets and more action is all that this edition promises. To be on the franker side, I perceive this tournament to be a rough one for teams that are traditional strugglers in the sub-continent. Mainly because the wickets during this part of the year in India will probably assist slower bowlers as the season has not yet got underway and with constant rain in places like Mumbai, the curators may have just compromised a tiny bit on the nature of the pitches. It should be a traditional sub-continental pancaked belter, but also expect some sharp turn and tennis ball bounce if you are a non-Asian team.

Evaluating it critically, one of the main problems of this tournament is the lack of focus of some teams when they especially play this tournament. Australia have mentally resigned themselves to playing the Champion's Trophy to avoid huge sanctions and the signals coming from their side is very clear. The Ashes forms about 95% priority in their minds today - which clearly is a reflection of their mindset about the tournament per-se. England have named an experimental squad for this series, ensuring that their key players will be rested before the Ashes. Which is exactly why I said earlier, that this tournament is losing its competitive value and teams are participating in it just to get a share of the ICC revenue pie and be happy. Not that this tournament has proven to be a great platform per-se for teams going into major series etc. West Indies won the last edition, with a great amount of luck one would feel, but they have failed miserably to kick on from then. New Zealand (2000) is perhaps the only team that considers this trophy a holy one, because of its failure to win major tournaments and the same would hold true for South Africa in the inaugural version in 1998.

Add to that the inappropriate timing of the event - when most teams have just begun their seasonal cricket, barring England. I would not be surprised one bit if certain teams fail to fire as they normally would and expose the rust they have acquired by not playing enough of match-oriented cricket. This turns into a positive for some others who would capitalize on these matches as practice games for bigger tournaments in the future - especially considering high-intensity series like the Ashes. Do not be surprised if Australia get rated as the favourites, but get knocked out of the group stages or the Semis, they have a larger task on hand at home ! And remember, big teams win bigger trophies - a reason why Australia in the Champion's Trophy have regularly suffered in at the hands of teams they would otherwise decimate.

All in all, this tournament promises to be an entertainer, with the likes of Mandira Bedi always "charming" the screen and the likes of Kapil Dev stuttering some straw-hat English. With the marketers of the tournament doing a good job, especially with the advertising, it is of no doubt that cricket turns entertainer for a month. The format seems to be a bit skewed, but it only adds to the drama and the anxiety of cricket lovers. On a personal note, I back the form teams, two from the sub-continent to make the Semi-Finals, whereas the other teams may just struggle to tie two ends together here, partly due to focus and largely due to the conditions. For India, its a big tournament - one that can provide their World Cup charge some impetus, a direction, which will reinforce the faith and the belief that many of us have laid on our team. But, from the 8 teams in the race, may the best horse win !