Moving words from Dhoni after winning the World Cup!!!

Sleepless nights, grey hairs with the same fade of beard. It was a bunch of youngsters given to me along with a God. Everyone mastered their skill but I was alone failing every time. But when Sachin walked back into the pavilion with his face down I was upset. I quickly padded up. The whole team was looking at me and Gary alone backed my decision to move up. I was not even able to run but the only thing that flashed my mind was Sachin's childish face looking at the entire crowd "oh sorry it was my mistake to leave the ground soon" will anyone like god to put his face down in front of his own crowd? Yes I can't allow that happen. I controlled my pain and decided to go.

Finally we had the last laugh with a cry.

I received the above as a forward. I’m forced to believe this as a work of fiction as the words of this magnitude from Dhoni would have made the headlines of the national daily. Truly a moving effort from the author whomsoever it is and deserve a publish at CCL. 

Definitely harsh on BCCI for scheduling IPL immediately after the World Cup and depriving the Indian fan a prolonged celebration of the glory. I'm forced to assume, BCCI did not anticipate India to win the World Cup and so to cheer the fans they scheduled IPL shortly after the global event to pacify the fans for loses. In the end India won the World Cup and IPL turned to be a overkill.

India Tour of WI

It is disappointing the BCCI has pushed the Caribbean counterparts against the use of Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) for the tour of WI. Usually it is the prerogative of home board, but the super power of BCCI has forced the WI to do away the UDRS.

I do agree that the system has flaws, but it is definitely better to have it considering the no. of false calls taken by the umpire during the game. Can anybody forget the nightmare of Sydney Test? Back then had UDRS been there, the result of that match would have been entirely different. Do BCCI really want a repeat of the Sydney Test to wake up and embrace it?

Sometimes system like this needs encouragement despite the flaws it carries. As the mistakes are identified minds should work to fix the bugs. That will be way forward.

Also it is high time ICC takes control over these matters and enforce boards to follow system rather encourage boards to take a call on the system.

Bottom line: Curious to see if the super power of BCCI could push England or Australia to do away with the UDRS during their tours.

Dinesh

Cricket Lover

Gary Kirsten - The Dronacharya of Indian Cricket !!!

Its been a memorable last few days of Indian cricket and to me the man who mattered the most was Gary Kirsten.

World cup was his final swan song and what a way to finish the same!!!

A smiling assassin who went about his routine procedures to a nicety was the fulcrum to team India's success in the 2011 edition of the World Cup.

On a lighter note, he is the only South African who has tasted World Cup success. India had always been a breeding ground for overseas coaches but none could match the charisma of the South African. Mind goes back to Greig Chappell who was suppose to coach Team India ran into a lot of criticism and tussle with most of the players and importantly with DADA .

A man of few words, Gary made it large and has been instrumental in India achieving No 1 status in Test Cricket, part of the world cup 20-20 team and now the coveted World Cup 2011.

And most rightly, he was lifted by team members as a part of the victory lap after the finals.

What else can one ask for from a coach? He has earned the respect of his team mates and most importantly their confidence.

His role along with Paddy has brought some of the best talents in the Indian team. They have moulded each and every individual and TEAM INDIA is ready to take on the world.

They are a force to reckon with and no praise is less for the great man from Cape Town.

He now bid's adieu as coach but his achievements will be etched in memory of most INDIANS for a lifetime.

Thanks Gary, you made the difference.....

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to be my Religion, Sachin will be my God

Modi disappointed. Quotes "Nobody thanked IPL for World Cup Victory"

CCL was able to interview the currently suspended formerly chairman and commissioner of IPL, Mr. Lalit Modi after India’s victory.

Hi Lalit, you must be happy after India won the world cup?

Yes. But I’m slightly disappointed with the fact that nobody cared to thank IPL for this victory.

What !#&*? Could you care to explain how this world cup has anything to do with IPL?

To be honest, it is only fair if this victory is dedicated to IPL. Just imagine yourself how it would have been had we scheduled IPL ahead of world cup this year? I’m sure players would be complaining tiredness, exertion, exhaustion, injury, turbulence, turmoil, hijack, nausea, constipation, cholera, jaundice, typhoid, hernia etc for the failure.

Yeah. Now it makes sense. I’m surprised how we missed it. But your answer prompted another question. Don’t you think the players would be coming up with same excuses for playing in IPL after the world cup?

No way. You are again missing the point. Money can heal any wound.

Yeah. That is absolutely right. But again the players are about to get 1 crore rupees for the world cup victory.

Come on. You must be joking. That money is just a pocket change compared to what they make in playing 6 weeks of cricket in IPL.

So you meant to say that this world cup victory means nothing to any of these players or the nation?

Well, it means something.  From my perspective, the Trophy looks better than the IPL’s.

Is that all?

And ofcourse, the Jerseys of teams in world cup were better than the IPL's.

The TRP ratings says that the world cup semi finals and finals had double the viewership than IPL finals?

That is mainly because the Tamil Nadu government had issued free TV to every household in the wake of elections. That should explain your question to why TRP ratings doubled.

That does not explain the viewership of the whole India. Is it?

Before I answer this question, I wish to call for a timeout. I cannot really talk any more without an Ad break.

Dinesh

Crazy Cricket Lover

Will Sachin Play? Can Dhoni Win?

Questions have started popping from all corners of the globe on what would be Dhoni’s motivation from here on? He has won the T20 World Cup in 2007, IPL in 2010, Champion’s League in 2010, lead India to become the No.1 side in ICC Test rankings and finally the World Cup in 2011. Does he have anything left to conquer?

The big feather that has been eluding the Master for the past 21 years has finally found its place in the Crown. Is he left with anything to achieve? Is he left with any motivation to play?

I wish to answer these questions in layman terms prior answering the same in a cricketer's perspective.

As a common man, do we ever say, I’m already earning enough and I don’t need any more cents on my salary, here on? Do we ever dare to even think like that? Isn’t the greedy persona in us drive us to earn more and more and more and finally push us to say the words, no matter how much I earn, nothing is enough. I hope the explanation has sufficiently answered the questions that doubt Dhoni and Sachin’s motivation here on.

From a cricketer standpoint, it is simply not about the batsman to pile up tons of runs for the sake of hunger or the bowler to stack up wickets based on greedy. There is lot more than this. It is called ADDICTION. To be precise it is one of the worst of drug addiction. The sound of ball meeting the middle of the bat creates an ecstasy in the batsman that is equivalent to few dose of heroin. The buzz the ball creates when it fly past the ears of the batsman is worth a few tequila shots. Similarly, when the bowler makes the batsman dance to his tunes, it creates the killer feelings of a drunkard.

Now you must have realized yourself that Sachin Tendulkar is lot worse than a drug addict. It is this addiction to the hunger kept the legend going. He would not quit until his body quits. He will push every bit of himself to stay in shape to prolong his career as long as possible. May be you, but I won’t be surprised if he is there around to play the 2015 World Cup.  Much like Sachin, Dhoni’s addictions to victories are hard to give up. He will keep piling as many victories as possible to end up becoming the most successful captain the world ever witnessed.

When these legends truly finish, they would have already built so many records that it would take few life times to beat.

Bottom Line: Just like my Superstar Rajnikanth says "You just watched the trailer. The main picture is about to begin".

Dinesh

Cricket Lover

2011 to 2015

First of all, congratulations to team India for their achievement in the finals and I am also struggling to find words to describe the feeling. This victory has injected a lot of energy to 50 over format. As Dhoni was repeatedly saying “Peaking at the right time”,  he peaked at the right time and stole the show completely. I am particularly happy for the middle order performance when the openers choked, unlike in the previous instances.

There were lot of predictions like 1983 and 2011 having same calendars, names of the captain with “S” were defeated – Strauss, Smith, Sammy, Shahid and Sangakkara (Ricky is exception but R is preceding S).

While we celebrate the victory, I would like to put my thoughts on this world cup and some activities so that we can have a more competitive and entertaining tournament in 2015. I am not counting IPL and CL into cricket tournaments, as it is more of money and entertainment and less of cricket. To begin with, the pessimist in me is asking the following questions over this victory:

1. It would have been a great victory had it been achieved during 1999, 2003 and 2007 – in English pitches rather than subcontinent.
2. Everyone is praising Dhoni and forgot Kapil Dev, who won the cup in truly English pitch and in 60 overs format – no technology, no UDRS period. Even Sachin has not referred his name in his post-match interview.
3. Dhoni is very lucky – everything clicks for him.
4. Did they fix this match since India is playing finals in home ground?

Now the optimist answers:
1. We lost to SL in 1996 at home itself and they took the cup. It is truly an achievement because we brought back Seetha (cup) after 15 years of vanvaas from Lanka to India.
2. It is foolish to compare people of different generations and period. Everyone is the best captain for India during their period – be it Kapil, Saurav or Dhoni. Since Kapil went against BCCI, players might be told not to refer his name. After all, they are staff of BCCI only.
3. So what if Dhoni is lucky? Hard work needs luck so that it can be converted into success. Tendulkar was hard working but unlucky and Dhoni joined him and we tasted the success today. Another example is South Africa who are unlucky for the last 20 years.
4. Post the match fixing allegations, every match seems to be fixed to Indian audience. So better ignore and enjoy the game.

Some memorable performance by the developing teams (I hate calling them minnows) which I liked in this cup: ·
Kevin’s century against England.
Canada scoring 55-0 in first 5 overs against Australia.
Kenya almost chased Australia’s 300+ score · Kenyan bowler who took the wicket of Cameron White of Australia - the ball turned almost 90deg and White must still be thinking about it.
Canada bundling Pakistan to 180.
Seelar of Netherlands taking 3 crucial wickets of India during the league match.
The positive attitude of Kenya during their last league match against Zimbabwe - as if they are playing their first match and rejoicing over each wicket taken.
Price of Zimbabwe forced Pakistan to work hard.

This World Cup victory has boosted my expectations towards India’s tour of England and Australia later this year. Since England and Australia were fared poorly in this tournament, they would revitalize their teams and would be looking forward to beat India to take revenge.

Some suggestions for major teams (we always fond of advising others): · NZ and WI are badly in need of match winners / consistent performers. Otherwise they can’t survive. A good captain for South Africa – it is because of Smith, they lost to ENG and NZ. England players need to be a little more versatile, as they get choked when the going is tough · OZ will rejuvenate themselves, so no advise for them – but they need good bowlers · SL will definitely bounce back but absence of Murali is going to hit them, as there is no strong alternate.

Though every team is suffering from the injury factor, the situation with the Indian players is a bit worrying. There is more talent in the team and if you are physically unfit, you are out. A look at the choices we have and where we need to focus from now on:
Openers: Sehwag, Sachin, Gambir.
All rounders (based on their capability and not performance): Yuvi, Yusuf, Raina, Kohli.
Seamers: Zaheer, Munaf, Ashish, Sreesanth, Praveen Kumar.
Spinners: Harbhajan, Ashwin, Chawla, Ojha
Wicket Keeper: Only MSD
We were fortunate that Dhoni didn’t succumb to any injury otherwise things would have been different. I am sure Dhoni might have noticed this and working on the same.

And finally, I am happy for my strong belief in Indian team lifting the cup and we did it in style, though thoughts of match fixing distracted here and there for a while. We worked hard, we need to party harder guys!!!

Jayaraman
Delhi, India

The Virtual Stadium experience

Imagine being in a Stadium with all your classmates, child hood friends, neighbours, co-workers and relatives for the most important match of your life! Courtesy of Channel Nine, illegal video streaming and Facebook, I had the joy of seeing my dream come true last night and sharing the joy with all the people who matter to me in the World.

An avid Indian cricket fan living away from most of my friends in Sydney, Australia, I have been dreaming of the day when I watch India win the World Cup with all my friends. The GAME ran from 8PM to 4AM my time. Extremely tired after spending the day at an Amusement Park, I enjoyed the first innings with a friend over Black Label. Tired and sleepy, I was struggling to stay awake during the second innings. Thanks to the hundreds of updates, commments, likes, emotions portrayed by my friends over Facebook, I was able to stay awake and enjoy the WIN! We went through the tensions, agonies and joys together. Thanks a lot guys for the great time!

India has won the Cricket World Cup 2011!! I cannot describe my happiness.

Hopefully we will recreate the Virtual stadium at the end of the year when India is in Australia to try and overcome the final frontier i.e. win its first ever Test Series in Australia. Till next time..


Sai Mahesh
Sydney, Australia

I'm a World Cup Winner!!!

What just happened in my life?

Running out of words to explain. It was this one thing that I've been praying and craving for years. I know I'm going to experience this today. When it came in my way, i truly did not know how to react. The best I manage to do was to run down tears in litres.


Is this what this feeling is all about? Is this what it would have been for those who witnessed it in 1983?
The sense of restlessness started last night. Could not sleep a bit. Woke up every half hour to see if it was 4.30 am already. I was scared if I would miss any action. Infact I was already awake to shut the alarm off before it rang bang bang.


After about 9.30 hours of impatient wait, my country was officially crowned as the World Champions. The feeling was equivalent to a thousand volcano eruption. Difficult to put in words. But I'm sure I felt more happy, more proud and shed more tears then I first became a father. Count me on this.


But the journey was never easy. It was like fighting a battle every moment. Meeting my own countrymen who challenged the faith every day. At times, I really appeared fool in many eyes.

Who is Team India? It is everyone of us. If we doubt our country it means to say we doubt our own ability. Is there something that we could achieve anything in life when we doubt our credentials? That was the only thought that ran in my mind all the time, as I came across every doubter.

Atlast the battle is over. My country just won the world cup and I witnessed every moment of it. I'm now a Crazy Mad Insane Indian.

Now everyone is beating their chests proudly to say "We won the World Cup". I’m sure as they beat the chest, they also pump the heart to be filled with self belief, courage and confidence.


Bottom Line: The dream has come true. I’ve become a World Cup winner. And so you are.


Dinesh
Crazy Cricket Lover

Cricket on Facebook

You must be wondering what does cricket had to do with Facebook (popularly called FB)?

For starters I’m discussing cricket mostly with the friends in FB and I’m also promoting my blog here. I felt it is time to dedicate one for the medium and the people who live here.

We have always watched cricket with friends and families at home. It is very much fun to watch the game with a group of people. As the game progress we keep predicting a four or six in that over, a wicket  or two this over, what should be the next move from the captain, then slam the captain for what we feel as an absurd move, who should bat next, who should bowl next, the winner of the match etc. These are interesting predictions. Some turn correct, some does not. But the euphoria of getting the right prediction and proving to be the best of brains is a wonder of the emotion.

If nobody is available for company, we still pick up the phone to call our buddy to discuss the game during the course.

As times change, so is our medium of discussion. Today people share their analysis and predictions with friends on Facebook live. Mind you, it means, it is taking eyes off the game for few moments to type the prediction or respond to your friends thought on what happened now or what happens next.

On the day of India-Pakistan game there was hardly any other subject discussed apart from cricket on my FB page. I’m sure many must have experienced the same. Since I don’t work with FB, I don’t have the stats to present, but I can pretty much assure you, cricket would have been the talk of that day.

I do wish to confirm that nothing beats the fun of watching the game at the stadium or watching the game at the public place with 10,000 spectators on the giant screen or watching and talking the game with family and friends on TV. I believe that this is also close to nature.

But for those like me who are little away from nature but closer to the virtual world, Facebook for sure brings the virtual reality in life.

I take this opportunity to thank Facebook to carry our thoughts to cricket lovers across the world. I also wish to thank those friends who join these cricket discussions and make people like me feel there is still life for existence in the virtual world.

Bottom Line: Watch the finals of the India - Sri Lanka live on Facebook. You will be glad you did it!!!

Dinesh
Cricket Lover

India's "M" factor

Come Saturday, a billion people will be hoping and praying for Team India to have the last laugh in the 2011 edition.

We are a more confident lot compared to the Lankan's who have not been really tested.

Amidst all the saga that unfolded over the past 40 days, there is one sentiment associated with team India.

We have heard about "X" factor what is "M" factor ? Here we go !!!!

Mirpur

M Chinnaswamy Stadium

M A Chidambaram Stadium

Mottera

Mohali

Mumbai

India played in all the above venues and have won to a nicety.

Will venue luck continue to be with Team India? Time will decide !!!

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to be my Religion, Sachin will be my God

PS: Here is a sentiment from another friend. Saturday 2nd April 1983 India won the World cup. The Day is coming again. Saturday 2nd April 2011. 1983 & 2011 calendar are same. Check it. Much like 1983, INDIA will win the World Cup again.

World Cup Glory.... Hours Away!!!

The journey has been fascinating. The dream is about to come true. To be precise, it is only a game away. With billions of prayers & support, an astute captain with the brigade of warriors, not to mention the least the God of Cricket himself playing the fiddle, the reality is only hours apart.

The sheer joy of imagining how it feels when my country lifts the World Cup get the adrenaline pumping so much that I could feel every ounce of blood flowing in my veins. I’m sure every Indian cricketer must be living in this emotion to keep the energy up and high when they take on the Lankans on Saturday.

I knew even before the start that this World Cup is ours without an element of doubt. All along I was only focusing hard to get the screenplay right as a fortune teller. The choice of finalist did not come per my screenplay, but there is no change in the conclusion of tale.

For the purist and pundits who need more data to validate the conclusion than just passionate words, here you go.

Two teams have reached the finals. How they reached here do matters on concluding who will lift the trophy.

Much like India, Sri Lanka too played most of its games at their home. The point is Sri Lanka played the games to the weakness of opposition. The wickets prepared were doctored to appear devil for the guests while an angel for the home team. A weak and fragile Lankan middle order was made to appear par with any opposition middle order due to conditions. The doctored pitches strategy failed to save them when they played Pakistan, who is equally good in this environment. However there were passages when a team like New Zealand exposed the weakness of Lanka at their own backyard.

On the other hand, Indian wickets were fair to the opposition. It was a feather bed batting track most of the time. England demonstrated that by chasing the target of 338 close to perfection. South Africa eclipsed India by chasing a total of 296. India could have laid a square turner to beat any of these teams squarely. However, India chose to play to its strength than opposition weakness.

I’m sure the wicket in Mumbai will be neutral to both the teams and India will play to it strength and beat the Lankans comfortably on their weakness.

When India is clearly a batting team with the bowlers slowly coming to party, Lanka is neither a batting team nor a bowling side. After top 4, except for Mathews its only tail all the way. Except for Murali and Malinga there is not much of depth in bowling front. India will sure cook the half baked Lankans for Paneer Jalfrezi. I’m not being arrogant with this statement. I’m only sharing the truth which is tough pill to swallow.

Bottom Line: This Indian team is about to bring a lots of joy and happiness to our homes that we shall cherish down the memory lane to our children and grandchildren.

Dinesh

Crazy Cricket Lover

Dhoni's Interview

Crazy cricket lover had the opportunity to interview Dhoni after India’s match against Pakistan. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

Glad India is into Finals now. But, you had everyone gasping when you decided to field both Nehra and Patel in the same game?

Well… that was a part of our strategy. Not just to surprise the opponents, but everyone in the cricket world. It was one of those cunning strategies where the opposition batsmen get excited seeing Nehra and Munaf, and the crowd starting to boo us. That way the pressure is actually transferred to the Pakistani batsmen to score runs against these bowlers with the crowd behind them. Finally you saw how it worked in our favor.

Brilliant Dhoni!!! Will it be the same ploy in the Finals too?

In the finals we would like to improve upon the strategy. We will be playing Chawla along with Nehra and Patel.

How is Saeed Ajmal getting so much purchase from the wicket, while Bhajji did not?

Ajmal applied brain to his skills. You can’t expect that from a Sardar.

Then why do you play Bhajji?

You see I’m a Sardar too.

Sachin missing out the century even after four lives, Is that part of your cunning strategy?

Yeah. That is right. We specifically sent instruction to Sachin to throw away his wicket before the century. His centuries have been a bad omen for us. And in the end it proved to be the master stroke.

So you mean to say Sachin won’t be scoring a century from here on? There are billions of fans who are counting on this 100^th century.

No. We understand the sentiments of India. We won’t be that cruel. Infact we are in talking terms to schedule a series against Kenya. That way you can expect India to win games despite Sachin’s century.

Why Sreeshanth is constantly ignored?

It has been a tough decision to leave him out all the time. Again there is a reason behind it. Sreeshanth look good on TV only when he is angry. So when we drop him, he will be angry and look good on TV. In a way it gives a feel to the audience that our team is fighting hard to win the game.

What is the case of Yousuf Pathan? Why is he still in the sidelines?

There is only one spot available. It has to be Suresh Raina or Yousuf Pathan. In a week from now IPL is starting. I think it will make more sense for my CSK team mate to get more practice ahead of Yousuf Pathan.

What are your plans for the Finals?

Obviously I can’t reveal it here. You can wait to watch it on Saturday.

Thanks Dhoni. Wishing you all the good luck to win the Finals.

Dinesh

Crazy Cricket Lover

What to expect when you are expecting

I'm definitely not talking about the pregnancy bible here. Let us try to forecast the possible surprises that we can expect while we are expecting.

From the Pakistani Camp...
1. For a change Pakistan will open the bowling with fast bowlers at both end. We might see the combination of Akthar and Gul for the first time this world cup.
2. On the batting front, one of the big hitting lower order batsman might fancy their chances at no.3. Umar Akmal would be a good choice. But Pakistan might play it safe by sending Afridi at no.3. After all Pakistan team is used to failures of Afridi as a batsman and whatever comes from his blade at no.3 will all be bonus.
3. If one of the Pakistani openers fall immediately, Younis Khan could come at the fall of first wicket.

From the Indian think tank...
1. India could open the bowling with fast bowlers at both end.
2. If India decides to open the bowling with a spinner at one end, chances are good that we might see Yuvi in action as early as 2nd over if not first over.
3. India might play this game with 8 batsman too, considering Yousuf Pathan does not have to face the likes of Tait, Lee and Johnson.
4. On the batting front, Indian skipper could surprise Pakistan and the world by coming at no.3. If for some reasons, India want to unsettle the opposition with left right combination, Suresh Raina might take guard at no.3
5. For the first time we might see the offies of Sehwag.

Bottom line: All in all, expect the unexpected from both the camps

Dinesh
Cricket Lover

Sri Lanka storms to the Finals of the World Cup

Nobody counted NZ to play Semi Finals in the first place. So, whatever they do from here is only considered bonus. After all they would have forced some introspection to the format had they qualified for the Finals. I’m only continuing from where I left off in my earlier post.

Leaving no stones unturned Sri Lanka march into the Finals to take on the winner of India – Pakistan encounter.

Having said lowly about Kiwis, they definitely had to be appreciated for making a match out of the total they put on the board. However they will be cursing themselves for faltering towards the end of their batting innings. Had they applied themselves they would have added another 30 runs on the board and in the end they might have had the last laugh.

Some of their plays were more like playing into the hands of Lanka. The ploy of opening the bowling with spin at both ends might have worked well against South Africa. To the likes of subcontinent batsman playing spin from the beginning is like a stroll in the park.  All subcontinent batsman are circumspect to pace, bounce and movement than to spin.

It was also surprising to see Ryder bowling during those crucial moments. It was sure surprise for the audience, for Lankan batsman it was a blessing in disguise.

Sri Lanka looks like a team with tail right after no.4. India and Pakistan are bound to put pressure without a doubt. If it is Pakistan, they have a brilliant bowling attack to crack the top order and penetrate the middle order. If it were to be India, their batsman will put so much runs on the board, which will lead to top order of Sri Lanka cracking.

Bottom line: Sri Lanka does not look like a team that will win the Finals of 2011. I only wish they put a good fight to the opposition.

Dinesh

Cricket Lover

Kiwis?

Who would have expected in their wildest imagination that New Zealand would be playing the Semi Finals of the World Cup 2011? Not even their countrymen would have counted.

Few months back, this Kiwi side was trashed by a Bangladeshi Team 4-0. Then a second string Indian team beat them 5-0. Last but not the least, a controversy wrecked Pakistani Team beat them at their backyard 3-2.

All in all, Black Caps came into the World Cup as the Undermost Dogs. I’m really running out of words to say how bad this team entered campaign. 

They played their first match against Kenya. Even the skipper was sweetly surprised when his team trashed a hapless Kenyan team.

But that joy was short lived when Australia brought them to earth beating the comprehensively by 7 wickets and 96 balls to spare.

However Kiwis went on to crucify Zimbabwe in the league game. Again, Zimbabwe is hardly a team.

They went to play their third game against Pakistan. On paper Kiwis were expected to lose considering Pakistan bowling attack is one of the strongest in the World cup. To top it all Pakistan came into the game after beating Sri Lanka and Canada.  When a mismatch was on prospect, Kiwis surprised Pakistan and the world by taking the Pakistan bowlers for cleaners. The last 6 overs of Pakistan bowling produced almost 110 runs. Birthday Boy Rossy had a field day. That was the first time Kiwis raised the eye balls crushing Pakistan by 110 runs.

With the same momentum they went on to win their next game against Canada.

Some section of followers believed that Kiwis might challenge Sri Lanka in their final league game. Sadly their batting performance gave the impression that it was only a one match wonder against Pakistan.

All in all, NZ performed the league stage much to the expectation. Crucified minnows, won the odd game against Pakistan, lost the other two marquee games to finish last in the group.

A picture perfect script for the Group B topper to crucify Kiwis and storm into Semis. However NZ stunned the world by beating South Africa to enter Semi Finals of the grand event. The scorecard give the picture that NZ won the game convincingly. In reality it was a scratchy performance from their batsman that resulted in a moderate total on the board. The choking policy of South Africa made Kiwis the winner.

Despite making to the Semi Finals, their performance is still wanting at the big stage. By any stroke of luck (mind you, I used the word LUCK), if Kiwis go onto beat Sri Lanka in the Semi Finals, I’m sure ICC, the cricket gods and followers will start dissecting the format, more than appreciating NZ cricket.

Finally, I still don’t know how they made it to the Semi Finals. I wish they only get inspired from themselves and pick the bat to whack the opponents out of the world cup.

Dinesh

Cricket Lover

Spine Chilling World Cup Moments - India Vs Pakistan

Cancer cells multiply in large numbers to decay the human body at an arbitrary rate. But the interest around India Pakistan semifinal seems to be rising exponentially.

This match is the perfect icing on the cake for the tournament which has been already declared a "Block Buster".

No movie release this week for sure and no one would dare to think anything other than cricket until Wednesday.

Tickets can only be bought if new ones are printed or we have an expansion in the stadium limit. Mohali will be packed to the rafters with fans from both nations cheering and what a spectacle this is going to be.

India seeks political diplomacy in this match and hope we share peace and prosperity atleast on the cricketing front.

With the build up running haywire, lets unwind and look back at some of those intriguing moments which make this clash special.

#1:- Is this Monkey or Bun key Jump

Kiran More and Javed Miandad ran into a tussle in 1992 World Cup match in Australia.

For a change, actions took center stage as Javed Miandad unleashed his desire to jump up and down portraying a Kiran More stunt. Unfortunately his efforts could have been channelized towards running up and down for singles which would have helped his team win. India thrashed Pakistan to advance in the world cup. But this match is more remembered for Javed's acrobatism than for his cricket.

#2:- Oops !! where is the off Stump ?

Generally people go for walk, Have you seen stumps go for a walk, Yes it did happen in Bangalore in 1996. during the quarterfinal. Aamir Sohail unleashed a ferocious square drive to a Venkatesh Prasad delivery. His adrenaline was pumping and pointed his finger to the bowler. Then came a typical fast bowler reply. Aamir tried doing the same next ball and discovered he had three stumps before facing the ball and thereafter only two. But this in cricketing terms means "Bowled" and he had to walk back to the pavilion. Yet another act of foolishness by Pakistani batters which cost them a semifinal birth.

#3:- Oh No !!!! Not again

We have "Ball of the century ", do we have "Shot of the century", Yes there is one which came about during the India Pakistan match in 2003. Shoaib Akthar did not know that faster we bowl, the faster ball goes along the ground or sometime even over it. He ran into "The God" and realized bowling is not the same as flirting with gals. "Bang Bang Bang" was the sound in India when the delivery was deposited to the point boundary and we could hear the death rattle in Pakistan.Guess they lost the match to one boomerang from the Champion. Sachin, don't do these to bowlers, at the end of the day there are only humans not God like you.

My hair stands in unison whenever I watch that rocket to third man and to me that was the final nail in the coffin for the men in Green across the border.

Can Pakistan script a different story this time to beat India or will it be business as usual for the Men in Blue, time will decide.

Whatever happens, the legacy of India - Pakistan cricket will continue......

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to be my Religion, Sachin will be my God

Agony & Ecstasy of India-Pakistan Clash - Moment #1

Come the 30th of March the whole nation would be rising to the big occasion and in earnest anticipation of the second semi final.

The cricketing animosities between the two nations go back a long way in history and they are sometimes used as a tool to bridge the gap on the political front.

The cricketing diplomacy between the two nations is beyond bat & ball and most encounters are a testimony to this fact.

Is this clash bigger than "The Ashes" or an "England Germany football match"?
The answer certainly is "Yes". A hundred thousand people from both nations and across the world pray for the success of there team and the on field cricket just rips the heart out of every individual.

Unfortunately, Pakistan had a rough run against India in the world cup encounters loosing all matches they have played from 92 to 2003.Even the test matches and 20/20 competitions have given the people some mouth watering contest .

The build cup continues and I will run through some of the memorable instances that are etched in the minds of people.....

#1 Agony and Pain :- Test match, 1999, Chennai

What a match this was? India were set a challenging score in the second innings to win the test match and the great man played an innings of his lifetime.

A star studded bowling line up of Akram, Younis, Saqlain came hard at the Indians but one man stood apart . No guesses it was the little champion "Sachin Tendulkar". He defied all odds to make a brilliant hundred before going down to Saqlain. What happened there after is history as India went down fighting by 12 runs.

Then came the moment, the Pakistan team rallied around the ground and the 40,000 people inside the ground saluted them for there victory but not without tears in our eyes. The great man battled severe pain in the back and almost single handedly took India home.

Most of the Pakistani players cherish this incident and for me a truly agonizing memory from the past.

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to be my Religion, Sachin will be my God

The Lady Luck - India Aussie experience

A comprehensive performance saw the men in Blue roll over the mighty Aussies at Motera.

The match was played in great spirit and make no mistake about it , India had to earn each and every run . When the going gets tough , the tough gets going and Ponting was testimony to this.

Out of form and when most people wrote him out , he made a hundred which has a lot of substance than flair.

Not all hundreds come on a green platter, we might have to grind and toil hard to make runs and believe me a century of this kind stands apart .

But I always had a gut feel that the India would win considering the Aussies were playing with an amateur spin attack.

India played out of there skin to win this match and most importantly was a team effort.Batters contributed to a nicety whilst the bowlers were backed by some athletic fielding which is alien to Indian team.

Fielding was crucial and to me we won because of our fielding , Saving 20 odd runs is gold dust and is almost equivalent to scoring 50 more runs and we managed to cross the line.

Not without moments , I was watching the match in my friend home, Aravind along with wife Srimathi and we had enough nails to bite.

Not without a share of sentiments engulfing this match, Srimathi was asked to sit in the same place with a plate filled with rice and continue to eat slowly and lady luck prevailed.

Believe me when she had no meal in her plate Dhoni did get out. I immediately asked her to do a refill and also requested to eat the same thing which she did before. But owing to non availability she had to switch to a different flavour and lady luck prevailed again.

My friend Aravind was asked not to move from his place and also not to change posture and he did oblige and boy did it not pay off.

And finally no Indian win is short of celebrations and myself , Aravind and Srimathi went to Hotel Saravana Bhavan and had Masala milk to savor the moment around 11 in the night.

Money takes a back seat when it comes to Cricket and such moments will be etched in our memories for a long time to come.

Certainly cricket is a religion and I am devotee , so are most Indians I reckon.

I am hoping to mimic the same setting for the Indo Pak clash on Wednesday and some notable ones are written below for reference.

1) Wear the same attire that we did for this match

2) Cook the same meal and hopefully having the same taste !!!

3) Sit in same position and eat meal at the same time as we did for the oz match.

Finally , there was small wedding invite next to my seat, That's a luck factor too . Boy this is now kept safe for the next match and will be placed besides me and hope luck prevails against the Pakistan encounter.

All in all a great match and hope we beat Pak in the Semifinals.

Jai Hind

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to by Religion, Sachin will be my God

Humdinger: India - Pak

No World Cup is complete without an India-Pakistan match.

Lets keep it straight. This match is beyond cricket, it is war minus shooting, mother of all matches, call it whichever way you want it to be.

What a cracker this is gonna be and the team which crosses the border will play the finals on 2nd Apr 2011. A date with destiny!!!

The build up has started in India and all roads are now leading to Mohali. News channels are sweeping hotel rooms, stadiums, anywhere and everywhere trying to get hold of players.

Mind games have started!!! Rest assured the build up is only going to get bigger and bigger everyday. I promise it will be deserted roads come Wednesday, everyone praying for their team to win. Pressure, home crowd, scintillating teams what else can this humdinger offer?

Keep the emergency numbers ready. It will be nerves and people might find wanting at the hospital on cardiac arrest.

It will be Indian batting vs Pakistan bowling.

The countdown has begun and we will track it all the way to the Titan clash. Watch out for my updates as I pump your adrenaline for the big game !!!

M Krishnan

If Cricket were to by Religion, Sachin will be my God