Quinton DeCock – Emergence of a quality batsman

In our age of Cricket, the cricketing prowess of a batsman is established by his hitting powers while the skills such as temperament, determination appear to have become a distant history. In such times of fast-food Cricket the heart of an ardent cricket fan that looks for quality softens a bit when he/she sees the emergence of a batsman who satisfies his inner thirst which defines the very purpose of his existence. The 20 year old South African wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton DeCock has acquired the focus of that keen follower who is craving to watch quality over quantity in this fast paced world.

DeCock’s recent centuries in the one day arena has proved that he posses those qualities required by a batsman to climb steep mountains in his international cricketing career. Couple of things that stand out in his batting are; a) his technique & b) his heart.

In the technical department DeCock has exhibited maturity above his age. The most difficult stroke to play technically is the cover drive that requires a fabulous hand-eye co-ordination besides a steady head and exceptional body position through nimble foot movement. In his short international career which span about a year or so, he has shown that he belongs to the class of Tendulkar and Richards while playing the cover drive. Also his wrist that generates enough power allowing the ball to gather momentum towards reaching boundary line has all but class written over it.

Although the inner mantle i.e. ‘Heart’, of DeCock is yet to be tested as the Indian bowling attack is not the one which can prove his competence in this area and also he needs to establish himself in test matches too. Still one can credit him for the matter that the South African team is going through a rough patch that has now lasted for more than a year and DeCock has answered all the critics in the best possible manner. 

Coming years would prove whether this little cricketer who has raised high hope in the mind of the astute cricket follower will acquire higher lengths in his cricketing career and while doing so would be a blessing for the cricketing fraternity itself, or else would be lost in the ‘speed of lightening’ like cricket played in his generation.

We await and wish Quinton DeCock to become and be known for the former.    

Unwarranted Change

Back in 2004, when Irfan Pathan entered the International cricket arena, the entire Cricketing fraternity cheered as they saw in him a rebirth of ageing Wasim Akram. Irfan was deemed to be the incarnation of the master. He briefly lived to the expectations and performed exceptionally with the swinging ball as well as with the handy bat lower down. Irfan was India’s answer to world as a genuine fast bowler who would swing the cricket ball on will, left or right, with pace, during day or night, on hard or crunchy surfaces. One did felt that the next Kapil Dev, who can contribute to Indian cricket for years as an allrounder was unearthed.

The in-swinging yorker which uprooted Adam Gilchrist’s stumps in Irfan’s debut test played at Sydney has made a permanent place in the memory store of an ardent Indian cricket fan. Then came his magical first over hat-trick against Pakistan which demonstrated his control and command over the cricket ball. Meanwhile he gathered few important runs lower down and his crucial cameos did provide India some historic wins against better nations.

A lot changed for India during the regime of Coach Greg Chappell who believed in squeezing more out of every individual, sometimes more than he could offer. The ill-effects of Chappell’s theory deteriorated the Indian team and hung the cricketing careers of some exceptionally talented blokes in jeopardy. Ganguly resisted. He was shown the door soon. Dravid followed coach’s advice; reluctantly. Irfan’s performance took a toll as he was burdened with batting responsibility up in the batting order, a load which his shoulders could not sustain long enough. Step by step his performance with the ball began the troublesome march towards south. Soon it reached the tip and the name of Irfan Pathan, who was here to entertain Indian fans with his magical swinging deliveries that lured the batsmen to drive only to fall in his trap, vanished away.

A seed that was supposed to become a giant tree in years to come was destroyed by the infertility of the soil around. A change in action, a drop in pace, teachings from Wasim Akram and the TV serial entry which broke his Cricketing focus did not help him either. The injuries kept following that worsen the matter. The Cricketer who was destined to become Great; one who had the ability to become ‘The Best’; slowly and steadily was put to disturbing Rest.

Irfan Pathan lost his focus on the thing which he could do best, i.e. swing the leather ball at pace, and didn’t resist the outside forces that damaged his entire career. The Indian Cricket fan has sobbed during many restless nights while this all was happening.

Have we learned anything at the cost of an exceptional talent?

Carver’s Learning’s

George Washington Carver, an American scientist and botanist was born to a slave mother during the dreadful years for the black Americans when the entire community was exploited by the Whites’ and were treated as another animal working on their farmlands. The father is unknown while his mother was separated from him forever during his infant days. The owners of his slave parents were his guardians and have passed on their family name to him. His early education came from nature and he was fond of maintaining flowers & gardens since his childhood. The struggles he faced to get himself the highest degree from college is a story in itself. Throughout his life he remained faithful to the lord, his mother earth and the Godly-work that he took as a mission “to uplift the mankind”.

He stayed simple and protected himself from the worldly desires of monetary gains and sacrificed his life to the benefit of his people; the poor and hopeless black farmers of South America. In his later years he received felicitation from the American government for his contribution towards the betterment of society and the natural ways to produce hundreds of things from plants, herbs and soil. To top it he educated the poor to make a commercial use of their produce and helped earn a respectable status in the society.

The almighty has time and again chosen individual to accomplish his task and save the entire society from destruction. Carver was the one chosen during those days.

Birth: 1864, Diamond Groove, Missouri, USA

Died: 5^th January 1943, Tuskegee, Alabama, USA

Things to learn:

• 1.   Live and lead a simple life.
• 2.   Work is worship.
• 3.   Nature has all solutions. Believe and have faith in it.
• 4.   Self discipline.
• 5.   Attain mission of life.
• 6.   Sustain through difficult phase.
• 7.   Love thy nation.
• 8.   Demonstrate gratitude.
• 9.   Focus. Avoid meaningless distractions.
• 10. Assist the development and growth of mankind through self sacrifice.

You can gather more information on this great human being in detail by reading the Marathi book “एक होता कार्वर” authored by Veena Gavankar.

Australia’s Ashes

The Kings’ amongst the Test series will begin in few days time in the very country that incepted the game of Cricket; England. The name itself, when heard reminds everyone about the Royalties and their Capitalist colonisation that robbed more than half of the wealth available across the whole world. For the very same reason, the blood of the shrewdest & proud country lover boils and erupts. Yet each one has their aspirations to visit the country of Britain at least once in their lifetime.

In Cricket, the Australians have demolished the Englishmen historically. The greatest of the great Test series have been witnessed amongst the two sides, in both the countries alike. For those who haven’t seen the 2005 Ashes played during English summer, has missed the cream of Cricket that was played during our lifetimes. The mightiest Aussies were brought down to their knees by some wonderful reverse swing bowling, exceptional catching and aggressive batting from the Englishmen.

 

In the forthcoming Ashes episode the times have changed with the English team enjoying the onus of being the best Test sides of the world currently. Ably lead by Cook and having the players like Trott, Pietersen, Bell, Prior, Anderson, Swann with Bairstow and Root as fresher’s, there is no doubt whatsoever in an Englishmen’s mind that the Aussies are here to be toast and fried and to be enjoyed with beer throughout the English summers. The experts too have decided the fates of the Kangaroos and have predicted a white wash at the hands of Englishmen. The articles written on the leading sports websites by the globally acclaimed columnist would add to the worries of the struggling Australians while the war of words initiated by the ex-English players would have added salt to the ripe wounds and exaggerated pain.

Knowing Australians and the way their Captain; Michael Clarke, leads, they would be eager to respond on field while staying away from mike and cameras. They do inherit the killing instincts and are culturally rude and have taken on the challenges bigger than their size. And to add some respite, they do have ammunition to combat the better English side. Glance at the Aussies on paper and you would find that the players like Watson, Warner, Hughes, Smith and Haddin can anchor alongside Clarke to post a formidable score allowing the fast bowlers trio; Pattinson, Siddle and Starc to ball their heart out.

The summers in England are pretty warm with clear skies and bright light allowing the perfect recipe for playing cricket. The extreme swing and bounce that can be seen during other season certainly vanishes and getting the runs becomes lot easier. With the armour of aggressive batters Australia would score their runs much quicker against the seamers and although the quality off spinners of Swann would trouble them, they are in with more than a chance of turning the tables on Englishmen. English seamers when compared are more rigid and less versatile on their offering. Whereas the Aussie pack has the dreadful outswingers of Starc, ruthless pace of Pattinson and faithful hardwork of Siddle. The team that everyone has decomposed, the one which has few heroes would fight eye-to-eye and would stag a fabulous Test series against the far better opponents. In the times when Test matches are struggling for their sheer existence the Ashes in England, by far the only Test loving nation, will provide an exceptional experience of Cricket to the extreme fan of Cricket who still believes that the longer format is the best of all.

If Clarke keeps winning the toss and if the batters gather form and collect huge numbers against their name and if the pitches don’t turn ferociously then Australians are in England to win this Ashes by two games to one.

Stay awake. Keep watching!

The Best Match of my Life

Date 9th March 2013
Place Virat Nagar, Virar West

What a Match! 
Jaw-Breaking; Nerve-Wrecking; Heartbeat-Exploder; Cliff-Hanger; Nail-Biter say whatever you have heard about the Great matches from the best of commentators, we had it all on 9th of March 2013 at Virat nagar, Virar West. Two Captains; one me and second Ankit divided equal number of players with different abilities to combat in the first ‘Two Innings’ match. The occasion was special as the veteran; Rajesh Narvekar visited Virar to takepart in this encounter. He accompanied his son who recently featured in daily newspaper Mid-day for smashing a century in Giles Trophy match. Ankit selected Rajesh while his son played under me. The toss was won by Ankit who decided to chase. Although the teams appeared equals in all aspects but Ankit’s team was more bowler heavy while my team had power hitters of the cricket ball.

The Teams:
My team: Me, Dinesh, Santosh, Selva, Vinay, Ajay, Dilip, Amogh, Sagar, Santosh (Security) & Tanay. 
Ankit’s team: Ankit, Vijay, Rajesh, Nilesh, Sanjay More, Rahul, Sanjay (Security), *, Sandeep, Nandu & Guru.

Rule: 2 innings per team; 1st inning consisting of 10 overs while the second inning of 5 overs. The team scoring maximum runs combining the two innings will win. A bowler can bowl maximum of 3 overs in first inning and 2 in the next.

Santosh and Dinesh opened the innings steadily. Santosh made a brisk start while Dinesh was solid and usual. Selva turned the match heads-on with his uncanny stroke play. The drop catch at long on was followed by 3 consecutive sixes of Vijay’s bowling. The scoring rate gather momentum till the time he was on crease. Vinay supported him ably. While the rest made ample use of the limited batting opportunities.

The first innings total of 88 proved huge for Ankit’s team in initial overs till Rajesh bought time to settle; Sandeep struggled; Vijay caught brilliantly by Dilip and Guru by Vinay; until only Rahul and More took attack and got close to be separated by just 5 runs.

The second innings was hit and go for us with contributions coming from here and there. The skiers caught by Vijay and the dive from Sanjay insured we were short by atleast 5/6 runs if not more. More and Guru had a brilliant bowling spell which kept the chasers in the game. Ankit was terrific in his field placing and bowling changes and kept on trying various combinations while the odds were against him.

Came the fourth inning and a target of precise 50 in 5 overs with Vijay opening alongside Rahul, and a bowling opportunity trusted to Amogh. And the gamble that went horribly wrong with lots of wayward bowling and drop catches enabling a glimpse of victory to chasers for the first time in the match. I had no option but to bring myself on and leaving the final over to be bowled by Selva. Hold on, the wickets tumbled meanwhile with Rahul, Vijay, Sandeep and Nandu returning back that swung the pendulum in our favour once again. With 23 in 2 overs the match was tight in our clutches till the man of the moment Rajesh took command and demolished my penultimate over for 10 runs with his chips, pushes and cunning running between the wickets. Poor fielding although was a significant factor too. 

The betters when saw Selva bowling the final over and 13 to get would have still gone with the bowling side but little did they knew about the ability of Rajesh who was supported well by More. A boundary, cuts and glances made the equation of 2 runs to get of a final ball with Rajesh on strike. Such situation demanded more of a Captain’s interference and intuition and I did receive it when I changed the entire fielding pattern. As Rajesh was scoring more freely on the off side I stationed myself on the cover boundary and prayed that Selva would ball short and wide of off stump. And yes he did. Rajesh applied a fierce full cut that landed the ball mere 10 meters in front of me. The spin took it away on my left which I covered, gathered and threw back in a flash aiming directly on the wicketkeeper’s stumps. It happened quickly that in no way in this entire world could Rajesh complete the second run in time as I was stunned to see Selva running from the bowling mark only to obstruct the throw which he failed to gather. Did Rajesh complete the run? Yes he did. A narrow victory for Ankit’s team. Cheers followed from behind with shouts and dances. And a snake-bite stunned silence for us.

That ended the best match I have ever played and Captained. The climax of Rajesh hitting the winning run and Selva making a mockery did flashed memories of the 99 World Cup semi-final match between Australia and South Africa. On this occasion the team chasing won. The handshakes, congratulations and commiseration followed by Vasai special Banana’s thus ending the energy sapping cricket match.

Sanjay More was my Man of the Match.

Cheers for VVCL.

What to write?

My Pen & paper haven’t met for some three-quarters of a year to make a purposeful writing. Or you may say the Keyboard and MS Word for that matter. The question that kept the drift was not the quality of the written notes but was more serene as what to write about? The decision to pick up the pen was paralysed by the reason ‘what to write’ on most occasions. After all the motivation were available thick & fine. There was politics, IPL was always here, financial crisis or the natural disasters.

To summarise it I recalled a tale from the epic teachings between Akbar-Birbal in which the minister explains the king that the desire is key to all tasks. The episode moves like this. The King had arranged a feast for all ministers with all kinds of worldly delicacies on offer. The best amongst the best cooks had prepared it to honour favours. The King acknowledges all the ministers to begin. Everyone except Birbal jumps on the food. When inquired he says “Hope she was here”.

The news reaches the ears of the Almighty. He comes forward and gently asks Birbal to reveal the reason that each one is curious to know. They all have circled Birbal by know and were eagerly waiting to know the reason that has kept away Birbal from such mouth-watering food. Instantly with his usual flair, Birbal replies "Hope she was here. Hunger; I mean”

How beautifully this describes my fate for staying away from MS Word.

Human Spirit : Heavenly Gesture

After a long gap of year and half the astute followers of Indian Cricket team were anticipating the Cricket all inclusive of what its most talked about; like Spirit-of-the-Game, National Integrity, One Religion, so on and so forth the ideologies put forward. The occasion being the first T20 match against the Kiwi’s scheduled to be played at Vishakapatnam. The reason for that was only the return of Yuvraj Singh to the International arena rather than the so called excitement of the T20’s accepted generally.

Knowing Yuvraj only from his second day at International Cricket, one can easily acknowledge his adore for the game and his commitment towards the goal equally. He’s the first man to whom a Captain can turn and guarantee a cent percent effort may it be with the bat, ball or on the field. Time and again we have witnessed his knack of placing the team ahead of self and the best example about that would be the last 50 over world cup where he played with deep pain only to cause an extra spinner in the struggling Indian bowling line up. His reward, Man-of-the-Series exemplifies the best on Human Spirit and the result achieved by a committed Man. Very humbly he credited his award to the Great Sachin Tendulkar and honestly acknowledge the fact of wanting to win the Cup for him.

We have read and heard enough about his selection to the biggest platform as an emotional gesture of the Indian selectors and that it would further enhance the teams’ performance. Even the critics stayed away from commenting against as it would have initiated an emotional outburst from every corner of the country and may have shattered the hopes of Yuvraj himself (although the news channel would love that scenario which meant higher TRP’s and ‘milking the cow’ opportunity).

Following Yuvraj since that second day you and I can easily warrant that he belongs here at the ultimate stage and that his achievements are way below par from his capabilities. The gas within him is yet to exhaust if not extracted yet. At Vishakapatnam he would be one such player roaring towards the field and announcing his return alongside stamping the wish-will-spirit bestowed on humans by that almighty. And it was only him who could have stopped Yuvraj’s return on the day it was planned to happen. As was the case it was rain God who came down on the Cricket field to express his love and perhaps to salute the indomitable character shown by Yuvraj while conquering one of the worst battles of his life against Cancer and standing tall fit, fine and smiling.

On following days we would see the return on Yuvraj and we wish him luck and success as he has been the illustration for all those people grappling with pain and sorrow. And that day would be a true Heavenly Gesture by God on his favourite creation. To quote Knaan “We patiently wait, for that fateful day, it’s not far away, but for now we say... When I get older, I will be stronger; they call me freedom, just like a waving flag.....AND THEN IT GOES BACK! AND THEN IT GOES BACK!! AND THEN IT GOES BACK!!!”

Curtains down: VVCL Season 1

 

VVCL TShirt



On 9th June 2012, the final day of VVCL Season 1, three matches amongst equally divided teams exemplified the rationale behind the inception of the league itself besides the lure of each player to perform as a team and put forward a rich galore of Cricketing excellence. The teams, Captained by Vijay & Kunal, which boast par players to perform with the bat & ball, ensured that the ultimate day proved to be a “topping cherry” over the exceptional season.

Vijay and his team consisting of players namely; Guru, Vinay, Nilesh, Kundan, Dilip, Jignesh and Abhishek narrowly won the challenge against Kunal’s team which had Swapnil, Anish, Nandu, Ajay, Pratik & Kalpak. The strokes & the tactics employed by both teams were a cricketing delight and have stamped next level entry of the VVCL team as a whole. Although fielding remains a concern (the dropped catches were abundant alongside the missed fields and weak throws) the improvement was visible in the batting department.

On a batsmen day that was assisted by a flat pitch which had turned hard & solid post first showers, the bowlers had a forgetful outing. Not one bowler could hold his head high throughout the three matches. Add to it the poor fielding, especially the drop chances, further enhanced the bowlers nightmare. On the flipside the batters did ‘The Full Monty’ by accumulating tons & tons of runs, some coming of the huge sixes. The balls kept crossing over boundary time & again, sometimes even thrice an over, equally to the best bowlers and lesser ones, appending the Captain’s woes.

Most of the sixes came with spectacular shots that were sweetly middled but one particular that Dilip whacked to Kunal with his head down and eyes closed, the top edge flown high & long over midwicket spiced up the entire day. Similarly, the one bounce throw by Abhishek from the deep square leg fence, which ran out Swapnil, who until then has ripped off attack and was threathing to chase down a mammoth score of 72 in six overs of the final match, was a fielding spectacle of the day.

Bigger than the match results of entire season; the wins, losses and ties; the thing that was heartening was the contribution of each player (apart from money) which helped VVCL into becoming a ‘Next Big Thing’ collectively in the lives of everyone. The opportunity to enter fields again after a long gap for enjoying this mesmerising game of Cricket that has encapsulated the entire nation on one stage was grabbed by players living in the vicinity of Vasai-Virar and equally by few coming from faraway places like Lower Parel, Lalbaug, Dombivili and even Mazgaon. Although few living nearby have missed the bus.



Virat Nagar Cricket Ground, Virar West



The idea which came out accidently from the tender thoughts of Nandu & Nilesh was uphold by Vijay & Kunal marking the beginning of VVCL on Saturday the 28th January 2012 at Vasant Nagari ground, Vasai East. Nine players gathered on the occasion to kick-start the VVCL engine. Since then three grounds namely Sant Nagar Virar East, Virat Nagar Virar West and Helipad ground Virar West have witnessed the VVCL matches. A resounding number of 50 players (if not more) have become part of the initial season. A Cricket tour than has just eluded in Season 1 would be the highlight of the next season beginning in October 2012.



The season proved to be a reflection on one’s health as it brought forward the physical challenges faced by each one. The ill effect on one’s body due to a corporate seat underneath a freezing air conditioner was reversed to some extent and the importance of healthy body has left a lasting impression on everyone. Come Season 2 and be rest assured that the players would return fitter, slimmer and sharper.

Cricket do provides funny episodes and VVCL did encounter a few of them. Be it Nandu’s running between the wickets or Ameet’s run out or the fall of Santosh & Reuben did allowed for some laughter. Amongst them all was Kalpak’s dive into drainage when Nilesh threw stones across to fetch the dipped ball proved to be the peak of hilarity.

Snacks post match

The curtain down over Season 1 has allowed a reflection over the supporters those have stayed away from field. Vijay’s Mother & Wife for the breakfast on the initial day, Kunal’s wife for the delicious snacks for the couple of playing days, Shreesh whose bat (MRF) was used throughout the entire season and finally to the family members of each player for sacrificing their time, allowing them to take fields on Saturday mornings. Their contribution to the VVCL was quintessential. Thank you all!

Season 1 Players:

O&M

1. Kunal

2. Vijay

3. Nilesh

4. Nandu

5. Mahendra

6. Ajay

7. Kundan

8. Reuben

9. Guru

10. Ankit

11. Rushikesh

12. Harmeet

13. Ameet

14. Dilip

15. Sanjay More

16. Jitendra

17. Santosh

18. Jignesh

19. Anish

20. Pawar

21. Vipul

22. Shravan

O&M Securities

1. Sanjay

2. Santosh

3. Vasant

4. Chavan

5. Mohan

6. Bhosale

Others

1. Amogh

2. Aniket

3. Sagar

4. Amey

5. Nilesh

6. Yash

7. Anil

8. Manish

9. Rahul

10. Pratik

11. Swapnil

12. Abhishek

13. Kalpak Mule’s friend 1

14. Kalpak Mule’s friend 2

15. Amit Vartak

16. Nivit

17. Harish

18. Shravan’s friend 1

19. Shravan’s friend 1

20. Selva (Chris Gayle – remember his one handed catch)

21. Sandeep

22. Hardik

23. Jogger

24. Swapnil (second one)

VVCL Kids

1. Mohan’s son

2. Vijay’s nephew

3. Sashwat – Guru’s son

4. Shubham – Jignesh’s son

VVCL Epic Encounter - 19.5.2012

VVCL, on Saturday, the 19th day of May 2012, has encountered an epic exhibition of fierceful Cricket between the two teams divided equally amongst each other.

Two matches, and to the wildest guesses of anyone, that went on till the final ball (alike the IPL matches), of course not fixed, and which surfaced the indomitable attitude of players, barring results, has made the game itself look better.

The class, the style, and stamina, the zeal and the flavour, alongside the tactics were all served on table and those of you who have missed (for reasons good or bad), has missed a day in ones cricketing career (if not life).

As we anticipate the skies to open up and take away the humidity from the ambience, and with that as we count towards the end of season, this day will be remembered as the day which brought smiles to the victorious and also to the fighters, where bruised skins and the aching bodies add up to the pleasure and that the wings of VVCL have gather muscle and awaits its next leap.

-
Accolades to each member!
Live Long Cricket!!
VVCL for Life!!!

World Cup Struggle

Everyone's struggling.

The spectators struggle to get tickets. On a contrary the Police sticks make the wounds soar.

The one sided games give pale look to the world event.

The lack to keen followers make the worst bargain for the 50 over game.

Indian are struggling to take 10 wickets.

English are struggling to fill in the injured faces.

Aussies are struggling to get a tough opponent.

All in all the World cup followers are those who have monetary benefits involved while the real cricket followers has lost his way long back. IPL to be blamed.

Maybe an Indo-Pak game could spice it up a little. (Alas! you have the bookies running high everywhere)

One team would win, but the cricket has lost. SAD :(

A Cup and the World chase

The time has ticked which has begun the 10^th edition of the Cricket World cup. The teams’ representing each continent has gathered together in the Indian subcontinent to mark their superiority. And to add spice to recipe, none of the team is said ‘favorites’ to win title. The at par teams will compete each other for the 41 day long event and one amongst them would be crowned the title of “World Champions” for the next four years.

Let’s run through each probable favorites.

Australia

Since they have won it for 4 times including a hattrick, no one can discard them from being favorites even after a recent dip. They have a staggering pace attack with Bret Lee at his extreme best, Tait and Bolinger with an able support and Johnson as a perfect allrounder. Shane Watson has proved his abilities and needs no separate mention in the list of quality players. Only if their batters get together and put up a decent show, I believe the Aussies have a fair enough chance.

India

Everything is at stake for the Indian players during this edition. Add to it the home conditions and the pressure from media and crowds, the expectations of every Indian and the Farewell to Sachin Tendulkar. The talk of Sachin getting hundred in the Finals at Wankhede has been talk with audacity. In the recent past and since the failure in the previous occasion in Caribbean, the Indian has shun its tag from chockers to winners, thanks to the flamboyant Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his techniques to lead a bunch of exceptional cricketers. Only if Zaheer and his mates in fast bowling come together to put an outstanding show, the Indian fairytale can come close to the most important of all the titles.

South Africa

The Africa’s have a carried the tag of favourites since their entry into the event back in 1992, but have always failed to jump over and across at the important juncture and have eluded the glory. With two good spinners in side and a prolific batting lineup, this team would go long into the tournament.

Srilanka

The home conditions and the huge fan support have been the positives for Srilanka in whatever type of cricket they play. Add to it the most versatile team consisting of gutsy batsmen, aggressive bowlers and some electric quick fielders, the combination would make an upset for sure.

England

The recent peak in form and the Ashes triumph have made the Bristishers appear respectful their ancestral teams. The performance is deep routed in the camaraderie between the players and deep desire to come out of trouble times. They are most likely a team to go distance, if their batters fare well on the viciously turning sub-continental pitches.

West Indies, Bangladesh, New Zealand

They form an important group of teams as they are more than capable of haunting the cup chasers with an upset. The results against these teams would make or break a championship seeker. If at all they conquer each of the probable then the World cup would spice it up during the closing hours.

The Cup comes home

Another 3 weeks past the engines will be set on, while the aspirants of glory will mark the beginning of the 10th World Cup of the most exciting game called Cricket. The game itself has grown leaps and bounds from the yester years. The pace nowadays is electrifying while the skills of players on exhibit have crossed all know human capabilities. The fitness is more important than form and commitment more important than ability.

The Indians when crowned Champions in 1983 under Kapil Dev, the team had a perfect balance with ‘n’ number of utility players who stood up at the crucial junctures when the opportunity arose. The current team of Dhoni has a bit more of all than in past champions. With no doubt the expectations of the billion people will stand behind and grant support to the most beloved team.

And if the glory-seekers of team India crosses over on the final day at Wankhede, it will prove to be an icing on the extravagant career of the games favorite son, Sachin Tendulkar!

African Safari

When the Indian Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his colleagues went on-board the airplane that would cross the Arabian Sea and reach the continent of Africa, the Indian contingent of the cricketing fans were into a huge turmoil of emotional outburst. One; for that it brought the nightmares of the previous tours, and secondly with a hope that as this team has weathered the most adverse conditions in the recent past this tour too may become an exceptional success.

Back there in the Republic of South Africa the bunch lead by Grahame Smith was busy preparing to dethrone Indians from the top spot and gather the prestigious crown. They made sure the tallest of the ballers were in team with their prime weapons blazing all over the huge Indian batting line up. The pitch for this epic encounter was set with the greenish top, favourable swing and the lethal bounce. Dale Steyn, alongside Morne Morkel looked fit to the extreme and was in prime form throughout.

The battle at Centurion began with the home team gathering Indian wickets almost at will. The heavy-steady batting collapsed before the pace, swing, bounce combination of the African pace battery. The Lions tamed the Tigers and made them look as awful as a cat. First, Shewag fell into the trap which began the downfall and the rest followed soon. Gambhir, Dravid, Laxman and Raina with exception of Tendulkar & Dhoni made a long walk towards and away from the action within no time. The nightmares of the 1996 tour flashed when Donald-Pollock duo finished the Indian batting in no time. Unlike the previous occasion’s it was the over pitched deliveries and late swing that caught the Indian batter’s gasping.

Kallis, and the big unit he is, made sure that the Indian remain fielding for long hours.

He gathered his initial double hundred and the sign of relief on him and the South African fans was worth watching. De’Villers celebration of Kallis’s feat spoke heavily of the glue between this team. Another landmark was the Sachin’s 50th century in the second innings which prolonged the Indian defeat. The fight and character of Indian batters in the second inning proved evidence to their steep rise at the number one spot.

Came Durban the next venue and the butterflies in the stomachs of the Indian fans grew wilder. The Gambhir injury, the lost toss, a green top and the fresh looking African attack made matter worst against the Indians. Another collapse brought smiles to the African’s, but only briefly as the Indian seamers and Harbhajan bundled out the African’s soon with a handsome lead. Another collapse of Indian batting till Laxman stood stable and alongside the tail gathered good score to provide the Indian bowlers with an opportunity to tame Lion in his own den. As the saying goes “the wonded Tiger is even more dangerous” so was the outcome of the test match with the Indian crowned victorious and their one number position intact.

Newlands, with its beautiful location of Table Mountains on one side and the green belt on other, was set to make this evenly contest more exciting. The flat and clear pitch with warm conditions favoured the touring side and when the ever bumbling Sreesanth bowled his heart out to send the African’s packing the tense look in the eyes of home side fans was evident. Their savour Kallis once again stood strong and fought hard till the last blood even after sustaining an external injury. And when the Indian batters were blazing all over it was Dale Styen show that made sure the match was evenly poised. He showed the world what fast bowling is all about and the combination of line, length and swing at a high pace makes a number one fast bowler. No wonder he is better to any another fast bowler ever at the current stage.

The Indians got better over the African’s in the second innings as well till the Kallis nailed the last coffin when he marched his team towards safety with the lower order. Draw was the only result possible and the Indian batters manage a fluent batting outing on the crumbled fifth day pitch, thus ending this historic tour with a point each.

This battle between the first and second side of the world was the requirement of an hour when the test cricket is fading away its popularity to the glamorised T20’s. Indians would feel better as they managed to save series loss on African ground for the first time. Kallis and Tendulkar batting show in adverse conditions have once again proved the importance of style and technique. All bowlers enjoyed good run with Steyn and Harbhajan being the best for their sides. Although the likes of Shewag-Dravid for India and Smith-Prince for Africa failed miserably the contest was better than the media hyped Ashes show that ran alongside.

Possibly it was the last test match show on African soil for the veteran Indian trio viz; Tendulkar, Laxman and Dravid, the scores are levelled until Kallis comes to India to play his final test series here. And we the true Indian fans eagerly wait for that day.

Slow Down Culture

This has come to me as an email forward, which i beleive is worth reading.
Special thanks to the original author. Cheers!
Regards,
Kunal

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An interesting reflection : Slow Down Culture
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It's been 18 years since I joined Volvo, a Swedish company. Working for them has proven to be an interesting experience. Any project here takes 2 years to be finalized, even if the idea is simple and brilliant. It's a rule.
Globalize processes have caused in us (all over the world) a general sense of searching for immediate results. Therefore, we have come to posses a need to see immediate results. This contrasts greatly with the slow movements of the Swedish. They, on the other hand, debate, debate, debate, hold x quantity of meetings and work with a slowdown scheme. At the end, this always yields better results.

Said in another words: 1. Sweden is about the size of San Pablo, a state in Brazil. 2. Sweden has 2 million inhabitants. 3. Stockholm, has 500,000 people. 4. Volvo, Escania, Ericsson, Electrolux, Nokia are some of its renowned companies. Volvo supplies the NASA.

The first time I was in Sweden, one of my colleagues picked me up at the hotel every morning. It was September, bit cold and snowy. We would arrive early at the company and he would park far away from the entrance (2000 employees drive their car to work). The first day, I didn't say anything, either the second or third. One morning I asked, "Do you have a fixed parking space? I've noticed we park far from the entrance even when there are no other cars in the lot." To which he replied, "Since we're here early we'll have time to walk, and whoever gets in late will be late and need a place closer to the door. Don't you think? Imagine my face.

Nowadays, there's a movement in Europe name Slow Food. This movement establishes that people should eat and drink slowly, with enough time to taste their food, spend time with the family, friends, without rushing. Slow Food is against its counterpart: the spirit of Fast Food and what it stands for as a lifestyle. Slow Food is the basis for a bigger movement called Slow Europe, as mentioned by Business Week.

Basically, the movement questions the sense of "hurry" and "craziness" generated by globalization, fueled by the desire of "having in quantity" (life status) versus "having with quality", "life quality" or the "quality of being". French people, even though they work 35 hours per week, are more productive than Americans or British. Germans have established 28.8 hour workweeks and have seen their productivity been driven up by 20%. This slow attitude has brought forth the US's attention, pupils of the fast and the "do it now!".
This no-rush attitude doesn't represent doing less or having a lower productivity. It means working and doing things with greater quality, productivity, perfection, with attention to detail and less stress. It means reestablishing family values, friends, free and leisure time. Taking the "now", present and concrete, versus the "global", undefined and anonymous. It means taking humans' essential values, the simplicity of living.
It stands for a less coercive work environment, more happy, lighter and more productive where humans enjoy doing what they know best how to do. It's time to stop and think on how companies need to develop serious quality with no-rush that will increase productivity and the quality of products and services, without losing the essence of spirit.

In the movie, Scent of a Woman, there's a scene where Al Pacino asks a girl to dance and she replies, "I can't, my boyfriend will be here any minute now". To which Al responds, "A life is lived in an instant". Then they dance to a tango.
Many of us live our lives running behind time, but we only reach it when we die of a heart attack or in a car accident rushing to be on time. Others are so anxious of living the future that they forget to live the present, which is the only time that truly exists. We all have equal time throughout the world. No one has more or less. The difference lies in how each one of us does with our time. We need to live each moment. As John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans".

Congratulations for reading till the end of this message. There are many who will have stopped in the middle so as not to waste time in this globalized world.

God bless!