Will a boycott work?

Australian newspapers are pushing for a boycott of future cricket tours to India.
Fortunately, Australia’s cricket supremo seems to have shot it down emphatically.

However a ban is a simplistic solution. It is not going to eradicate racism. Banning one country or the other is just handing over the game to these racists. They will become emboldened as they have the power to disrupt. Obviously, because of these goons cricket should not suffer.

There is one other aspect we will have to consider. How would the countries take it?
Will they be mature enough to put their house in order? Or, will it mean a tit for tat response?

A New Era?

If I am not mistaken, this could be the first time Australia is picking a Test squad post McGrath and Warnes retirement.

Unfortunately, my only source of inside information on Australian cricket ,Uncle J rod, has turned into a soothsayer. So I am forced to depend on news reports to keep track.

The names of Jacques,Hodge and McGill are being bandied about. Others like Hussey are either injured or recovering. Clarity still in the offing.

Another thing I noticed was that none of these players are spring chicken.Their median age is 30. Reminds me of quiet a few debutants of England. Hopefully, Australian cricket will not go the English way.

This change of guard is interesting in another way. The performance of the new inductees will be a good indicator of how cricket in Australia has grown under the giant shadows of Warne and McGrath.

Will these guys pass muster?

Former Australian Cricketers say that Symonds is acting 'precious'

Former Australian cricketers on Andrew Symonds alleging that he was subjected to racist chants during the one-day series in India.

 

Mark Waugh said just making monkey noises did not amount to racism.

 

"What is Andrew Symonds complaining about – monkey noises?" Waugh said on Fox Sports' Inside Cricket.

 

"Does that come down to racism, without actually saying any words? I don't know."

 

Waugh said such taunts were part of the game.

 

Former captain Allan Border also seems to be taking the same tack. He agreed that the crowds always tried to irritate the visiting side.

 

"There have always been taunts from crowds, from as long as I can remember," Border said.

 

Now we can understand why Ponting and Brett Lee are making conciliatory noises.

 

 

Bob Woolmer's Death

The drama surrounding the supposed mysterious death of Bob Woolmer may finally come to an end, albeit in a couple of months.

 

Jamaican police have not ruled out the possibility of foul play in the death of Pakistan cricket coach Bob Woolmer, which will be the subject of a coroner's inquest scheduled to begin Tuesday.

 

Finally, we may soon know the official cause of his death.

Ponting Clarifies

The racial abuse charges, though still to be investigated, seemed to have originated not from Symonds, but from our very own journalists.

Asked why so much hue and cry was made on the Symonds issue, Ponting said: "I don't think Andrew Symonds has made a big deal of the racism remarks. It were the Indian journalists who made me aware of what happened. Andrew has dealt with it in the most sensible way. He did not run into anybody and tell what happened."

Symonds, finally turns out to be human and a level-headed human to boot.

It is the Press, Indian and Australian, who seem to have lost their heads.

What on earth is the Aussie Press up to?

The Australian Press seem every bit as bad as the Indian Press. They are interested in slanting news in order to grab eyeballs. Unfortunately, their sensationalism could incite the Australian public.

An article ‘Racism row boils over as India denies the problem’ starts with “THE Australian and Indian cricket boards are at loggerheads after Andrew Symonds was accused of being a liar.”

Absolutely sensational isn’t it. The pity is after this, remorse strikes them and the reporter goes on to quote our very own Niranjan Shah.

“But Shah was yesterday unrepentant for his continued rejection of Symonds' criticism of police and cricket authorities.

Shah denies Symonds was taunted in game five of the Future Cup series.

"Nobody has pinpointed anything," Shah said. "He shouldn't be disappointed.

"The truth is the truth. What can you do? I think we will soon find out it was a misunderstanding."

Granted the BCCI is in denial, but where on earth has anyone said that Symonds is a liar?

Hopefully, the Australian public will see through their lies.

Quotes,Photos from Daily Telegraph

Ponting and his team- under siege?

The Australians, excepting for a solitary hiccup, have played ferocious cricket through out this ODI series. They have reminded everybody that they are the Champions and the best team barring none by winning the series.

However, what exactly are they trying to achieve by this constant harping about firstly India’s Twenty20 championship celebrations, secondly by the aggrieved tone they have taken about the ‘lip’ they are getting from some of the Indian players and now thirdly by ‘monkey chants’ claims.

The most charitable conclusion seems to be that they are trying to get to the mind of the Indian team ahead of the upcoming series.

The less charitable conclusion seems to be to create a diplomatic row between the two nations. We all know how the Australian government got involved during the ‘bodyline’ series. By- the –way, they also have a Prime Minister who is not above calling Muralitharan a chucker.

It is easy to conclude that this systematic ratcheting up of the rhetoric is a tool or should we say a license to behave boorishly. They are preparing the background to do so by claiming all this happened to them in India and Indians better lump it if the same happens to them in Australia.

Unfortunately for Australia, the truth lies somewhere between.

It is apparent that with the retirement of Warne and McGrath they are finding themselves matched man to man in all the cricketing areas and it will not be long before other countries will start beating them regularly. They also know that their bowlers are only good ‘on their day’. In turn this has made their team vulnerable to strong batting lineups.

The seniors in the team know that the Australian dominance is surely a thing of the past. It is this conviction that has them feeling of being under siege. No wonder, Ponting and Symonds are talking about respect and making a song and dance over mere trifles.

Reebok India launches Cricket website

Another corporate tries to cash in on India's obsession with cricket.

Other than attempts at providing online and mobile games,the web site offers nothing new to keep a fan interested for long.

When I visited the site there were articles from Srikanth and by Mohan. Strangely, they seem outdated.

Maybe there will be interesting and unique content in the coming days.

If the idea is to build a fan base for Reebok through cricket they have a long way to go.

FRIENDLY WARNING:
1.The website is a bit slow to load.(Could be a problem with my browser.)
2. If you are going to view it in your office, be sure to turn down the speaker volume.



Reebok India launches website for cricket lovers

Mr. Ponting, you are becoming tiresome

After finding no sympathy from their cricket board over alleged racial abuse, Ponting is asking the ICC to intervene.

It is high time Ponting stopped complaining about alleged slurs and start concentrating on playing cricket. Not only has it become tiresome, but it is also taking the sheen away from their dominance.

The Australians have played a great game and are definitely far superior. However, as ambassadors of Cricket and as representatives of Australian culture and society they are a poor advertisement.

Mr.Ponting, it is time for you to understand that your constant harping about alleged racial slurs is doing this great game a disservice.

Now, the English will be insufferable too.

A third successive ODI win against Sri Lanka gave England an unassailable 3-1 lead in a five-match series and secured a first series win in Asia - the novices of Bangladesh apart - since Mike Gatting's side beat Pakistan 3-0 in 1987.

One can visualize how the English will go to town about this victory. Suddenly, from no-hoppers, they will become numero uno’s of the ODI’s.

The pity is in order to make something of this achievement; they will necessarily have to put the Sri Lankan team on a pedestal.

Obviously, the English will now start to pontificate like the Australians about Cricket and become as insufferable as them. Surely, Collingwood can look forward to a Knighthood.

Sreesanth gets Ponting’s goat

The whole Australian team seems to have something against Sreesanth. Among them, Symonds and Ponting are really agitated.

In every news bite they can be found making accusations about his behaviour. The beauty of it all is the insular nature of their accusations.

When Symonds has a running tiff with Tendulkar, then it is passed off as sportsmanship.

However, when they get something back, they talk murder. For example take a look at this statement by Ponting “the Australian captain warned that the Indian team would pay the price for his (Sreesanths) childish antics.”

What the hell does he mean ‘pay the price’?

Surely, Sreesanth has got them by the unmentionables.

Hair ends ICC discrimination case

If you ever wondered at what Hair was going to achieve with his discrimination case against ICC, wonder no longer.

Hair could now return to umpiring non-Test playing nations next March.

Then, the ICC board will meet to discuss the results of his rehabilitation and decide whether he can return to elite umpiring, and if so, on what terms.

It is understood that no financial pay-off was made to Hair.

True, no financial pay-off was made, but he got what he wanted, or didn't he?

If Test cricket is compared to life with an Indian wife, how would your compare T20?

Here is an amusing albeit naughty comparison:

 

Strategy wise, if Test cricket is compared to life with an Indian wife, F50 would be a mistress and T20 a prostitute.

 

 No doubt this comparison is bound to charm the feminists.

Sreesanth - Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde in the making?

Noted psychologist Dr Samir Dalwai when asked to describe Sreesanth's Jekyll and Hyde mannerisms, said, "Sreesanth with a ball in his hand is in a state of disinhibition. He is least bothered about the decorum."

 

"He is someone who believes in externalizing his emotions unlike a Rahul Dravid who is known to internalize his feelings. The right behavioral pattern lies between these two extremes."

 

Dalwai seems to have fallen for Sreesanth's own description of himself as Gopu and Sreesanth.

 

It rankles, eh!

Australia has not yet reconciled to their defeat to India in the semifinals of the Twenty20. The defeat is doubly difficult to swallow as India eventually went on to win the Twenty20 World Cup. To add to their irritation the Australian team was just in time to see the rousing reception given to the Indian cricketers.

 

This has not gone down well and in a typical fashion Australians have taken it personally.

 

Just check out what Gilchrist has to say about it: 

 

"Let's get serious, says Gilly

 

ENOUGH already! Adam Gilchrist has pleaded with India to shelve an annoying obsession with their Twenty20 championship win, saying life is a lottery in the hit-and-giggle format."

 

There is nothing wrong in taking defeat personally, it spurs better efforts, but to disparage a format of the game where you have been shown your place reminds us of 'sour grapes'.

 

Instead of telling India to get on with it, it is high time Australia stops moaning and get on with reestablishing their dominance, for if Australia is unable to adapt to all formats of cricket it could be the beginning of the end.

 

 

 

 

Do Indian (Cricket) selectors have the courage to drop Tendulkar?

Another voice questions whether Tendulkar is the force he was for the last two decades.

 

Craig Hackney remarks

 

It is unlikely that the Indian selectors will make the necessary changes. For nearly two decades, the fate of their side has been wedded tightly to the form of the little maestro Tendulkar, but he seems ever more unlikely to come to the rescue. To outsiders, the solution is obvious. Make the short-term sacrifice to bring through younger players. They have proven themselves in South Africa and will do so again if given the chance.

 

The depth of talent is there in the cricket-mad nation, it just needs to be let loose. Whether the selectors have the courage to do it and whether the fans have the tolerance to accept losses in the short term in order to develop a successful side in the longer term remains to be seen. I wouldn't put money on either happening any time soon.

 

Personally, I am reassured when I know that the Master Blaster is in the team. However, my opinion is biased as I have seen Tendulkar play right from his debut. It is difficult to stop emotion from taking over when one thinks of him.

 

Nevertheless some hard decisions have to be taken soon. The question is who is to bell the cat?

 

 

 

Ganguly named 'Best Captain'

Finally, a very public acceptance of my private opinion. The 10 th Castrol Award for Cricketing Excellence has crowned 'Dada' as the 'Best Captain' in 75 years of Test cricket (India).

 

Now it is only a matter of time to name Ganguly, Captain for the Test Matches.

Yuvraj wants a full-time coach or does he want a class-teacher?

India's Yuvraj Singh has asked the country's cricket board (BCCI) not to delay the appointment of a full-time coach any longer.

Asked why India needs a full- time coach Yuvraj answered "You need somebody to control the boys and talk to them."

Is he implying that his team mates are immature?

If we are to take his reason at face value, Team India and its cricketers need a teacher and not a coach.